"Chicago Today"
It’s official: “Chicago Today,” a new lifestyle and entertainment show, will premiere September 6 on NBC-owned WMAQ-Channel 5.
Initially it will air weekly at 11:30 a.m. Fridays, but eventually it will expand to Monday through Friday at that time. To accommodate the live half-hour show, NBC 5 will cut its current hourlong 11 a.m. weekday newscast in half. Continue reading
Kathy Hart
Robservations on the media beat:
Kathy Hart, once one-half of the most popular morning duo in Chicago radio history, is heading out west. Hart’s agent, Steve Mandell, confirmed Thursday that she’s moving to Bozeman, Montana, for personal and family reasons. While Hart is open to employment there, he said, she has no job lined up at this time. Hart most recently had been filling in at Tribune Broadcasting news/talk WGN 720-AM. But she’s best known for her 21 years as Eric Ferguson’s partner on Hubbard Radio hot adult-contemporary WTMX 101.9-FM. She parted company with The Mix in 2017 — less than a year after Eric & Kathy were inducted in the Radio Hall of Fame. Continue reading
Cortney Hall
After seven years as a second-tier morning news anchor at Tribune Media WGN-Channel 9 and CLTV, Cortney Hall is about to take on a starring role of her own.
Wednesday was Hall’s last day at WGN, where she most recently anchored the 9 a.m. hour of the top-rated “WGN Morning News.” Sources said she’s headed to NBC-owned WMAQ-Channel 5 to co-host a new lifestyle show in development. Continue reading
Walter Payton
Twenty years after the passing of Walter Payton, WGN-Channel 9 will remember the Chicago Bears legend with a primetime special hosted by his son.
“Savoring Sweetness: The Life & Times of Walter Payton” will premiere at 7 p.m. September 4 on the Tribune Broadcasting station and stream live at WGNTV.com/Live. It will be rebroadcast at 10 p.m. September 7 on WGN and at noon September 8 on CLTV. Continue reading
Matt Knutson
Robservations on the media beat:
Matt Knutson, executive producer of "Windy City Live," has been promoted to director of content innovation at ABC-owned WLS-Channel 7. He'll supervise all local programming at the station. “Throughout his tenure at ABC 7, Matt has been a source of innovation and has brought his creativity to every project in which he has been involved," John Idler, president and general manager of ABC 7, said in a statement. "His hands-on ability to strategize around premium content across all of our platforms will serve him well in his new role." Knutson, who grew up in Joliet and graduated from Northern Illinois University, joined ABC 7 after six years at Tribune Media, where he worked as a producer at CLTV and as a supervising producer on “Chicago’s Best.” He helped launch "Windy City Live" as a line producer in 2011 and moved up to executive producer in 2015. No word yet on his successor at the weekday talk and entertainment show. Continue reading
Newsweb Corporation
While the future of northwest suburban WAIT 850-AM remains uncertain, owner Newsweb Radio has agreed to sell the station's transmitter site in Crystal Lake to McHenry County College.
The McHenry County College board of trustees voted unanimously in May to purchase the 26.9-acre parcel east of Ring Road adjacent to the college for unspecified future development. The deal has not yet been finalized. Continue reading
Mary Mitchell (Photo: Ashlee Rezin Garcia/Sun-Times)
Robservations on the media beat:
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, the Rev. Jesse Jackson and a legion of colleagues past and present honored columnist Mary Mitchell Friday on her stepping down after 29 years as a daily voice of compassion and clarity at the Sun-Times. She'll continue to contribute occasional columns and attend editorial board meetings. "You are to be celebrated as a great Chicago icon," Lightfoot told Mitchell at the gathering at Taste 222 on the Near West Side. "And I am really, really grateful for everything that you've brought and for the path that you've blazed for other women of color — and particularly black women — in a really tough industry." Continue reading
Mark Schanowski
Mark Schanowski, the affable and authoritative Chicago Bulls basketball analyst who’s been a prominent player on the local sports media scene for three decades, is cutting back his workload at NBC Sports Chicago.
Schanowski announced Friday he's reducing his role "to enjoy more time with family and friends." While stepping down as host of Bulls "Pregame/Postgame Live" shows, he'll continue to be a primary contributor on the Bulls for the regional sports network. Continue reading
Jeff Joniak
Robservations on the media beat:
Jeff Joniak, sports director of Entercom all-news WBBM 780-AM/WCFS 105.9-FM and longtime radio voice of the Chicago Bears, will receive the Media Award from the Chicagoland Sports Hall of Fame September 25. Joniak will be one of 10 inductees at the 23rd annual fundraiser for local charities. Others include Harold Baines, Rick Sutcliffe, Mike Magee, Israel Idonije, Bryant Colby Young, Desmond Howard, Lou Holtz, Jim Phillips and Patrick Kane. Peggy Kusinski, sportscaster for NBC-owned WMAQ-Channel 5, will emcee the event at Wintrust Arena. (Here is the link for tickets.) Continue reading
Goli Sheikholeslami
The most powerful woman in Chicago journalism is leaving town after five years for a new job in New York.
In a surprise announcement today, Goli Sheikholeslami said she was resigning as president and chief executive officer of Chicago Public Media, the nonprofit parent company of NPR news/talk WBEZ 91.5-FM and urban alternative Vocalo. She will become CEO of New York Public Radio, parent company of WNYC, starting in early October. Continue reading