Amy Jacobson out at WIND-AM
Conservative personality laid off due to budget cuts
Salem Media Group’s conservative talk WIND-AM, branded locally as 560 AM The Answer, has parted ways with Morning Answer co-host Amy Jacobson, according to Barrett Media. Her last day on the air was Tuesday.
The controversial longtime Chicago media fixture was dropped due to ongoing budget cuts at Salem. Jacobson arrived at WIND in 2010, three years after she was fired from NBC-owned WMAQ-TV after being caught in a compromising position by rival CBS O&O WBBM-TV in a bikini at alledged murder suspect Craig Stebic’s house. After Jacobson took legal action against CBS for libel, the suit ended in 2015 after the Illinois Supreme Court passed on hearing the case.
After a brief stint at WLS-AM, Jacobson joined Dan Proft as host of The Morning Answer, and the duo became an unlikely hit in a deep-blue radio market. Jacobson regularly criticized Democrats on the show, especially local political figures such as Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Chicago Mayors Lori Lightfoot and Brandon Johnson. In the early 2010s when PPM numbers were more readily available, Jacobson and Proft were in the top fifteen in morning drive (ratings are no longer available after Salem dropped Nielsen a few years back.)
Jacobson’s time at WIND wasn’t free from controversy as she was often accused of violating ethical stanards. During the pandemic in 2020, she had her media credentials yanked by Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s staff, only to be restored by Attorney General Kwame Raoul. Last year, Jacobson and Proft came under fire for mocking Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’s son, who is diagnosed with ADHD. After an angry response from parents, Jacobson was forced to resign her position as volleyball coach from a Chicago Public School and apologized on-air for her behavior.
With radio in the rear view mirror – and like everyone else in the world, Jacobson is pivoting to podcasting and launching a new website, AmyJacobsonLive.com. Proft is expected to continue as The Morning Answer’s host, but it isn’t known if he’ll be paired with a new partner or will go solo. A former Chicago resident, Proft now does his show from his home in Florida.