National Radio Hall of Fame

Public voting began Wednesday for two categories in the National Radio Hall of Fame, marking the first time in five years listeners will participate in the selection process.

Fans can text message their votes among the four nominees for Music Format On-Air Personality (Delilah, Elvis Duran, Steve Harvey, and Ryan Seacrest) and four nominees for Spoken Word On-Air Personality (Sean Hannity, Clark Howard, Jim Rome, and Dr. Laura Schlessinger). Voting will continue through August 26. Continue reading →

Chicago Sun-Times

The financially troubled Sun-Times cut the No. 2 job in its newsroom Tuesday, dropping managing editor Craig Newman and eliminating his position at the paper.

At a staff meeting announcing the move, Jim Kirk, publisher and editor-in-chief of the Sun-Times, said he would become more involved in the day-to-day news process. He said his goal was to retain as many reporters and columnists as budget constraints would allow. Continue reading →

Emmy Awards

Pat Tomasulo, the “WGN Morning News” sports anchor and occasional standup comedian, has been tapped to host the 57th annual Chicago/Midwest Emmy Awards November 7.

Presented by the regional chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, the event will air live from 7 to 9 p.m. on Chicago’s CLTV and Milwaukee’s WITI digital channel 6.2. Both stations (as well as WGN-Channel 9) are owned by Tribune Media. Continue reading →

Tribune Tower

Bricks from Wrigley Field and old Comiskey Park this week will be added to the limestone facade of Tribune Tower, bringing to 150 the number of artifacts embedded in the building’s exterior, according to an announcement Monday.

They’ll join fragments of historic sites from all 50 states and around the world — from the Great Wall of China and the Taj Mahal to Westminster Abbey and the Great Pyramid of Egypt — adorning the neo-Gothic landmark at 435 North Michigan Avenue. Another treasure from the Cave of the Nativity in Bethlehem appears on an interior wall inside the lobby. Continue reading →

Univision America Chicago

Did you know there’s one radio station in Chicago where you can hear Bears football, Bulls basketball, White Sox baseball and Cubs baseball? (Hint: It helps if you understand Spanish.)

Boasting a play-by-play lineup many broadcasters would envy, Chicago radio’s most unlikely sports powerhouse is Univision America WRTO AM 1200, the full-service Spanish-language news/talk/sports station. Continue reading →

Mick Dumke

Mick Dumke, the highly respected senior writer at the Chicago Reader, is about to be traded to the Sun-Times. Both publications are owned by Sun-Times Media parent company Wrapports LLC.

Starting later this month, Dumke will join the Sun-Times as a full-time investigative reporter, beefing up the paper’s award-winning Watchdog team of Tim Novak, Chris Fusco and Dan Mihalopoulos. Continue reading →

Dave McKinney

Dave McKinney, the veteran political reporter who left the Sun-Times last year in a blaze of headlines, is back in print.

In addition to several freelance stories published recently by the New York Times and Chicago magazine, McKinney has just written a major analysis of the Illinois pension crisis for Crain’s Chicago Business. Continue reading →

Eric Ferguson and Kathy Hart

They’re already the most successful morning team in Chicago radio history and winners of the industry's highest honors. Now Eric Ferguson and Kathy Hart have a chance to enter the National Radio Hall of Fame on the first ballot.

In their 20th year as stars of Hubbard Radio hot adult-contemporary WTMX FM 101.9, they’ve just been nominated for the first time by the Radio Hall of Fame steering committee. A copy of the ballot obtained Wednesday shows the duo competing in the Active Local/Regional category with broadcasters from Los Angeles, New Orleans and Philadelphia. Continue reading →

Dan Salamone

Dan Salamone, a former news director from Cleveland, has been named executive producer of “Good Day Chicago” on Fox-owned WFLD-Channel 32.

Starting August 17, he’ll oversee the perennially low-rated newscast, which airs from 4:30 to 10 a.m. Monday through Friday. The show’s current anchors are Corey McPherrin, Darlene Hill, Jon Kelley and Melody Mendez. Continue reading →

Cindy Patrasso

Cindy Patrasso, the longtime Chicago television executive who co-created “Windy City Live,” has resigned after almost five years as supervising producer of the talk-and-entertainment show on ABC-owned WLS-Channel 7.

"Cindy Patrasso contributed greatly to the success of ‘Windy City Live,’” an ABC 7 spokeswoman said in a statement Tuesday. “We thank her for her efforts and wish her nothing but the best.” Patrasso declined to comment on her departure. Continue reading →