{"id":18032,"date":"2018-05-15T06:00:54","date_gmt":"2018-05-15T11:00:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.robertfeder.com\/?p=18032"},"modified":"2018-05-15T06:00:54","modified_gmt":"2018-05-15T11:00:54","slug":"robservations-wgn-radio-move-18-stories","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/robertfeder.dailyherald.com\/2018\/05\/15\/robservations-wgn-radio-move-18-stories\/","title":{"rendered":"Robservations: WGN Radio is on the move \u2014 18 stories up"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

<\/a> Todd Manley<\/p><\/div>\n

Robservations on the media beat:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

WGN Radio<\/p><\/div>\n

Workers are still busy building out studios and offices as WGN 720-AM<\/a> prepares to leave its longtime home at Tribune Tower for impressive new headquarters high in the sky. From the 18th floor of 303 East Wacker Drive, the 16,000-square-foot space provides panoramic views of the Chicago River and Lake Michigan. Highlights include two main showcase studios in the northwest and northeast corners, six podcast suites, a performance studio and stage for live music and dramas, and a central newsroom hub. \u201cAn investment like this represents the strength of our brand beyond traditional broadcast,\u201d said Todd Manley,<\/strong> station manager and vice president of content at the Tribune Broadcasting news\/talk station. \u201cIt recognizes our success on every platform. What an exciting time for this 94-year-old start-up.\u201d News will begin originating from the site at the end of May, and full-time broadcasting will start in June.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

John Kass<\/p><\/div>\n

Ever since it changed hands, the Sun-Times has been taking shots at the Chicago Tribune in its ads<\/a> and editorials.<\/a> Now the Tribune\u2019s star columnist is firing back. On Friday John Kass<\/strong> put the new owners of the Sun-Times on notice for a conflict of interest <\/a>in Chicago\u2019s upcoming mayoral election. He cited the hiring of Jorge Ramirez,<\/strong> chairman of Sun-Times parent company ST Acquisition Holdings and former president of the Chicago Federation of Labor, by GCM Grosvenor. That\u2019s the big investment company headed by Michael Sacks,<\/strong> whom Kass described as Mayor Rahm Emanuel\u2019s<\/strong> \u201cmoney guy, closest confidant and top fundraiser.\u201d Wrote <\/a>Kass: \u201cThe Sun-Times styles itself as the Chicago paper, but now, it might want to rebrand as The Chicago Way paper.\u201d Sun-Times CEO Edwin Eisendrath<\/strong> confirmed that Ramirez is staying on as chairman. Given the tough shape the Sun-Times is in these days, Eisendrath knows he can\u2019t afford to make any big mistakes.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Matt Forte<\/p><\/div>\n

Retired Bears running back Matt Forte<\/strong> has joined NBC Sports Chicago<\/a> as featured analyst for NFL game-day coverage, starting this fall.\u00a0He\u2019ll also appear throughout the season on a variety of the regional network\u2019s programs and cross-platform portals.\u00a0\u201cI am truly excited about this next chapter in my life,\u201d Forte said in a statement. \u00a0\u201cI\u2019ve always envisioned a career in broadcasting, and I couldn\u2019t have asked for a better opportunity than joining the NBC Sports Chicago team.\"<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Adeshina Emmanuel<\/p><\/div>\n

Adeshina Emmanuel<\/strong> has been hired as the first full-time Chicago reporter for the education news outlet Chalkbeat. <\/a>He\u2019ll report to bureau chief Cassie Walker Burke,<\/strong> who recently joined the\u00a0nonprofit news organization after serving as assistant managing editor at Crain\u2019s Chicago Business. Emmanuel, a Chicago native who attended Loyola University, previously worked at the Chicago Reporter, DNAinfo Chicago and the Sun-Times. As a freelance writer, he wrote the controversial <\/a>Chicago Reader cover story on J.B. Pritzker<\/strong> that led to the resignation of editor Mark Konkol.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

C.C. Boggiano<\/p><\/div>\n

C.C. Boggiano<\/strong> has resigned as manager of news operations at ABC-owned WLS-Channel 7<\/a> to become director of news operations for WNBC, the NBC-owned station in New York. His last day here will be May 30. \u201cC.C.\u2019s been a valuable member of our management team and his contributions to WLS since his arrival in 2000 are numerous,\u201d Jennifer Graves,<\/strong> vice president and news director of ABC 7, emailed staffers. \u201cHe\u2019s been a proponent of new technologies . . . and an advocate for our talented staff of news photographers, media managers and editors.\u201d Before joining ABC 7, Boggiano worked for stations in Hartford, Connecticut, and Washington, D.C.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

John Rogers Jr.<\/p><\/div>\n

John Rogers Jr.,<\/strong> the prominent Chicago money man, has been named to the board of directors of The New York Times.<\/a> \u201cTo be on a board like that, you learn how important quality journalism is to our country and our world,\u201d he told \u201cTaking Names\u201d<\/a> columnist Shia Kapos.<\/strong> \u201cIt\u2019s more important than ever that we have strong, dynamic newspapers in the United States.\u201d Rogers is founder, chairman and CEO of Ariel Investments.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Howard Sudberry<\/p><\/div>\n

Former Chicago television sportscaster Howard Sudberry<\/strong> will be everywhere<\/em> on the radio today. Sudberry, now senior director of marketing and communications at Arlington International Racecourse, will appear in a 60-second interview on the effectiveness of radio advertising. More than 40 Chicago area radio stations will simulcast the promotion at 4:29 p.m. today. It\u2019s the latest joint effort of Radio Broadcasters of Chicagoland<\/a> to sing the praises of their medium. \u201cRadio is an important part of our business,\u201d Sudberry said in a statement. \u201cThe ability to change our radio advertising message frequently is the most effective way to let consumers know what is happening at Arlington.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Mick Kalber<\/p><\/div>\n

Chicago-born filmmaker Mick Kalber,<\/strong> son of the late, legendary anchorman Floyd Kalber,<\/strong> has spent more than 35 years filming breathtaking volcanic eruptions all over Hawaii. Last week he had to flee for the first time when lava flow from the Kilauea volcano threatened his own home in Leilani Estates, according to the Sun-Times. He\u2019s back home now, but doesn\u2019t know what\u2019s next. \u201cWe can\u2019t move forward and we can\u2019t move backward,\u201d Kalber told<\/a> freelance writer Peter von Buol.<\/strong> \u201cOne day we\u2019re encouraged and the next we\u2019re depressed. It\u2019s a real roller-coaster of emotions.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Chris Jones<\/p><\/div>\n

Chicago Tribune theater critic Chris Jones<\/strong> certainly has a flair for the dramatic. While appearing on \u201cChicago Tonight: The Week in Review\u201d<\/a> Friday, Jones called on his ex-boss, former tronc chairman Michael Ferro,<\/strong> to give back the $15 million consulting payment<\/a> he received from the company and put it straight into the Tribune\u2019s editorial budget. \u201cHe could end all these bad optics by voluntarily saying, \u2018Here\u2019s $15 million. Go do some great journalism,\u2019\u201d Jones said with a seemingly straight face. (Not even his fellow panelists took him seriously.) But the cheeky critic later insisted: \u201cWhy not, right? The past is the past, but he could do the right thing!\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Cliff Wirth<\/p><\/div>\n

Sad to note the passing of the great Cliff Wirth,<\/strong> a brilliant cartoonist and a wonderful man who delighted generations of readers with his \u201cfunny pictures.\u201d<\/a> Wirth, who worked at the Sun-Times from 1979 to 2002, died <\/a>May 8 in Bedford, Massachusetts. According to the Sun-Times, he was 91 and had Alzheimer\u2019s disease. A native of Bayonne, New Jersey, and a World War II veteran, Wirth attended Michigan State University and Meinzinger Art School in Detroit before joining the Detroit Times in 1950.<\/p>\n

Monday\u2019s comment of the day:<\/a> Ron Magers:<\/strong> Oh, Johnny [Brandmeier], what fun we had. Thanks for every minute of it. Except maybe for making me ride to Northwest Indiana in the back seat of a limo with Piranha Man. Then there was the boa I wore in the parade down Michigan Avenue and the morning a listener called to tell us there were fish swimming in the lower level of Marshall Fields and . . .<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Robservations on the media beat: Workers are still busy building out studios and offices as WGN 720-AM prepares to leave its longtime home at Tribune Tower for impressive new headquarters high in the sky. From the 18th floor of 303 East Wacker Drive, the 16,000-square-foot space provides panoramic views of the Chicago River and Lake... Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/robertfeder.dailyherald.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18032"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/robertfeder.dailyherald.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/robertfeder.dailyherald.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/robertfeder.dailyherald.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/robertfeder.dailyherald.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18032"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/robertfeder.dailyherald.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18032\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18066,"href":"https:\/\/robertfeder.dailyherald.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18032\/revisions\/18066"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/robertfeder.dailyherald.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18032"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/robertfeder.dailyherald.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18032"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/robertfeder.dailyherald.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18032"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}