Collation of media organizations blast plan, saying public safety is threatened; New York City may follow Chicago media organizations and community leaders are blasting a plan to encrypt police radio scanners, saying doing so would be a threat to public safety. In a letter signed by three publications, five television station newsrooms, and WBEZ parent Chicago Public Media, the collation […]
Cook County State’s Attorney blasts Nexstar’s WGN-TV over poll A poll released by Nexstar-owned independent WGN-TV on Tuesday showed how Chicago-area residents felt about their local political leadership and pressing issues like crime. And let me tell you – it wasn’t pretty as people seem to have it in for Mayor Lori Lightfoot and Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx, […]
Ratings are down for local news – but not out [Editor’s Note: This post was updated on June 1.] If you’ve noticed, ratings are down across-the-board for just about everything on linear TV these days. And yes, that includes local news. As reported by Robert Feder Friday, three Chicago news stations: ABC-owned WLS-TV, NBC-owned WMAQ-TV and Nexstar independent WGN-TV, all […]
Lightfoot’s decision to exclude white journalists sets off firestorm. But it’s a conversation long overdue The latest dustup between the Chicago media and minority communities is unusual because the person behind it happens to be the Mayor of Chicago. On Tuesday, Mayor Lori Lightfoot – the first Black woman to be elected to the position in the city’s history, decided […]
(AP Photo/Julio Cortez) Most drop the ball on coverage on a day democracy nearly died Wednesday’s attempted coup by President Trump and his allies brought out the worst and when everything was said and done, four people were dead and there were calls for him to resign, be impeached, or invoke the 25th Amendment to remove him. Perhaps the […]
Also: Two TV-related sites shut down; XFL off to good start With all the threats to our freedom of the press – from hedge fund operators buying financial stakes in newspaper companies to President Trump, now is the right time to discuss what it means to the future of journalism. On February 23, numerous journalists and reporters are gathering at […]
CNN, Fox News lag in Chicago market – as local news expansion is starting to go bust in some markets You’d think with all the local newscasts saturating Chicago television, there would be a lot of people watching, right? A recent study released has confirmed this fact – but cable news may be another […]
A hate crime video shot live on Facebook has stations debating the use of such content In a city whose news stations are accustomed to airing gruesome video and reporting on daily shootings and murders, even this was too much to take. Chicago’s five television newsrooms were debating earlier this month on whether or not repeated airings of a disabled […]
With corruption, high taxes, and gang violence, Chicago has become an international embarrassment and may never recover If you’ve read this blog for the last ten years, then you know yours truly doesn’t just write about the media business. I’ve also written about Chicago and its image problems. The latest international embarrassment came last week when a nine-year old was […]
On May 20, yours truly sent out a tweet stating the local stations did a good job on NATO coverage. Well, I’ve re-thought that statement – particularly after reading this brilliant guest commentary from Rich Jasculca at Crain’s Chicago Business’s website, and the feedback section (except for one comment) was also spot on. As Jasculca pointed out, the media coverage […]
As you know by now, Chicago is hosting the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit at McCormick Place this coming Sunday and Monday. There are numerous street closures, parking restrictions, bus reroutes, and train station closures. Security is being beefed up all over town, including on public transportation and in downtown office buildings. And oh yeah… there’s going to be […]
(Editor’s Note: Even though Prop 101 is still in effect, its being lifted for this story only, since WIQI is part.) A little over ten days ago, yours truly wrote a Think Tank regarding an incident that happened outside Mt. Sinai Hospital between the Chicago Police and two journalists – WGN-TV’s Dan Ponce and WMAQ videographer Donte Williams who were […]
As you may know – if you’ve been following on Twitter – The T Dog Media Blog is leaving Blogger and is moving to a new home as part of the new website I’m launching officially on September 19, when the sixth season of The T Dog Media Blog begins. Visit https://www.tdogmedia.com to view the progress of the site as […]
Walter E. Smithe Furniture recently released a two-minute commercial honoring the 22-year legacy of Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley. Among those who appeared in the ad were local celebrities like George Wendt, Eric Ferguson from WTMX’s Eric & Kathy, fictional Alderman Ed Bus (from the 53rd Ward), and a few other Chicago dignitaries. Oh, and there were some local news […]
A day after TV legend Ed McMahon died, another media legend – this time locally – has passed on. John Callaway – a figure in Chicago media for the last four to five decades, died Tuesday night after suffering a heart attack in Racine, Wis. Callaway was known for his tough interviews with local and national politicians and other figures, […]