Jimmy deCastro

Top Chicago media stories of the year: Continue reading →

From a Pulitzer Prize-winning film critic whose life was more inspiring than any movie he reviewed to a Radio Hall of Fame disc jockey who redefined the medium for a generation — a photo gallery remembering 10 Chicago media luminaries who left us in 2013.

Click on the arrows to advance the photos:

Roger Ebert film critic

Hugh Hill political editor

Don Wade radio host

Jim Corno cable sports executive

Jim Edwards (aka Jake Hartford) radio host

Carla Leonardo disc jockey

Jim Nayder radio host

Jerry G. Bishop TV/radio host

Dillon Smith television executive

Larry Lujack disc jockey

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Also gone but not forgotten on the Chicago media beat:

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Fahey Flynn

Yes, Virginia, there is a Fahey Flynn.

On Christmas Eve of 1972, the avuncular anchorman at the peak of his popularity on WLS-Channel 7 hosted “Fahey Flynn Presents Seven’s Greetings.” The one-hour special aired just once — from 11 p.m. to midnight on the ABC-owned station — and was never seen again.

Until now. Continue reading →

Larry Lujack at his 2004 Radio Hall of Fame induction (Photo: Jon Sall)

Remembering "your charming and delightful Ol' Uncle Lar" in this photo gallery tribute to the legendary Larry Lujack. Click on the arrows to advance the photos:

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Sixteen radio stations in Chicago boast audiences in excess of one million listeners each week, according to figures released Monday by Nielsen Audio.

WKSC FM 103.5, the Clear Channel pop contemporary-hit radio station known as Kiss FM, again topped the market in fall with a cumulative weekly audience of 2,241,700. Continue reading →

The parent company of the Sun-Times announced the sale Monday of the Joliet Herald-News to Shaw Media for an undisclosed price. The deal is expected to close by the first week in January.

“We are excited to bring the Herald-News into our established, and growing, family-owned media portfolio,” Shaw Media president John Rung said in a statement. “We expect to maintain the storied tradition of serving Joliet with a high quality, community-oriented newspaper.” Continue reading →

Dan McNeil

Moments after Dan McNeil returned to WSCR AM 670 with an extraordinary apology to listeners Friday, the great Cubs broadcaster Len Kasper tweeted that it was “the most honest and self-aware segment you'll ever hear on the radio.”

Kasper was right. With the possible exception of Steve Dahl, no Chicago radio personality had ever bared his soul as fully as McNeil in confessing his addictions and seeking forgiveness from his audience, telling them: “I know I’ve let a lot of you down.”

Just out of rehab and back after eight weeks away from his midday show on the CBS Radio sports/talk station, McNeil, 52, spoke bluntly about his addiction to prescription narcotics, his dependence on marijuana and his crippling battles with depression. (Read the transcript of his comments below.) Continue reading →

Chicago Blackhawks 2013

Chicago magazine polled its online readers with the question: “When you remember 2013 in Chicago, what will you think of first?”

Here’s how the 367 respondents answered, as published in the January 2014 issue: Continue reading →

Kimberly Easton

Kimberly Easton, a former television news anchor and reporter in Pittsburgh and Grand Rapids, is the newest voice on WBBM AM 780/WCFS FM 105.9.

In joining the CBS Radio all-news station as a part-time news anchor and reporter, she replaces Brandis Friedman, who left in October to become a full-time correspondent for “Chicago Tonight” on WTTW-Channel 11. Continue reading →

Jason Knowles

Chuck Goudie’s formidable I-Team at WLS-Channel 7 is about to get some additional firepower.

Jason Knowles, who’s been a general assignment reporter at the ABC-owned station since 2009, is joining Goudie’s unit as a full-time investigative reporter, starting Jan. 20.

“We have been looking forward to having a consumer reporter join the I-Team for several years,” Goudie told me Thursday. “Jason knows his way around Chicago, has experience on the consumer beat and is an avid member of the Investigative Reporters and Editors Association. He makes a great addition to our team.” Continue reading →