Modern Healthcare

Robservations on the media beat:

Mary Ellen Podmolik

Mary Ellen Podmolik, former business editor of the Chicago Tribune, has been hired as editor of Modern Healthcare, the Chicago-based magazine and digital site published by Crain Communications. “I’m excited to join Modern Healthcare and help position it for the future by working with a team dedicated to empowering industry leaders by providing them with unbiased and trusted news, analysis and data,” she said in a statement. Podmolik, who accepted a buyout from the Tribune after 13 years in 2021, most recently was director of communications for the office of Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas. At Modern Healthcare she replaces Aurora Aguilar, who left after seven years to join WebMD as senior director of editorial, news, features and perspectives. Aguilar previously worked for Chicago Public Media WBEZ 91.5-FM and the Daily Herald. Modern Healthcare has seen an exodus of top talent — including the departure of more than 15 reporters and editors — since 2020. Insiders describe an organization sorely in need of new editorial leadership with the skills and savvy to straighten things out. Podmolik is just what the doctor ordered. Continue reading →

WGN Radio “Chicago Theatre of the Air” (1941)

Robservations on the media beat:

WGN Radio

Call me a spoilsport, but Nexstar Media might want to rethink plans to celebrate the 100th anniversary of WGN 720-AM this spring. Details are still under wraps, but in addition to on-air promos, insiders at the news/talk station say they’re expecting a party for advertisers and maybe a primetime special on WGN-Channel 9 in May — 100 years after Mid West Radio Central launched WDAP from the Wrigley Building. To kick off the hoopla, Nexstar has already been using a faux-retro logo for WGN, “celebrating 100 years of radio.” Just one problem: WGN has always considered its official birthday June 1, 1924. That's when the Chicago Tribune purchased WDAP and renamed it WGN for “World’s Greatest Newspaper” (the paper's slogan from 1911 to 1976). Colonel Robert McCormick, owner and publisher of the Tribune, called his novelty “the little box that picks sounds from the air.” By 1927, WGN was assigned its present, clear-channel frequency at 720 kilocycles. No matter what Nexstar says, WGN doesn't really turn 100 until 2024. Continue reading →

Melissa McGurren and Eric Ferguson (Photo: 101.9 The Mix Chicago)

The dismissal of Melissa McGurren's $10 million defamation lawsuit against Hubbard Radio Chicago doesn't mean the end of legal problems for Eric Ferguson or the parent company of hot adult-contemporary WTMX 101.9-FM.

McGurren, you'll recall, was co-host of Ferguson's morning show when she left in 2020 after 22 years at The Mix.

In a complaint filed with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and in later court filings, McGurren said Ferguson subjected her to an “unbearable hostile work environment” with the knowledge of their bosses. She also described a pattern of abuse against women at the station by Ferguson. Continue reading →

CHGO Sports

There’s a new game in town for Chicago sports fans. Welcome to CHGO Sports.

Debuting today, the new digital media outlet is the latest expansion of All City Network, which launched similar sites in Denver and Phoenix. (Here is the link.) Continue reading →

Jennifer Hudson

Robservations on the media beat:

Jennifer Hudson, the Chicago-born Grammy-winning and Oscar-winning singer and actress, is getting her own daytime talk show this fall. "The Jennifer Hudson Show" will air in syndication on WFLD-Channel 32 among other Fox-owned stations in big cities. Based in Los Angeles, the new show from Warner Bros. TV will debut just as “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” ends its run after 19 seasons. “People from around the world have been a part of my journey from the beginning — 20 years ago — and I’m so ready to join their journey as we sit down and talk about the things that inspire and move us all,” Hudson said in a statement. “I have always loved people and I cannot wait to connect on a deeper level and let audiences see the different sides of who I am, the human being, in return. . . . We’re about to have a lot of fun and shake things up a little bit!” Continue reading →

Ryan Chiaverini (Photo: ABC 7 Chicago)

Robservations on the media beat:

It was deja vu for Ryan Chiaverini, who filled in for two days this week as sports anchor on WLS-Channel 7 newscasts. Before he spent a decade as co-host of the now-dead “Windy City Live,” Chiaverini anchored sports for five years at the ABC-owned station. Since September he’s been co-hosting “Windy City Weekend” with Val Warner at 11:30 a.m. Fridays. “This is what happens when you buy a hot tub time machine,” Chiaverini joked on Facebook Wednesday. “First time in a decade I filled in anchoring weekday sports for ABC 7 Chicago.” A station representative said Chiaverini will fill in on the sports desk “as needed.” Continue reading →

Alan Krashesky and Cheryl Burton (Photo: ABC 7 Chicago)

Robservations on the media beat:

With one day left in the February sweep, ABC-owned WLS-Channel 7 is poised to claim another across-the-board win at 4, 5, 6 and 10 p.m. in household ratings and in the key demographic of viewers between 25 and 54. It's worth noting ABC 7's substantial margin of victory in the face of competition from the Winter Olympics and Super Bowl LVI on NBC-owned WMAQ-Channel 5. Ratings analysts said it was the first time in memory the Winter Games bestowed no discernible "Olympic halo" on a station's news ratings. At 10 p.m. Monday through Friday, according to preliminary Nielsen numbers, ABC 7 had 229,119 households, followed by NBC 5 with 128,445 households, Nexstar Media WGN-Channel 9 with 83,316 households, CBS-owned WBBM-Channel 2 with 79,844 households, Univision WGBO-Channel 66 with 62,487 households and Telemundo WSNS-Channel 44 with 31,243 households. At 9 p.m. weeknights WGN had 138,860 households and Fox-owned WFLD-Channel 32 had 52,072 households. “I couldn’t be more proud of our entire team both on and off air for their daily commitment to Chicago news viewers,” John Idler, president and general manager of ABC 7, said in a statement. Continue reading →

Peggy Kusinski and Dionne Miller

The inspired pairing of Chicago sportscasters Peggy Kusinski and Dionne Miller on Good Karma Brands ESPN sports/talk WMVP 1000-AM led the top 10 most-read stories here in February.

To read the full posts, click on the headlines: Continue reading →

Cheryl Burton

Cheryl Burton, now in her 30th year as news anchor at top-rated ABC-owned WLS-Channel 7, has been named to iHeartMedia Chicago's 2022 class of Women Who Win.

Coinciding with Women's History Month, the honor celebrates the achievements of prominent women who've "made a significant impact in the community as a direct result of their exceptional leadership."

It's presented by iHeartMedia Chicago and YWCA Metropolitan Chicago, joined this year by Chicago Foundation for Women. Continue reading →