Walter Jacobson

On the eve of a milestone birthday, legendary Chicago anchorman and commentator Walter Jacobson sounds happier than ever that he’s still in the game.

“I feel great,” said Jacobson, who turns 80 on Friday. “I feel perfectly wonderfully physically. I go through my same old Walter mishegas about what I’m doing. But I love what I’m doing. I’m exercising my brain every day, following this craziness in Washington. I’m free to write about it. So I’m feeling great!” Continue reading →

Tribune Tower

It’s official: WGN AM 720 will be leaving its longtime headquarters at Tribune Tower and relocating next year to new studios and offices across the Chicago River.

The decision to move, confirmed by Tribune Broadcasting Tuesday, came despite earlier assurances that management of the news/talk station had no plans to leave Tribune Tower and intended to extend its lease with the building’s new owners. The current lease expires in June 2018. Continue reading →

Steve Bailey and Che “Rhymefest” Smith

Robservations on the media beat:

Che “Rhymefest” Smith

Famed Chicago hip hop artist and songwriter Che “Rhymefest” Smith has been commissioned to create original music for “The Jam,” the new weekday morning show soon to premiere on Weigel Broadcasting WCIU-Channel 26. The Oscar, Grammy and Golden Globe winner is working with other seasoned musicians, including Daniel Crawford. “This theme had to have live instrumentation and sound like a beautiful new day dawning . . . a day people always look forward to,” Smith said. “And I believe together we were able to accomplish that.” Steve Bailey, head of local programming and creative for The U, made the deal on the front porch of Smith’s South Side home. “Our goal was to have the music rooted in Chicago so when Che agreed to do it we were beyond ecstatic,” Bailey recalled. “This collaboration goes beyond just this theme music. It opens the door to other artists on future projects here at The U.” Continue reading →

The Joffrey Ballet “The Nutcracker” (Photo: Cheryl Mann)

Robservations on the media beat:

Production is underway on “The Nutcracker Behind the Scenes,” a one-hour documentary on The Joffrey Ballet’s new version of the holiday classic, to air later this year on WTTW-Channel 11 and public television stations nationwide. In addition to revealing how the production was remade in 2016 to incorporate Chicago’s 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition, the film will explore the history of the ballet and the city. Set to premiere in November, the documentary is being produced by Daniel Andries for the Window to the World Communications station. “The inaugural season of Christopher Wheeldon’s ‘The Nutcracker’ was enjoyed by thousands in attendance at Chicago’s Auditorium Theatre last winter,” Joffrey artistic director Ashley Wheater said in a statement. “For those who experienced the magic ‘live’ and those unable, we’re pleased to be able to share his labor of love with audiences all around Chicago and beyond.” Continue reading →

Alison Cuddy

Alison Cuddy, former arts and culture reporter at Chicago Public Media WBEZ FM 91.5, was promoted Thursday to artistic director of the Chicago Humanities Festival.

Effective August 1, she’ll move up from associate artistic director of the civic institution known for its year-round gatherings of some of the world's “most exciting thinkers, artists and performers” and celebrations of ideas. Cuddy joined the organization as program director in 2014. Continue reading →

Roger Ebert

Robservations on the media beat:

Roger Ebert, the Pulitzer Prize-winning film critic who wrote 17 books, will be inducted into the Chicago Literary Hall of Fame August 19. The ceremony, emceed by Chicago Tribune columnist Rick Kogan, will be at the new American Writers Museum, 180 North Michigan Avenue. Other 2017 inductees include Margaret Ayer Barnes, Fanny Butcher, Eugene Field, Fenton Johnson and Ring Lardner. “I am thrilled,” said Chaz Ebert, who will accept the honor on her late husband’s behalf. The movie critic for the Sun-Times and nationally syndicated television host died in 2013 at 70. Continue reading →

Law Bulletin Media

It’s a brand new day for the bible of the law business in Chicago.

The parent company of Chicago Daily Law Bulletin, an indispensable source of legal news and information for 162 years, has a new corporate identity: On Monday Law Bulletin Publishing Co. changed its name to Law Bulletin Media. Continue reading →

Crain Communications

Robservations on the media beat:

Rance Crain

While Crain’s Chicago Business has been without a publisher since David Snyder resigned last November, the publication’s parent company just underwent a seismic change at the top. Rance Crain last week sold his 50 percent stake in Crain Communications to his brother, Keith Crain, and stepped down as president, editorial director and member of the board. “Now it’s time for me to open another chapter of my life, and I look forward to the challenge and opportunity,” said Rance Crain, a 57-year veteran of the company and the man who created Crain's Chicago Business in 1978. The move gives Keith Crain and his children full control of the company founded by patriarch G.D. Crain Jr. 101 years ago. The Detroit-based publisher owns 55 business, trade and consumer brands in North America, Europe and Asia. Continue reading →

Jorge Ramirez and Edwin Eisendrath

The new owners of the Chicago Sun-Times vowed Thursday to maintain the journalistic integrity of the newspaper without interference from labor unions or other investors.

Jorge Ramirez, president of the Chicago Federation of Labor, who will serve as chairman of the Sun-Times, said the unions will not be involved in any coverage of the news nor in the paper’s process of endorsing political candidates. Continue reading →

Chicago Sun-Times

An investor group headed by Edwin Eisendrath and a coalition of Chicago labor unions completed the purchase Wednesday of the Chicago Sun-Times and the Chicago Reader. The agreement culminated eight weeks that shook local media and changed the course of Chicago’s history as a two-newspaper town.

Here is a timeline of events leading to the sale, as reported on this blog. To read the full posts, click on the headlines: Continue reading →