Robservations: New local talk shows set to debut on WGN, ABC 7

Tonya Francisco and Amy Rutledge (Photo: WGN)

Robservations on the media beat:

"Daytime Chicago," a new lifestyle and entertainment show, will premiere Monday on Nexstar Media WGN-Channel 9. Airing from 10 to 11 a.m. weekdays, it will be hosted by Tonya Francisco and Amy Rutledge. Topics are expected to include food, fashion, culture, health, fitness, style, wellness, relationships and parenting. “We are very excited to launch more local programming for our viewers," said Paul Rennie, vice president and general manager of WGN. “Tonya and Amy are Chicago’s Very Own seasoned veterans who know our market inside and out. They will be a fantastic duo.” The syndicated “Rachael Ray,” which now airs at 10 a.m., will move to 1 p.m.

Windy City Weekend

Today marks the debut of "Windy City Weekend," a weekly half-hour show highlighting entertainment and leisure activities in and around Chicago, on ABC-owned WLS-Channel 7. Airing at 11:30 a.m. Fridays, it will be hosted by Val Warner and Ryan Chiaverini, who just ended their 10-year run on "Windy City Live," the former weekday talk show. Regular contributions to the new show will include Sun-Times critic Richard Roeper's movie reviews, meteorologist Tracy Butler's weekend forecasts and traffic reporter Roz Varon's "Weekender Report." Warner and Chiaverini also will continue the popular "host chat" segment from their old show. Continue reading →

Carol Marin on the legacy of 9/11: ‘I don’t want us to forget’

Carol Marin (Photo: Don Moseley)

It took nothing less than a miracle — and a courageous New York firefighter who has never been identified — to save Carol Marin from the collapse of the second tower of the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001.

Then as now one of Chicago’s most respected journalists, Marin was working as a “60 Minutes” correspondent for CBS News in Manhattan on the morning of the attacks. She raced to the site to cover the story and was a block or two away when she heard a roar and felt the ground rumble.

A firefighter screamed at Marin to run just as a fireball of ignited jet fuel consumed the base of the north tower, causing the building to come crashing down. As she started to run, Marin fell and the firefighter picked her up. “The firefighter threw me against a nearby building and shielded my body with his,” she would recall. “I could feel the pounding of his heart against my backbone. In seconds the air was black and thick with debris.” Continue reading →

Robservations: 2020 Silver Circle winners finally have their day

Silver Circle Awards

Robservations on the media beat:

The long-delayed induction of Chicago's Class of 2020 Silver Circle Award winners will finally happen this weekend. Jackie Bange, Mark Giangreco, Alan Krashesky, Jennifer Lyons, Marda LeBeau and Richard Bernal will be among honorees at the virtual event, airing from 3 to 5 p.m. Sunday on The U, Weigel Broadcasting’s WCIU-Channel 26.2/WMEU-Channel 48.1. Posthumous inductees will be Marlin Perkins, Lynn Hauldren and Jack and Elaine Mulqueen. Sponsored by the Chicago/Midwest chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, the event will be emceed by Jim Williams, news anchor at CBS-owned WBBM-Channel 2 and 2018 Silver Circle inductee. Continue reading →

Bittersweet farewell closes out ABC 7's 'Windy City Live' after 10 years

Ryan Chiaverini and Val Warner

Today the curtain falls on “Windy City Live,” closing out a 10-year run for the locally produced talk and entertainment show on ABC-owned WLS-Channel 7.

Genial hosts Val Warner and Ryan Chiaverini, who’ve been there from day one, will look back at highlights of the past decade and test each other's knowledge of the show with a trivia contest moderated by Roe Conn. Continue reading →

Robservations: Fox 32 hires Emily Wahls as chief meteorologist

Emily Wahls

Robservations on the media beat:

Making a giant leap from the 115th largest market to the third, Emily Wahls was named chief meteorologist at Fox-owned WFLD-Channel 32 Wednesday. She’ll turn up on the station’s 4, 5 and 9 p.m. weekday newscasts, starting September 27. Wahls succeeds Bill Bellis, whose contract was not renewed in February. A graduate of Central Michigan University, Wahls spent more than seven years on CBS affiliate WLNS in Lansing, Michigan, and was to have started on the air this week at NBC affiliate WILX in Lansing (after a one-year no-compete) when Fox 32 beckoned. “I am thrilled to join the Fox 32 team and help viewers best prepare for the day’s weather,” Wahls said in a statement. “Living in Chicago has always been a dream of mine, and my family is excited to experience everything the city has to offer.” Continuing on Fox 32’s weather team are Mike Caplan, Kaitlin Cody, Mark Strehl and Tim McGill. Continue reading →

In from Indianapolis, Laura Duncan named program chief of WXRT

Laura Duncan

Laura Duncan, a rock radio programmer and personality from Indianapolis, has been hired as brand manager of WXRT 93.1-FM, Chicago's iconic adult album alternative station. She will oversee all programming for the Audacy station, starting October 4.

Duncan succeeds Greg Solk, who was promoted to vice president of programming and operations for the six-station Audacy Chicago group in July. Solk had been brand manager and program director of WXRT since 2017. Continue reading →

Robservations: Chicago's broadcast museum wins John Oliver art exhibit

John Oliver

Robservations on the media beat:

Museum of Broadcast Communications

Chicago's Museum of Broadcast Communications will be one of five museums in the country to exhibit artwork featured on HBO's "Last Week Tonight with John Oliver." Starting October 5, Oliver's self-proclaimed "Masterpiece Gallery" will be on display for four weeks at the museum, 360 North State Street. Pictured above is Oliver with his painting of Wendy Williams eating a lamb chop. In addition to winning the national competition, the museum will receive a $10,000 grant and an additional $10,000 will be donated to its designated charity, the Greater Chicago Food Depository. “We are grateful to John Oliver and his staff for this incredible — and fun — honor,” Susy Schultz, executive director of the museum, said in a statement. “We wrote a compelling letter, and our team went all out in our video entry." Schultz cited the "star power" of Rich "Svengoolie" Koz and executive producer Jim Roche for their role in the museum's pitch. (Here is the link to Oliver's video message to Chicago.) Continue reading →