The whoring out of local television news continues without letup — this time courtesy of Fox-owned WFLD-Channel 32.
Thursday’s “Good Day Chicago” featured a satellite interview with actress and model Shari Belafonte, who turned up to hawk a diet pill called Qsymia. Presented in the form of a Q&A with news anchor Natalie Bomke, the segment was paid for by biopharmaceutical company Vivus Inc., which hired Belafonte to promote the weight-loss drug. Continue reading
Ryan Baker
It won’t be opening in early spring as originally planned, but a River North restaurant backed by three Chicago sportscasters is still very much on track.
Sports anchors Ryan Baker, Lou Canellis and Kip Lewis (of Comcast SportsNet) are partners in Reverie, a two-story restaurant and lounge under construction at 414 North Orleans Street. Despite the prominent placement of large-screen televisions, it’s not being labeled a sports bar.
Chef Rodelio Aglibot is designing a menu that will be “contemporary American with Asian accents,” according to Adam Cisek of Chicago-based Premium Themes Inc., another partner in the venture. Continue reading
Jerry Angelo
Former Bears general manager Jerry Angelo has signed an exclusive agreement to appear as lead football insider on Tribune Broadcasting sports/talk WGWG LP 87.7.
Starting this week, Angelo will join midday hosts David Kaplan and David Haugh at 10:25 a.m. every Wednesday on The Game 87.7 FM. Continue reading
Jon Hansen
In the latest expansion of DNAinfo.com Chicago, the hyperlocal news operation is about to add an audio news service to its digital platform.
Starting Wednesday, DNAinfo Radio will be streamed through an audio player on the home page of the website. Programming for the all-news format will originate from a studio at the 233 North Michigan Avenue offices of DNAinfo Chicago. Continue reading
Jonathan Eig
Two years after launching as a digital destination for great local sportswriting, ChicagoSide is changing hands, founding editor Jonathan Eig announced Tuesday.
Eig and his partner, Sol Lieberman, are turning their company over to Nick Tranfaglia, director of business development at TiqIQ, a New York-based ticket broker and the principal advertiser on the ChicagoSide site.
“Having worked with top online sports brands such as ESPN, Golf Digest and SB Nation, he [Tranfaglia] has the right experience for the job,” Eig wrote in an email to his free-lance writers. “His team has a great background in SEO and social media and they’re eager to build on our success at Chicago Side.” Continue reading
There’s a new morning line in Chicago, according to radio ratings released Monday for the period from Jan. 30 to Feb. 26.
Here’s a look at Chicago’s top 10 morning shows (as measured by Nielsen Audio among all listeners age 6 and older from 6 to 10 a.m. Monday through Friday), followed by average share of audience.
Hub Arkush
Two suburban newspaper groups are teaming up with veteran sports analyst Hub Arkush to launch a new multimedia platform for Chicago football fans.
Shaw Media and Daily Herald Media Group announced a joint venture Monday with Arkush to cover high school, college and professional football in print and online.
Together they’ll roll out Chicago Football, a glossy magazine to be published weekly during the football season and monthly in the offseason. The first edition, set to debut on newsstands April 7, will focus on the Chicago Bears' preparation for the 2014 NFL Draft. Continue reading
When a crying 8-month-old baby sparked national controversy by spoiling a recent Saturday night dinner for patrons of Chicago’s famed Alinea restaurant, parents of young children were in a quandary.
Many wondered aloud whether they could ever bring their offspring to a fine-dining establishment — or even to a moderately decent eatery.
Here to the rescue comes the new issue of Just Kidding magazine with a cover story on “No-drama dining: 42 ways to enjoy a family meal out,” serving up everything from “toddler-friendly restaurants” to ethic hot spots and upscale joints that set aside certain days for younger diners (and their parents).
The latest edition of the quarterly publication was delivered Sunday to Chicago Tribune subscribers in targeted zip codes. Later this week it will be distributed free in racks at Jewel-Osco supermarkets throughout the Chicago area. Continue reading
Jimmy Fallon
Jimmy Fallon, who plunged into the icy waters of Lake Michigan on a dare from Mayor Rahm Emanuel earlier this month, continues to get a warm reception in Chicago.
Four weeks after he took over NBC’s “Tonight Show” from Jay Leno, Fallon is leading the ratings here among all four late-night talk shows — and his Nielsen numbers in Chicago are up substantially over those Leno drew during the same period last year. Continue reading
Jake Malooley
Jake Malooley, senior editor of Time Out Chicago, has been hired as managing editor of the Chicago Reader.
Reader editor Mara Shalhoup confirmed Thursday that Malooley is replacing Sam Worley, who resigned as deputy editor in December to focus exclusively on his writing.
“I'm an admirer of Jake's work — particularly his deep knowledge of Chicago and his ability to write intelligently on a wide variety of topics,” Shalhoup told me. “I think he's a natural fit for the Reader.” Continue reading
