Tom Skilling

Robservations on the media beat:

Demetrius Ivory

With superstar weatherman Tom Skilling adding a leading role on WGN-Channel 9’s new 10 p.m. newscast starting Monday, something had to give. In this case, it’s the Tribune Media station’s midday newscast. “We all know there’s only one Tom Skilling, and with his role at 10 p.m., we needed to shift his schedule a bit,” said Greg Easterly, president and general manager of WGN. “He’ll continue his weather reports on the 9 p.m. news, as well as the evening news at 4 p.m. and 5 p.m.” The incomparable Skilling, 63, has been WGN’s chief meteorologist since 1978. Replacing him on “WGN Midday News,” which airs from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., will be meteorologist Demetrius Ivory, who’ll also continue to appear on “WGN Morning News” from 4 to 6 a.m. Continue reading →

Eric Ferguson and Kathy Hart

ATLANTA — For the second time in three years, Eric Ferguson and Kathy Hart won top honors Thursday in the National Association of Broadcasters’ Marconi Awards.

The immensely popular morning team on Hubbard Radio hot adult-contemporary WTMX FM 101.9 was named Major Market Personalities of the Year. Both were on hand to receive their industry’s highest honor at the culminating dinner of the NAB Radio Show at the Marriott Marquis Atlanta. Continue reading →

Lew Dickey

ATLANTA — On the opening day of the National Association of Broadcasters’ Radio Show Wednesday, all everyone was talking about was the misery at Cumulus Media.

If the Atlanta-based broadcaster wanted to inflict maximum damage on itself — and subject its founder and chief executive to the worst humiliation — it couldn’t have picked a better time and place. Continue reading →

Frankie Robinson

It took more than four months to pull off, but iHeart Media Chicago finally completed one of the biggest radio talent raids of the year Thursday.

At the stroke of midnight in a special live broadcast from Adrianna’s in Markham, urban contemporary WGCI FM 107.5 officially announced the hiring of Frankie Robinson to host middays and Tone Kapone to host afternoons, effective immediately. Continue reading →

Melissa Harris

Melissa Harris is leaving the Chicago Tribune after six years as a business columnist to join Origin Capital Partners, a Chicago-based private equity firm, as vice president of marketing.

“This is an opportunity for me to be on the vanguard of the crowdfunding movement as I will be responsible for a new online platform, allowing investors like you and me to participate side-by-side with big pension funds and endowments in their real estate acquisitions,” she announced on her Facebook page Tuesday. Continue reading →

iHeart Media Chicago

Corporate radio behemoth iHeart Media again landed four of its seven Chicago stations in the top 10 rankings, including urban adult-contemporary WVAZ FM 102.7, which jumped back to the No. 1 spot overall.

Nielsen Audio ratings released Tuesday showed the company’s Top 40 WKSC FM 103.5, urban contemporary WGCI FM 107.5 and adult contemporary WLIT FM 93.9 also in the top 10 among all listeners for the period from August 13 to September 9. Continue reading →

Harry Volkman

Robservations on the media beat:

Tom Skilling

Legendary Chicago TV weatherman Harry Volkman was remembered Sunday as a larger-than-life personality, a generous mentor, and a man of faith. The beloved meteorologist for four local stations died August 20 at age 89 after a brief illness. Friends and family gathered at Glenview United Methodist Church to celebrate Volkman’s life. Among the speakers was an emotional Tom Skilling, who called Volkman “the broadcast meteorologist who literally set the bar for on-air meteorological integrity,” adding: “Through it all, Harry was a father who raised a lovely family, a devoted member of this church, and a paragon of class and dignity in his profession.” Fellow broadcasters at the memorial tribute included Steve Baskerville, Rick DiMaio, Chuck Schaden, Bob Sirott, Roger Triemstra, and Volkman’s son, Eddie Volkman. Continue reading →

Tom Negovan (WGN, September 22, 2015)

Newsroom employees of WGN-Channel 9 will attend training and educational sessions on the Holocaust and related issues to prevent a recurrence of the "horrible error" that turned a story about Yom Kippur into a worldwide embarrassment for the Tribune Media station.

Greg Easterly, president and general manager of WGN, said Friday an investigation is continuing into how a symbol of the Nazi persecution of Jews was used to illustrate a story about the Jewish Day of Atonement on Tuesday’s late newscast. Although the station apologized immediately, the image went viral and continues to heap shame on WGN. Continue reading →

“Cornerstones of Rock: American Garage"

Some of the top garage bands that emerged from Chicago and rose to national fame in the 1960s and ’70s will come together next month in the WTTW-Channel 11 studio that still produces the music series “Soundstage.”

“Cornerstones of Rock: American Garage,” featuring The Ides of March, The Buckinghams, The Cryan Shames, The New Colony Six, The Shadows of Knight, The McCoys and The American Breed, will be taped October 16 at the Window to the World Communications public television station, 5400 North St. Louis Avenue. Continue reading →

Mark Zander

Saying he missed being on the air, Chicago radio veteran Mark Zander is stepping down as program director of Weigel Broadcasting’s soft rock/oldies WRME FM 87.7 to join Hubbard Radio classic hits WDRV FM 97.1 as weekend and fill-in personality.

“I know everybody on The Drive and I’ve worked with everybody on The Drive,” Zander said Thursday. “So it kind of feels like I’m coming back to a very familiar place.” Continue reading →