Felicia Middlebrooks
As radio continued to redefine its role in the lives of listeners sheltering in place, WBBM 780-AM/WCFS 105.9-FM widened its first-place lead in Nielsen Audio ratings released Monday.
With a cumulative weekly audience of 938,400, the Entercom all-news combo again finished first overall, and led in mornings with Felicia Middlebrooks and Pat Cassidy, afternoons with Keith Johnson and Lisa Fielding, and evenings with Bob Conway and Andy Dahn. Continue reading
WLS 890 AM
With the world of sports at a standstill because of the pandemic, it may seem like an odd time to launch a sports talk show. But that’s not stopping WLS 890-AM.
Beginning tonight the Cumulus Media news/talk station will air a new “sports-focused program” from 7 to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday, hosted by news anchor and sports reporter Rob Martier. Continue reading
Chicago Independent Media Alliance
Robservations on the media beat:
At a time when reliable local news has never been more important, many Chicago area publications and websites are fighting for survival amid drastic declines in revenue. Under the umbrella of the Chicago Independent Media Alliance, more than 40 media outlets have teamed up for an unprecedented online fundraising campaign. Starting today, donations will be accepted through June 5 at savechicagomedia.org. Donors can split their contribution among all of the outlets or specify one or more individually. (Here is the link.) “We who are in independent media find ourselves in a unique and dangerous economic situation,” said Tracy Baim, publisher of the Chicago Reader. “In response to COVID-19, national news outlets are tallying death tolls and assessing the situation globally. While that coverage is important, it leaves the average citizen confused and unsure of how to proceed within their community.” Participants in the fundraising effort include: Continue reading
Jenn White
Jenn White, who’s been a prominent program host at Chicago Public Media news/talk WBEZ 91.5-FM since 2016, is about to go national.
White and the station announced Thursday she’s moving to Washington, D.C., to become host of “1A,” the Monday-through-Friday NPR talk show produced by WAMU at American University and distributed to more than 375 stations nationwide. Continue reading
News Nation
Robservations on the media beat:
A Monday-through-Friday anchor team has been hired, studios are under construction, and a September 1 target date has been announced for the launch of "News Nation," the primetime national newscast from WGN America. The identity of the anchors and other on-air talent remains under wraps, but in an earnings call with analysts Wednesday Nexstar Media Group chairman and CEO Perry Sook said plans are proceeding despite business challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. Airing from 7 to 10 p.m. seven nights a week, the newscast will originate from WGN America's Chicago headquarters and reach a potential audience of more than 75 million homes. Jennifer Lyons, former news director of WGN-Channel 9, was named vice president of news for WGN America in January. Vowing that "News Nation" would be "100 percent absent of bias,” Sook said: “We’re so serious about that we’re hiring a panel of rhetoricians to review our broadcasts for unconscious bias that may creep into the words we use and the reporting that we do.” Continue reading
Jim DeRogatis
Jim DeRogatis, the longtime Chicago music critic, crusading reporter, author and broadcaster, and Clarence Waldron, former senior writer and senior editor of Jet Magazine, have been named recipients of Lifetime Achievement Awards from the Chicago Headline Club.
In lieu of the 2020 Peter Lisagor Awards ceremony, which has been canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they’ll be recognized at a virtual event May 15. Other winners of awards for excellence in journalism from the local chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists also will be announced at that time. Continue reading
Chicago Tribune Guild
Robservations on the media beat:
Are the new owners of the Chicago Tribune using the cover of coronavirus to gut the newspaper's staff? That's the word from the union representing editorial employees following a meeting with the company Monday. "Tribune Publishing wants to furlough half of the Chicago Tribune’s features and sports departments, plus an unspecified number of photographers, for three straight months," the Chicago Tribune Guild executive board told its members. "It’s in addition to the furloughs and pay cuts they want to implement for everyone else. And they didn’t rule out longer furloughs in other areas of the newsroom, either." Here's the key: "We are fighting Alden now," the board said, referring to New York-based hedge fund Alden Global Capital, now Tribune Publishing’s largest stockholder. "The economic downturn opened the door for them to try to gut us despite our union protections." Continue reading
SHE 100.3 Chicago
On the heels of firing 12 employees in response to revenue declines, Hubbard Radio Chicago eliminated the program director’s position Monday at adult contemporary WSHE 100.3-FM.
Cat Thomas, who held the job since 2015, will move to Seattle to become brand and content director of two Hubbard Radio stations — KQMV and KRWM. Continue reading
Mark Guarino
Mark Guarino, veteran journalist and Chicago correspondent for The Washington Post, has been named managing editor and contributing reporter at The Daily Line, the subscription newsletter on state and local politics.
He succeeds Heather Cherone, who joined Window to the World Communications WTTW-Channel 11 last month as a digital news reporter covering City Hall. Continue reading
Hubbard Radio Chicago
The axe fell Friday at Hubbard Radio Chicago, terminating the jobs of 12 employees, including several on-air personalities.
It marked the latest reduction in staff among Chicago's major broadcast groups attributed to the coronavirus shutdown and its effect on advertising revenue. But unlike the other publicly traded companies, the Saint Paul, Minnesota-based Hubbard Broadcasting is a privately held, family-owned business. Continue reading