Theres a number of stations out there that are celebrating 100-year anniversaries around this time, but in terms of stations that have remained the same kind of programming style for a century, that is kind of rare, said Dave Marzullo, 52, head of digital operations for WGN Radio and the stations unofficial historian. Robert Feder, a lifelong Chicagoan, covered the media beat in his hometown from 1980 until his retirement in 2022. Yes there is no replacement for Bob Colins (whom I now believe you would wish to fire). We can't tell you how much we appreciate you being there with us, and letting us be honest and real and have fun. WGN is one of the few talk stations in the U.S. to broadcast all local talk shows during the day and evening. It isnt bashing to tell the facts. She's best known for her long run as morning host at WUSN 99.5-FM, the Audacy country music station, and her later run as midday host at WEBG, the former iHeartMedia country station. Thats across the board.. It had to be somebody who was in the moment and who got the fact of what we were doing, Fabian said. So I had doubts about Pete trying this morning gig at the Drive. I listen every morning while driving to work from 5:30 to 7am and had to change to a another station as his comments did NOT Make my day as a Customer Service Manager. Because CBS, NBC and ABC had their own network stations in Chicago, WGN-TV became an independent television station, responsible for most of its own programming or airing old movies and syndicated TV shows. Couldnt stand the way he interrupted his guests. . Just because someone new comes in doesnt mean they have to change things. And its a very difficult thing to do in 2022.. The Rockford native was inducted in the Country Radio Hall of Fame in 2016. [2] The corporation was headed by Thorne Donnelley and Elliott Jenkins. Monday through Friday, it carries Rich Valds, America at Night from Westwood One during late night hours. Steve made me think and laugh, while stuck in traffic on the Kennedy each morning. Above: WGN Radio General Manage Wayne Vriesman and Assistant Ellen Blomberg. ) Im thrilled to have Bob Sirott back on!! WGN Radio AM 720 United States employs 59 employees. 32 news at 9 p.m. A Chicago native, Sirott launched his media career in the 1970s as a rock jock at WBBM-FM 96.3 and WLS-AM 890. The importance of local news and information being shared by someone who is trusted by our audience is paramount during these challenging times," Mary Sandberg Boyle, general manager of WGN, said in a statement. General manager Mary Sandberg Boyle at the WGN-AM 720 Radio studio in downtown Chicago on May 17, 2022. 2011.[55]. The firing of Bill, Wendy and Steve Cochran make many of us feel like weve lost some family members. So I wonder if WGN felt burned by Pete leaving them back then and thats why WGN wont offer Pete a full time gig? During the music days, it was . On April 5, 1948, WGN-TV Channel 9 signed on the air. The city's first disc jockey was Halloween Martin, whose show, Musical Clock, was a morning staple on various stations from 1929 to 1946. On July 25, 2017, it was reported that WGN would leave Tribune Tower in 2018 and relocate to a new studio and office across the Chicago River. Adam Carolla (; born May 27, 1964) is an American comedian, radio personality, television host, actor, podcaster, and director. Top. In the fall of 1937, WGN was one of several Chicago radio stations to donate airtime to Chicago Public Schools for a pioneering program in which the school district provided elementary school students with distance education amid a polio outbreak-related school closure. I always listened to the business lunch with Steve Bertran. On September 1, 1928 the Federal Radio Commission (FRC) ruled that this was two stations too many, and ordered that their operations be consolidated. Thats what Steve always did was tell the facts. If us older generation folks are tuning out, just what listeners are you catering to? WGN also features broadcasts of Chicago Blackhawks hockey and Northwestern University football and basketball. There is a need for a radio station that caters to the seniors; though Ive been listening to GN since I was in high school. Morning drive host and longtime Chicago on-air personality Bob Sirott at the WGN-AM 720 studio on May 17, 2022. What I don't understand, though, is why they so seldom give ousted personalities the chance to say goodbye and thanks to their listeners. WGN radio personality Wally Phillips hosts Mayor Harold Washington on Phillips' telephone call-in show fielding a wide range of questions from listeners in November 1983. Nothing against Bob Sirott but he his somewhat insipid and totally a follower, which also can mean he falls right in line with what some TIGER would tell him to do. All he does is promote his business. Im done. Last edited on 22 February 2023, at 02:08, Sousa Archives and Center for American Music, University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign, "Double Call Letters Are Being Eliminated", "Chicago Tribune - Historical Newspapers", "Perspective | In Chicago, schools closed during a 1937 polio epidemic and kids learned from home over the radio", "Actions of the Federal Communications Commission: Decisions. Get bill and Wendy back and 6-12 noon will be great! On October 5, 2016, Jimmy DeCastro announced he was planning to leave WGN Radio at the end of the month. In the latest Nielsen Audio survey, WGN tied for 21st place in afternoons with a 2.0 percent share and cumulative weekly audience of 124,300. Anna Davlantes impeccable resume includes decades of award-winning investigative reporting," Sandberg Boyle said. WGN Radio is just another radio station. This afternoon news-oriented program led by Steve is a welcome addition to our WGN Radio weekday lineup.. WGNs hiring of Sirott tells us there is a lot of truth to what Joyner said because quite basically, relying on the same ol limited list of names to keep your radio station relevant is particularly asinine at a time when radio is failing to attract the next generation of listeners. : Biondi, Dick - Evening personality at WZZN-FM Chicago. Its public service to the people listening, its not about building stars, or their own brand or ego.. [64], On February 14, 2018, WGN was named the new flagship station of the Chicago White Sox, who were left without a station after Cumulus Media voided their contract to air on WLS as part of their Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing. But lets have sensible, sane conversations, have some fun along the way. 1. block or enclose with a wall of bricks. The short-lived tenure of Metheny, a well-traveled program director dubbed Pig Virus by shock jock Howard Stern, led to the exodus of key on-air personalities amid growing resentment from longtime listeners. Not much different than the next. In black-appeal radio, the disc jockey role was pioneered both locally and nationally by Jack L. Cooper, who began playing . Yuck , what dry and better than thou persona. Posted: Aug 6, 2014 / 06:53 AM CDT. Like Cochran, Sirotts resume is quite long an alum of WLS during its Musicradio era and WBBM-FM during its progressive rock era and worked for four local television stations in a variety of roles and a stint as a correspondent for CBS West 57th newsmagaine in the mid-1980s. I listen to Nick D now and then. WGN Radio missed out on calling the Cubs 2016 World Series victory after 90 years of futility. [40] The former WGN annex onto Tribune Tower is now used as a retail space containing Dylan's Candy Bar. Lets not yell and scream about it. Ill start listening to WGN again.bring back Brandmeier!! Its not a talk station, in my opinion, and people who listen to that station in the morning probably want to listen to MUSIC. In a week filled with numerous Chicago media changes, heres another one and this turns out to be the biggest one of them all. And weve done it to ourselves. And unfortunately it didnt work out. Still crying about Wendy & Bill! I guess after Bob Collins no one could measure up. Unless the make so extreme changes to the new line up. On August 13, 2010, the station's branding changed again to "News 720 WGN." show. He told Robert Feder "I've done everything I can to respect and build on the legacy of this amazing place, and I believe I accomplished everything I set out to do." They brought in a guy who just did not like the station, and said so out loud, said Fabian. You can find a comprehensive archive of his material here. WGN's YouTube Page. Its schedule was primarily a simulcast of the AM station, with some FM-only music shows broadcast as well. On April 30, 2008, the station entered into a three-year deal to broadcast Chicago Blackhawks hockey games through the 20102011 season. Now, Steve Cochrane? No personality is larger than what the brand is. Good that Bob Sirott is back yes he is more laid back than Steve Cochran but Bob will be respectful to the listeners that call in. Thats why I decided to retire. However the ship's skipper (and namesake) agreed to relinquish it in order to free it for adoption by the newspaper. Above: A few of the WGN Radio Newsroom reporters (I to r) Steve Bertrand, Dave Stewart, Rod Sierra and Wes Bleed. After a dispute with the station in 1927, Gosden and Correll took the program's concept and announcer Bill Hay across town to WMAQ and created the first syndicated radio show, Amos 'n' Andy. WGN radio personality Wally Phillips hosts Mayor Harold Washington on Phillips' telephone call-in show fielding a wide range of questions from listeners in November 1983. Allen, Bernie - Retired from radio, living in Chicago. GN is becoming trivialized by the new (right wing) policy of no national news and discussion. But Sirott being hired again reminds me of something I wrote some time ago saying Chicago radio has become a nursing home for broken-down talent who refuse to leave the stage. Sadly, this is truer now Chicago radio simply sticks with the same tired wheel of safe personalities, even as we head into the next decade. WGN (720 AM) is a commercial radio station in Chicago, Illinois, featuring a talk radio format. [66] The sale made WGN the only radio property owned by Nexstar, which primarily owns television stations;[66] in an interview with Crain's Chicago Business in December 2018, shortly after the deal was announced, Nexstar CEO Perry Sook stated that he "doesnt have an allergic reaction to radio" and that there were no immediate plans to sell WGN radio, adding that he did not expect Nexstar to acquire additional radio stations.[67]. First Lt. Elmer McKesson, Capt. [11] WTAS was deleted,[12] and the other two stations were merged with a dual call letter assignment of WGN-WLIB, although the latter call sign would be rarely if ever used. Sirott may not be the exact fitbut its a step in the right direction. Music programming was phased out during the 1980s, and by 1990, the station's lineup mainly consisted of talk shows. Orion Samuelson had been the station's farm reporter since 1960, he retired in 2020. Slogans during its ratings pinnacle included WGN Radio is Chicago, a bold assertion issued in TV spots by a cartoon bird, reflecting both the stations market dominance and cultural significance. He said he plans to focus on The Content Factory, his Evanston-based national syndication and new media company, and to expand into the area of sports representation. After the four Meier auditions, Jerry Springer was given a four-day stint as "guest host", followed by Rita Cosby a few weeks later. Thank you WGN!!! And were doing well without them.. Add links. While he aspired to be the Cubs radio play-by-play man, Sirott turned down an offer from Fabian to take the job during the height of his TV hosting commitments. WGN-TV and WGN Radio would remain with the original entity, which was renamed Tribune Media and was restructured to focus on the company's broadcasting, digital and real estate properties; the newspaper division which, in addition to the Chicago Tribune, included publications such as the Los Angeles Times, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel and the Baltimore Sun was spun off into the standalone entity Tribune Publishing (known as Tronc from June 2016 until the company reverted to its former name in October 2018). : Bengston, Bob - Retired from radio. I looked forward to good things. The decision to replace Cochran with Sirott stunned many local media observers, given Cochran finished third in the all-important morning drive daypart in the last Nielsen PPM report. WGN's studios are located in the Chicago Loop, while the transmitter is in Elk Grove Village. So I offered them a little Tribune real estate here as a return favor. #44 of 164. Age discrimination MUST be eliminated and a person recognized for their TALENT up beat , and positive so refreshing at this stressful time. The disc jockey became important in Chicago radio during the 1930s, well before the term "disc jockey" was coined in the 1940s. Text is available under the Creative Commons . In November, after the firing of controversial program director Kevin Metheny, Tom Langmyer instructed staff to identify the station as "720 WGN." Bring back Cochran and Wendy. Shortly after Nexstar took control of WGN, the station began to broadcast national NFL play-by-play on Sunday afternoons from Compass Media Networks. WGN was the longtime Chicago outlet for Paul Harvey from 1951 until his death on February 28, 2009. With Brandmeier's addition to WGN radio's weekday lineup, the morning drive timeslot shifted to 5:30-9 a.m., followed by Mike McConnell from 9 a.m.-12 p.m., John Williams from 12-3 p.m., and Garry Meier from 3-7 p.m. News anchor Steve Bertrand moved to mornings with Brandmeier and Jim Gudas shifted to the midday/afternoon slot. One of her first personnel moves in December 2019 was naming veteran Chicago radio and TV personality Bob Sirott as morning drive host on WGN Radio. former wnem tv5 reporters former wnem tv5 reporters. But with few people owning FM radio receivers in that era, management did not think WGNB would become profitable. Stupid decisions. In black-appeal radio, the disc jockey role was pioneered both locally and nationally by Jack L. Cooper, who began playing . I was happy for Pete that he would get a morning show, but I had this bad feeling it was a bad move/risk/ Mornings as we know are a very competitive and no offense to 97.1 The Drive or its listeners, but its a music station for people that like type/genre of music. Article; Talk; English. When the White Sox games are on, I go to 820 (dont know the call letters). From 1924 to 2014, WGN was owned by Tribune Media, which also owned the Chicago Tribune, whose "World's Greatest Newspaper" slogan served as the basis for the WGN call sign. Local hosts on WGN include morning host Bob Sirott along with John Williams, Lisa Dent, John Records Landecker, Rollye James and Dave Plier. [3] The ship's call letters were changed to KFSI. WGN is a commercial AM radio station in Chicago, Illinois, with studios on the 18th floor of 303 East Wacker Drive in the Chicago Loop. Goodbye to the left leaning, Hillary loving, agenda pushing fool. A lot of companies, they have heritage stations, but they dont necessarily put a lot of value on that history, Harrison said. was dropped from the station and replaced by a returning Bob Sirott, returned to Chicago radio in a weekend/fill-in role at WVAZ-FM, dropping Bill Leff and Wendy Snyder from middays. [56][needs update] In October 2012, then back into Tribune Tower in October 2012. Dent has been filling in on various shifts at WGN since January. In 1934, WGN became a founding member of the Mutual Broadcasting System. 27 de fevereiro de 2023 | celebrities with short upper lip. He and his team were terrific morning entertainers. What is the new WGN thinking, are all the bosses afraid to read the numbers, or are there egos so large that they are smarter than the chicago listeners, I hope that the person who put Sinatra on Sunday mornings didnt do this, but it sounds like the same logic. WGN Radio is commemorating its anniversary with a TV documentary airing at 7 p.m. Thursday on sister station WGN-Ch. And then replace him with the also-was used to be Sirrot? Miss Bill and Wendy a lot. As analyst Rich Greenfield would say, Good Luck Radio. : Station Deletions", "Col. Robert McCormick Dies; WGN-AM-TV Among Holdings", "McCormick Will Names Five To Head 'Tribune,' Stations", "Patrolman Leonard F. Baldy, Chicago Police Department, Illinois", "Eight Chicago Police Stars Retired During Ceremony at Chicago Police Headquarters", "Patrolman Irving Francis Hayden, Chicago Police Department, Illinois", "WGN Television: 2501 West Bradley Place, Chicago, Illinois, 60618", "WGN Radio Station Studio Orchestra Music Library and Records, 1925-1956 | The Sousa Archives and Center for American Music", "At Flagging Tribune, Tales of a Bankrupt Culture", "Tribune Co. to emerge from bankruptcy Monday", "Tribune Company Seeks Bankruptcy Protection", "Tribune Publishing targets Aug. 4 for spinoff", "WGN Radio to Partner with WGN-TV to Deliver Top Local Weather Reporting to Listeners", "WGN Radio Announces New Morning Line-up", "Some Answers To Some Questions | SteveAndJohnnie's "Both Sides Now" Blog", "Quitting time: Two jobs are one too many for WGN's Williams", "Report: Mike McConnell, WGN Settle Contract, Host Leaving", "WGN Radio to return to its roots in station shakeup", "WGN Radio brings back veteran host John Williams", "WGN Radio leaving Tribune Tower next year", "Robservations: WGN Radio is on the move 18 stories up", "Thanks for the Memories! Elliott Jenkins, left, and Thorne Donnelly, right, are the original owners of WDAP, the predecessor to WGN radio. In October 2008, WGN-TV began to provide forecasts for WGN radio (prepared by Tom Skilling and other members of the sister television station's weather staff), after it ended a ten-year forecast partnership with The Weather Channel. Same here. But its OK that theyre no longer broadcast out of here. Will not listen ever again. The way WGN fired both Nick and Steve was a travesty. WGN 720-AM, the Nexstar Media Group news/talk station, chose the Friday night of a three-day holiday weekend to drop the bombshell that it's overhauling its weekday afternoon and evening lineup. The man is a stone-cold pro broadcaster who understands the game and loves the Cubs, Fabian said. Agree with canning Cochrane. All night and all weekend long, they re-play hours and hours of recent programming, no new content, and none of the familiar, friendly voices we enjoyed. WGN Radio AM 720. If you've ever wondered what your favorite radio personalities look like, scroll down or check out the slideshow. He was notified after he got off the air Friday that it was his last show. 1/9/2023 Updated review. On December 31, 2014, the WGN.FM website was redirected to the WGN Plus website, where Tribune offers various digital media content. For Sirott, this marks the third time he has been employed at WGN, returning to the station after he and wife Marianne Murciano left in 2015 after a two-year run. The loss of the Cubs, however, still stings for listeners and WGN staffers alike, hanging on like a phantom limb to the station where Chicago play-by-play broadcasts were born. where his students included WLS-Ch. On Sundays it runs Sunday Night Live with Bill Cunningham from WLW Cincinnati. Robert Feder, a lifelong Chicagoan, covered the media beat in his hometown from 1980 until his retirement in 2022. Bill and Wendy ARE THE BEST. You would have never seen Collins or ODell in this venue Over-the-air radio industry revenue peaked at about $18 billion in 2006, but it fell precipitously during the Great Recession and has never really recovered. The Bill and Wendy Show airs Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to noon, then streaming from noon to 1 p.m. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. Terms of Dents agreement, negotiated by attorney Steve Mandell, were not disclosed. I really miss,Nkck Digilio. Always patting himself on His back! Whats more interesting here is the recently retired Joyner who is the same age as Sirott (70) said about the state of radio recently in Billboard: When I came along, you didnt have a lot of listening choices. At least Kathy and Judy got a chance to wrap things up. September 6, 2020. WGN was best known for the Chicago Cubs, great hosts like Wally Phillips, Bob Collins, Paul Harvey and many more.. On December 2, 2011, WGN announced that Jonathon Brandmeier was named the new morning drive time host, effective December 9. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune). When Chicago radio enthusiasts Thorne Donnelley and Elliott Jenkins fired up a newfangled transmitter from the Wrigley Building on May 19, 1922, they launched one of the first experimental stations in the U.S., piercing the airwaves with a mlange of talk, weather reports and concerts as the precursor to WGN Radio. WGN 720-AM, the Nexstar Media Group news/talk station, chose the Friday night of a three-day holiday weekend to drop the bombshell that it's overhauling its weekday afternoon and evening lineup. This move caps off several weeks of major moves in Chicago radio, with WGN dropping Bill Leff and Wendy Snyder from middays and WXRT moving Lin Brehmers morning show to middays. [6] The call letters came from "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan used since 1911.[7]. Prior to the sale's closure, WGN-TV was one of two commercial television stations in the Chicago market, not counting network-owned stations, to have never been involved in an ownership transaction (along with WCIU-TV, which has been owned by Weigel Broadcasting since its February 1964 sign-on).
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