Justin Kaufmann off WGN Radio for ‘personal matter’

Justin Kaufmann

Justin Kaufmann

Justin Kaufmann is stepping aside indefinitely as evening host at Tribune Media news/talk WGN AM 720 to deal with what he called “a private and personal matter.”

Kaufmann, who’s been off the air since October 6, said Monday he hopes to return soon. He declined to comment further on the matter.

Part-time hosts Matt Bubala, Amy Guth, Rob Hart, Brian Noonan and James VanOsdol will take turns filling in from 7 to 11 p.m. weeknights for the time being, according to Todd Manley, vice president of programming and content at WGN.

Throughout the Cubs playoff run, the station also will air a series of post-game specials featuring Mark Carman, Andy Masur, Adam Hoge and Connor McKnight, Manley said.

Kaufmann, 41, joined WGN last April after 21 years as a producer at Chicago Public Media WBEZ FM 91.5. A northwest suburban Chicago native and Columbia College graduate, Kaufmann also is the founder of Schadenfreude, the Chicago comedy ensemble.

In the latest Nielsen Audio survey, WGN ranked 19th in evenings with a 2.4 percent share and cumulative weekly audience of 186,000.