Ben Calhoun

For the second time in less than three years, Chicago Public Media is in the market for a new programming chief at WBEZ FM 91.5.

Ben Calhoun is leaving as vice president of content and programming, effective in April. He is expected to return to the staff of “This American Life,” where he spent five years as a producer and reporter for the public radio magazine show. Continue reading →

Jimmy deCastro

Jimmy deCastro, who stepped down last fall as president and general manager of Tribune Broadcasting news/talk WGN AM 720, is back in business.

The longtime Chicago media executive announced the launch Monday of After The Whistle LLC, a sports marketing company and representation firm. With offices to be located at 414 North Orleans Street, the new enterprise is an offshoot of The Content Factory, deCastro’s national syndication and new media company. Continue reading →

WGN Morning News

Chicago’s most entertaining morning news show is now its most popular one, too.

Results of the latest Nielsen sweep show WGN-Channel 9 winning every hour from 5 to 10 a.m. Monday through Friday with an average of 105,275 households.

WGN Morning News has led the advertiser-coveted 25-to-54 age demographic for six years, but February marked the first time the Tribune Broadcasting station surpassed ABC-owned WLS-Channel 7 in total morning viewership as well. Continue reading →

Roger Simon

Robservations on the media beat:

Six weeks after he retired as chief political columnist for politico.com the venerable Roger Simon is back in print. Starting Friday, he’ll write a monthly column exclusively for the Sun-Times. The freelance deal is a homecoming of sorts for the South Shore native, who first joined the Sun-Times in 1972 and spent 12 years as an investigative reporter and columnist. For his initial column, Simon says what he thinks of President Donald Trump’s budget and first weeks in office. Continue reading →

Dean Richards

Robservations on the media beat:

Dean Richards, longtime entertainment reporter and critic for Tribune Broadcasting WGN-Channel 9 and WGN AM 720, will be honored next week at the 53rd Chicago International Television Festival. Richards will receive Cinema/Chicago’s prestigious Chicago Award for his career achievements. “Since the founding of the Chicago International Film Festival, we have always saluted the extraordinary talent of those producing content for television," festival founder Michael Kutza said in a statement, calling Richards “a trusted resource for those seeking entertainment reviews and interviews that go beyond the superficial.” The award will be presented March 23 at AMC River East, 322 East Illinois Street. Also honored at the event will be famed commercial producer Joe Sedelmaier with the Chicago Legend Award, and Amazon Studios with the Commitment to Excellence in Television Production Award. Continue reading →

John Cruickshank

John Cruickshank, the Canadian journalist and media executive who earned respect and trust during seven years as an editor and publisher of the Sun-Times, is returning to Chicago as a diplomat for his country.

Cruickshank, 63, has been named consul general of Canada in Chicago. The Midwest consulate covers Illinois, Wisconsin, Missouri, Northwest Indiana and the Kansas City metropolitan area. He will assume the post in mid-April. Continue reading →

Frank Mathie

Robservations on the media beat:

Sure and begorrah, we’ll be seeing the great Frank Mathie, 75, reporting from Chicago’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade at noon Saturday on WLS-Channel 7. The live broadcast will also be a kickoff to “50 Years of Frank,” a celebration of Mathie’s remarkable career on the ABC-owned station. The dean of “Eyewitness News” officially retired in 2006, but he’s continued as a freelance feature contributor since then. On April 3 — 50 years to the day after he started — he’ll sign off for good. Said Mathie: “A half-century doing the stories I love. What a lucky guy!” Continue reading →

David Snyder

Former Crain’s Chicago Business publisher David Snyder, who spent 33 years building his personal equity with the city’s business community, is setting his sights on the challenge of reducing violence and unemployment in Chicago.

Snyder, 55, has been named chief operating officer of Chicago CRED (Creating Real Economic Destiny), a nonprofit initiative launched by Emerson Collective and headed by Arne Duncan, the former U.S. Secretary of Education and former Chicago Public Schools chief. Continue reading →

Joe Ricketts

Chicagoist.com will become the official blog of DNAinfo Chicago under a deal announced Wednesday between the parent companies of the two hyperlocal news sites.

DNAinfo, the digital news operation founded by billionaire Joe Ricketts and based in New York and Chicago, has acquired Gothamist LLC, the network of news sites in New York (Gothamist), Chicago (Chicagoist), Los Angeles (LAist), San Francisco (SFist), and Washington, D.C. (DCist). Continue reading →

Us Weekly

Robservations on the media beat:

Michael Ferro

A spokeswoman for tronc declined to comment on a report Tuesday that the parent company of the Chicago Tribune and Los Angeles Times was “closing in” on a deal to buy Us Weekly, the celebrity news and gossip magazine, from Jann Wenner. “Tronc chairman Michael Ferro [believes] the acquisition will move tronc toward becoming a major player in the celebrity news business and add both to its digital earnings and its digital transformation credibility,” industry analyst Ken Doctor reported, adding: “The celebrity/entertainment allure serves as a constant in tronc's short history.” If Ferro does land Us Weekly, here’s betting he taps Susanna Homan, his hand-picked editor and publisher of Chicago magazine and Splash, for a major role. Continue reading →