Oprah Winfrey

Robservations on the media beat:

Oprah Winfrey is opening the vault to 25 years of “legendary interviews, a-ha moments, ugly cries and unforgettable surprises,” according to an announcement this week by her company, OWN. Starting Tuesday, audio from more than 4,500 episodes of “The Oprah Winfrey Show” will be released as a serialized weekly podcast. (Here is the link to subscribe.) The first 10 installments will focus on race relations, drug addiction, divorce and weight loss, among other topics. “As we head into a new decade, it’s a great time for fans of ‘The Oprah Winfrey Show’ to revisit the joy, laughter and inspiration that kept us all tuning in daily for 25 years,” Tina Perry, president of OWN, told People magazine. “ ‘The Oprah Winfrey Show: The Podcast’ is the perfect opportunity to look back and reflect, take stock of how we’ve grown and to be reminded that we’re all in this together.” Produced in Chicago and syndicated nationally from 1986 to 2011, it remains the highest rated daytime talk show in history. Continue reading →

Barry Cronin

Robservations on the media beat:

David Schuster

Barry Cronin, the former Sun-Times sportswriter who's now editor of Chicago District Golfer magazine, has been named co-host of "Scorecard," the weekly golf show on Entercom sports/talk WSCR 670-AM. Starting April 4, he'll join co-host David Schuster, reporter and update anchor on The Score, from 6 to 8 a.m. Saturdays. Cronin and Schuster succeed Ed Sherman and Steve Olken, who stepped down after 10 years on the show. "In addition to keeping up with the PGA Tour, David and I plan to entertain our listeners by exploring local courses, how to play better, the latest golf gear, cool golf travel destinations, how to get more kids involved in the game . . . the list goes on," Cronin told me. "From the outside, golf might look like a quiet game, but there are a lot of issues and controversies roiling just below the surface and we’re going to look into them — along with getting into all the fun stuff. I’m grateful and honored for the opportunity." After 13 years at the Sun-Times, Cronin left in 1995 to become a golf industry publicist and launch Cronin Communications, based in Park Ridge. Continue reading →

Marquee Sports Network

Robservations on the media beat:

The Chicago Cubs and Sinclair Broadcast Group had more than a year to get their act together to launch Marquee Sports Network. Even so, Saturday's long-awaited debut turned out to be the worst new product launch in memory. Still without Comcast Xfinity, the region's largest cable provider, it only got worse from there. Hulu + Live TV, touted as a streaming alternative for cable cord cutters, pushed back its start date for Marquee to perhaps opening day March 26. Also left in the dark were countless Charter Spectrum and DirecTV customers. Others had no idea where to find Marquee, thanks to the network's inadequate marketing efforts. Remember when Cubs bossman Tom Ricketts got roundly booed onstage at the mere mention of Marquee during last month's Cubs Convention? Those boos just got louder. Continue reading →

Ana Belaval

Robservations on the media beat:

Ana Belaval, the multitalented "Around Town" reporter on the top-rated "WGN Morning News," is about to star in her own one-woman comedy show. “Reporting Live: I’m Ana Belaval” shares her personal story "on how facing weakness can be the key to unlocking destiny." Written and performed by Belaval (and subtitled "I've Kept It Real: A One-Woman Show"), it opens April 23 for one week at The Den Theatre, 1331 North Milwaukee Avenue in Chicago. (Here is the link for tickets.) “We worked with Ana to bring her story to life as if we were reporting ‘live from inside the brain of Ana Belaval’,” said Wendy Mateo, who developed and directed the show with Lorena Diaz. "Do you have your tickets?" Belaval tweeted Wednesday. "You know I keep it real but I’m taking it to another level." Continue reading →

Rod Blagojevich and Chuck Goudie (Photo: ABC 7 Chicago)

A gaggle of Chicago reporters were on hand at Denver International Airport when Rod Blagojevich boarded a United Airlines plane Tuesday night after his release from prison. But only one managed to secure the coach seat next to the former Illinois governor for the 2½-hour flight home.

Chuck Goudie, veteran investigative reporter for ABC-owned WLS-Channel 7, somehow pulled it off — to the astonishment and envy of his peers. Continue reading →

Joe Mansueto (Photo: Chicago Fire)

WGN-Channel 9 is getting back into the play-by-play sports business after all.

The Nexstar Media Group station today announced a multiyear agreement to become the TV home for all locally broadcast Chicago Fire soccer games, starting this season. Continue reading →

Bob Petty

Robservations on the media beat:

Colleagues are remembering Bob Petty as a pioneering African-American news anchor, reporter and public-affairs host at ABC-owned WLS-Channel 7 for more than three decades. Petty died of lung cancer Tuesday at his home in Hyde Park. He was 79. “Bob Petty was an outstanding journalist, giving voice to thousands of important Chicago stories during his 31-year career at ABC 7,” said Jennifer Graves, vice president of news at ABC 7. “He handled both anchor and reporting duties with poise, professionalism and grace and paved the way as one of the first, full-time African-American anchormen in Chicago.” Petty, who retired in 2002, was inducted in the Silver Circle of the Chicago/Midwest chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and in the Cronkite Alumni Hall of Fame at Arizona State University, his alma mater. The Memphis native also served a William Benton Fellowship at the University of Chicago. Continue reading →

Mick Lee

WLIT 93.9-FM remained the most popular radio station in the Chicago area during January, according to Nielsen Audio figures released Tuesday.

It not only marked the third consecutive monthly win for the iHeartMedia adult contemporary station, but the first time 93.9 Lite FM has captured the top spot outside of its Christmas music format, which runs during November and December. Continue reading →

Lance Houston

All this week on WEBG 95.5-FM they’re counting down the "Top 1,000 Country Songs of All Time.”

From 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily, the iHeartMedia country music station is playing the greatest hits of the genre from the 1950s to the present, culminating in No. 1 — whatever that may be — sometime on Saturday afternoon. (Here is the list in alphabetical order.) Continue reading →

Larry Lujack and Dick Biondi (1983 photo)

Robservations on the media beat:

Illinois Museum of Rock & Roll

Chicago radio legends Larry Lujack and Dick Biondi have been named charter inductees in the Hall of Fame of the new Illinois Rock & Roll Museum on Route 66 under construction in Joliet. Lujack, who died in 2013, was elected by museum members in the DJ category. Biondi was named recipient of the Founder's Lifetime Achievement Award and also will be inducted in the Hall of Fame. Ceremonies will be March 29 at the Renaissance Center in Joliet. (Here is the link.) Other inaugural inductees include Chicago, Cheap Trick, Ides of March, Muddy Waters, Buddy Guy, Buckinghams and REO Speedwagon as performers; and WLS Radio, Chess Records and Thirsty Whale in non-performer categories. Continue reading →