Station’s rich history celebrated. But what about the next 75 years? It was on April 5, 1948 when Col. Robert McCormick fired up the transmitter to join the herd in taking advantage of a then-brand new medium to reach the masses – television. People stood outside of Tribune Tower in Chicago to see what the hubbub was about. It was […]
While others collapse with WGCI posting all-time low Chicago’s radio PPM ratings returned to normal after the holidays with a familiar name on top: iHeartMedia’s adult contemporary WLIT finishing on top for the third straight ratings period – even without Christmas music, which propelled them to the top for the last two months. WLIT also maintained their top rating in […]
Nexstar’s The CW officially announced a deal with the controversial LIV Golf, putting them in the sports business for the very first time. LIV Golf is a Saudi Arabia-funded rival to the PGA Tour, who has broadcast deals with CBS, NBC, and others. What makes this controversial is Saudi Arabia is accused of covering up a murder of a […]
Plus: MeTV expands Svengoolie; MLS and Apple makes linear broadcasting deals; PBS stations to stream on LocalNow. One of the top-rated overnight voices in Chicago radio is coming back for an encore. The husband-and-wife team of Steve King and Johnnie Putnam will be returning to WGN Radio on Saturday nights starting January 7, where they’ll have a weekly show airing […]
Trailblazer at WMAQ and WGN radio dies at 92 One of the first African-Americans to break the color barrier at a mainstream Chicago radio station has died. Floyd Brown, who was known to be one of the few Black radio personalities to appear on WGN Radio, passed away Friday at 92. Born in Dallas, Brown arrived in Chicago enrolling in […]
Nexstar financial chief says money from sale of printing press property helped purchase The CW [Editor’s Note: This story was updated November 19.] It turns out there is a Chicago connection to the recent purchase of The CW network by Irving, Tex.-based Nexstar Media Group – and it involves a future casino in our town. As reported by Hollywood trade […]
Chicago was one of his stops in long, storied career Nationally syndicated radio host and Hall Of Famer Jim Bohannon died on Saturday from cancer. He was 78. Bohannon made his final appearance on his Westwood One show October 14, four days after he announced he was retiring due to being diagnosed with stage four terminal cancer. Nexstar’s WGN-AM was […]
WOJO takes home crown in demos; sports talkers grow The August PPM ratings for Chicago radio stations were released Tuesday and it showed a tie at the top. Hubbard’s The Drive (WDRV-FM) and iHeartMedia’s 93.9 The Lite (WLIT-FM) each finished in a tie for first place, both ahead of their competitors by nearly one ratings point. However for classic rocker […]
Also: Jennifer Hudson’s local time slot set; and the Chicago Blackhawks name new analysts [Editor’s Note: The Blackhawks item has been updated with more information.] If you are a fan of Svengoolie – and I know there are a lot of you out there, then you have a lot to celebrate this October. Weigel’s MeTV is turning the pumpkin month […]
The Drive is tops for the third straight month; WOJO dominates demos Who needs Rudolph anyway? That’s the attitude iHeartMedia’s classic hits heavy-AC outlet WLIT has after scoring its highest non-Christmas ratings in years. According the July Nielsen Audio numbers released Monday, WLIT place second, up 13 percent from June, finishing behind Hubbard’s The Drive (WDRV-FM). Generally, WLIT dominates in […]
WDRV-FM opens up a nearly two-point share lead on WBBM-AM/WCFS-FM In the May survey, Hubbard’s Classic Rock station The Drive (WDRV-FM) scored their first-ever ratings victory in their 21-year history, dislodging Adult R&B V103 (WVAZ-FM) as Chicago’s top-rated music station. Not only they repeated the feat again in June, they expanded their lead over their competitors. The Drive topped the […]
WLS-AM, WXRT name new morning hosts; WDRV’s Bob Stroud calls it a career (somewhat) It was a busy Tuesday morning in Chicago radio with tons of personnel moves. To start, Audacy-owned WXRT-FM announced the promotion of Marty Lennartz to mornings beginning on June 13 to replace the departing Richard Milne, who is exiting Friday to take care of his ailing […]
Also: NBC 5/Telemundo to award nonprofits; Sherri Shepard to succeed Wendy Williams; Introducing Ion Mystery Is WGN-AM staging a return to the top? The first PPM numbers released for 2022 shows the Nexstar-owned station placing fourth overall, up 49 percent from the last survey – marking their highest ranking since October 2008 at the dawn of the PPM era. Leading […]
Sirott, Williams shifts an hour later; Davlantes reassigned Chicago radio veteran Lisa Dent has a new full-time gig – an afternoon talk show co-host at storied WGN Radio. The move is one of many at the Nexstar-owned news/talk radio station – the only one in the TV station group’s portfolio. She’s being paired with Steve Bertrand in afternoons starting January […]
Team returns to WMVP in new three-year deal After a turbulent last few weeks after the team announced the return of 76-year old Tony LaRussa as manager, the Chicago White Sox announced another retro signing – a return to WMVP-AM, branded as ESPN 1000. The last time you heard them on ESPN 1000, they became World Series Champs. The next […]