{"id":32802,"date":"2022-03-22T06:00:09","date_gmt":"2022-03-22T11:00:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.robertfeder.com\/?p=32802"},"modified":"2022-03-22T15:04:20","modified_gmt":"2022-03-22T20:04:20","slug":"robservations-tina-sfondeles-returns-sun-times-jays-chicago-wraps-wttw-lightfoot-supports-tv-technicians-strike","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/robertfeder.dailyherald.com\/2022\/03\/22\/robservations-tina-sfondeles-returns-sun-times-jays-chicago-wraps-wttw-lightfoot-supports-tv-technicians-strike\/","title":{"rendered":"Robservations: Tina Sfondeles returns to Sun-Times; 'Jay's Chicago' wraps it up on WTTW; Lightfoot supports TV technicians on strike"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

Tina Sfondeles<\/p><\/div>\n

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

It\u2019s back to the Sun-Times<\/a> for Tina Sfondeles<\/strong> as chief political\u00a0reporter following a whirlwind of reporting jobs in Washington, D.C., and public relations work in Chicago. Sfondeles will rejoin the paper Monday, according to interim editor in chief Steve Warmbir.<\/strong> \u201cWith her excellent sourcing on local, state and national levels, she will only add to the Sun-Times tradition of political coverage that's second to none,\u201d Warmbir wrote in an email to staff. \u201cShe's a phenomenal addition to our great roster of first-rate political journalists here at the Sun-Times and our new colleagues at WBEZ.\u201d In her first run at the Sun-Times, Sfondeles rose from preps sports writer and wire reporter to chief political reporter. She resigned in 2020 to join the Washington-based political team of Business Insider, and she later covered the White House for Politico. Since January she\u2019s been vice president of public and media relations for Mac Strategies Group, a strategic communications and government relations firm.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Jay Shefsky<\/p><\/div>\n

Thursday marks the premiere of the fifth and final season of \"Jay's Chicago,\"<\/a> Jay Shefsky's<\/strong> critically acclaimed series spotlighting ordinary people who do extraordinary things. The season opener focuses on five people who have unusual encounters with nature, including Shefsky's own breathtaking experience with a giant praying mantis he discovers in the wild. \"Jay's Chicago\" airs at 8:30 p.m. Thursdays on Window to the World Communications WTTW-Channel 11.<\/a> \u201cGrowing up in Chicago, one of my heroes was Studs Terkel<\/strong>,\u201d Shefsky said in a statement. \u201cHe understood that everyone has a story to tell \u2013 and that if you listen with respect, people who aren\u2019t experts or celebrities may have the most to teach us. One of the great joys of my career has been getting to know the people in these stories, and sharing them.\u201d Shefsky retired in 2020 after 34 years as a producer at WTTW but continued on a freelance basis until now.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Mayor Lori Lightfoot<\/p><\/div>\n

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot<\/strong> joined striking broadcast technicians outside WTTW-Channel 11 studios Monday in a demonstration of support for their job action<\/a> against the Window to the World Communications public television station. About two dozen members of Local 1220 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers<\/a> walked off the job last week after nearly a year of contract negotiations. Also speaking at the rally in support of the union were U.S. Rep. Marie Newman<\/strong> and several Chicago aldermen. Local 1220 has represented employees at WTTW since 1955. This marks the first time a strike has been called at the station.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Kevin Kollins<\/p><\/div>\n

Now that WSSR 96.7-FM<\/a> morning personality Kevin Kollins<\/strong> is running for a seat on the Will County Board, it\u2019s not clear when he\u2019ll be back on the Alpha Media southwest suburban adult-contemporary station. He's also in limbo as afternoon host on Alpha Media southwest suburban news\/talk WJOL 1340-AM.<\/a> Listed on the ballot as Kevin \u201cKollins\u201d Hedemark, he\u2019s competing in the June 28 Democratic primary, raising the spectre of triggering the Federal Communications Commission\u2019s Equal Time Rule. Adding to uncertainty at Star 96.7 was the resignation last week of Brooke Hunter<\/strong> after more than two years as morning co-host. On Monday listeners heard Chicago radio legend Eddie Volkman,<\/strong> program director and afternoon host at Star 96.7, filling in for Kollins on the morning show, while engineering tech Scott Childers<\/strong> subbed for Volkman in the afternoon.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Kim Komando<\/p><\/div>\n

Kim Komando,<\/strong> whose syndicated consumer technology show airs from 9 p.m. to midnight Saturdays and Sundays on WLS 890-AM,<\/a> is about to add a third night on the Cumulus Media news\/talk station. Starting this week, the Radio Hall of Famer will host a one-hour show produced exclusively for WLS at 7 p.m. Fridays. \u201cFor over 25 years,\u00a0Kim\u00a0has been part of the WLS-AM family, providing our listeners with the latest tech news,\u201d program director Stephanie Tichenor<\/strong> said in a statement. \u201cNow she brings that experience to Friday nights at WLS, where listeners will learn more about why tech matters.\u201d<\/p>\n

Monday\u2019s comment of the day:<\/a> Mark Mardell:<\/strong> The teaming of Weigel Broadcasting and Block Club Chicago is nothing short of great news. Weigel has been more innovative than any other broadcast station, and Block Club has done a tremendous job of building a respected news organization. I'm excited to see what comes of this teaming. I can't remember ever before being excited about an upcoming news-oriented program.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Robservations on the media beat: It\u2019s back to the Sun-Times for Tina Sfondeles as chief political\u00a0reporter following a whirlwind of reporting jobs in Washington, D.C., and public relations work in Chicago. Sfondeles will rejoin the paper Monday, according to interim editor in chief Steve Warmbir. \u201cWith her excellent sourcing on local, state and national levels,... 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\/32802"}],"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=32802"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/robertfeder.dailyherald.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32802\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":32839,"href":"https:\/\/robertfeder.dailyherald.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32802\/revisions\/32839"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/robertfeder.dailyherald.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32802"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/robertfeder.dailyherald.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32802"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/robertfeder.dailyherald.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32802"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}