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Wikipedia

WGN (AM)

January 10, 2023

This article is about the radio station. For the local Chicago television station, see WGN-TV. For the cable channel formerly known as WGN America, see NewsNation.

WGN (720 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station in Chicago, Illinois, with studios on the 18th floor of 303 East Wacker Drive in the Chicago Loop.[2] WGN has a news/talk format, along with broadcasts of Chicago Blackhawks hockey and Northwestern University football and basketball.

WGN
Broadcast areaChicago metropolitan area, Northern Illinois, Northwest Indiana, Southeast Wisconsin, Eastern Iowa
Frequency720 kHz
Branding720 WGN
Programming
FormatNews/talk
AffiliationsNewsNation
Chicago Blackhawks Radio Network
Ownership
Owner
History
First air date
  • May 19, 1922; 100 years ago (1922-05-19) (WDAP)
  • March 29, 1924; 98 years ago (1924-03-29) (first Tribune/WGN)
  • June 1, 1924; 98 years ago (1924-06-01) (WDAP becomes WGN)[1]
Former call signs
WDAP (1922–1924)
WGN-WLIB (1928–1933)
Call sign meaning
"World's Greatest Newspaper" (Chicago Tribune slogan)
Technical information
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID72114
ClassA
Power50,000 watts
Transmitter coordinates
Links
Public license information
  • Public file
  • LMS
Webcast
  • WGN 720 live
  • WGN Extra Channel 1
  • WGN Extra Channel 2
Website
  • WGN Radio
WGN Previous Logo

WGN is the only radio station owned by Nexstar Media Group, which primarily owns television stations. 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.

WGN is a clear channel, Class A station, broadcasting at the maximum power of 50,000 watts, and using a non-directional antenna. The transmitter is on Martingdale Road in Elk Grove Village, near Interstate 290.[3] During daytime hours, near-perfect ground conductivity gives WGN at least secondary coverage to almost two-thirds of Illinois (as far south as Springfield) as well as large slices of Wisconsin, Indiana, Michigan and Iowa. During nighttime skywave hours, with a good radio, it is audible over most of the Eastern and Central United States and Central Canada. The station also streams its programming on its website and supplies podcasts as well. WGN is responsible for the activation of the Chicago metropolitan area Emergency Alert System when hazardous weather alerts, disaster area declarations, and child abductions are issued.

Programming

News and talk

Weekdays begin with a morning news and information show hosted by Bob Sirott, followed by a midday program hosted by John Williams. In the PM drive time, the station features Chicago's Afternoon News with Steve Bertrand and Lisa Dent. In the evening, shows from John Records Landecker, Rollye James and Dave Plier are heard. Weekends feature shows on home repair, law, pets, the outdoors and travel. John Williams hosts a Sunday evening adult standards show and Dave Plier plays the music of Frank Sinatra on Sunday mornings.

WGN is one of the few talk stations in the U.S. to broadcast all local talk shows during the day and evening. But in recent years, it has added some nationally syndicated talk shows at night. Monday through Saturday, it carries The Jim Bonhannon Show from Westwood One during late night hours. On Sundays it runs Live on Sunday Night, It's Bill Cunningham from WLW Cincinnati. WGN was the longtime Chicago outlet for Paul Harvey from 1951 until his death on February 28, 2009. Harvey's news and commentary shows were carried nationally by ABC Radio, although he was based in Chicago and the programs aired locally on WGN.

WGN airs local news headlines, weather forecasts supplied by WGN-TV, traffic reports and sports headlines every half-hour on weekdays from 6:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. and every hour nights and weekends. Also during weekdays, the radio station simulcasts the first two hours of the WGN Morning News at 4:00 a.m.

Sports teams

WGN serves as the flagship radio outlet for Chicago Blackhawks hockey and Northwestern University football and men's basketball. For the 2018 and 2019 seasons, WGN was the flagship station for the Major League Baseball Chicago White Sox.[4] WLS 890 AM previously had the contract to carry the White Sox, but its parent company, Cumulus Media, ran into financial problems and gave up the rights to White Sox broadcasts. With the 2020 season, WMVP 1000 AM became the White Sox flagship radio outlet.

WGN had a long association with the MLB Chicago Cubs from 1925 to 2014, the last 56 years of that period as the exclusive flagship station. Following the 2014 season, Cubs radio broadcasts moved to 780 AM WBBM.[5]

Shortly after Nexstar took control of WGN, the station began to broadcast national NFL play-by-play on Sunday afternoons from Compass Media Networks.

The station used ABC News Radio for national news reports as the network's Chicago affiliate.[6] On September 1, 2020, WGN Radio dropped ABC News Radio in favor of being an "audio news hub" for the co-owned NewsNation TV channel.

Broadcasting areas

WGN (AM) is broadcast in five states, Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, Indiana, and Michigan. it is broadcast in its local area of the Chicago metro, and in Northern Illinois and parts of Central Illinois, and is also broadcast in Southeast and Northeast Wisconsin, parts of Eastern Iowa, and Northwest Indiana.[7]

Illinois

Indiana

Iowa

Michigan

Wisconsin

History

WDAP

The station first signed on the air on May 19, 1922. It was granted the sequentially issued call letters WDAP to Mid West Radio Central, Inc. in Chicago.[8] The corporation was headed by Thorne Donnelley and Elliott Jenkins.

WDAP was originally located at the Wrigley Building. The studios were moved to the Drake Hotel the following July.[9] In mid-1923 ownership was transferred to the Board of Trade,[10] and the next year the Whitestone Company, managers of the Drake Hotel, took control.[11]

Chicago Tribune

The Chicago Tribune purchased WDAP, and on June 1, 1924, renamed it WGN.[12] The call letters came from "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan used since 1911.[13]

This was the second Tribune-affiliated radio station to hold the WGN call letters. The original WGN began operating on the evening of March 29, 1924, after the newspaper took over programming of the former WJAZ.[14][1] The WGN call sign had been assigned to a Great Lakes vessel, SS Carl D. Bradley. However the ship's skipper (and namesake) agreed to relinquish it in order to free it for adoption by the newspaper.[9] The ship's call letters were changed to KFSI.

Shows and programming

Early programming was noted for its creativity and innovation. It included live music, political debates, comedy routines, and some of radio's first sporting event broadcasts, including the 1924 Indianapolis 500, and a live broadcast of the 1925 Scopes Trial from Dayton, Tennessee. Wallace M Rogerson conducted the Keep Fit to Music programme.[15] In 1926, WGN broadcast Sam & Henry, a daily serial with comic elements created and performed by Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll. 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.[16]

By the fall of 1928, the owners of the Tribune company and its sister publication, Liberty magazine, controlled two stations in addition to WGN in the Chicago area: WLIB and WTAS. On September 1, 1928 the Federal Radio Commission (FRC) ruled that this was two stations too many, and ordered that their operations be consolidated.[17] WTAS was deleted,[18] 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. On May 15, 1933, after the FRC requested that stations using only one of their assigned call letters drop those that were no longer in regular use, WLIB was eliminated and the station reverted to just WGN.[19]

CBS and Mutual Broadcasting System

 
WGN's main studio in the Tribune Tower, c. 1930s -1940s. It could seat 600 people.

On November 1, 1931, WGN's network affiliation changed from NBC to CBS as a result of NBC's purchase of a half-interest in WMAQ, which then became Chicago's NBC station.[20] During this period, Count Cutelli installed one of the most advanced sound effects system to date into the WGN studios, the same system used in Hollywood films.[21]

In 1934, WGN became a founding member of the Mutual Broadcasting System. WGN joined with WOR New York City, WXYZ Detroit and WLW Cincinnati to form the network, a rival to NBC and CBS. During the "Golden Age of Radio," Mutual was the home of The Lone Ranger, The Adventures of Superman and The Shadow. For many years, it was a national broadcaster for Major League Baseball, the National Football League and Notre Dame football.

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.[22]

In 1939, Carole Mathews, the "Miss Chicago" of 1938, launched a WGN radio program entitled Breakfast Time with Carole Mathews. It ended later that year when she left the station for an acting career in Hollywood.[23]

FM and TV stations

In 1941, WGN began operating an FM station.[24] Most of its short history, WGNB was found at 98.7 MHz, which today is the frequency for classical music station WFMT. WGNB's schedule was primarily simulcast from the AM station with some FM-only music shows broadcast as well. But with few people owning FM radio receivers in that era, management did not think WGNB would become profitable. It decided to take the FM station off the air and hand in the license in the early 1950s.

In 1946, the Tribune Company applied to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for a construction permit to build a television station. On April 5, 1948, WGN-TV Channel 9 signed on the air. 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.

Change in ownership

After McCormick died from pneumonia-related complications on April 1, 1955, ownership of WGN-AM-TV, the Chicago Tribune and the News Syndicate Company properties transferred to the McCormick-Patterson Trust, assigned to the Robert R. McCormick Tribune Foundation in the names of the non-familial heirs of McCormick (whose two marriages never produced any children) and familial heirs of Patterson. (The trust was dissolved in January 1975, with a majority of the trust's former beneficiaries, including descendants of the McCormick and Patterson families, owning stock in the restructured Tribune Company entity – which assumed oversight of all properties previously overseen by the trust – afterward.)[25][26][27][28][29]

 
Officer Baldy and the WGN traffic copter in 1959.

In November 1958, WGN became the first radio station in Chicago to broadcast helicopter traffic reports featuring Police Officer Leonard Baldy. Flying Officer Baldy was killed in a helicopter crash, while on duty, on May 2, 1960.[30][31][32] Eleven years later, WGN suffered another helicopter-related tragedy when Flying Officer Irv Hayden and his pilot were killed on August 10, 1971, after their helicopter struck a utility pole in the Chicago suburb of Bellwood.[33][34][35]

Move to North Center

In 1961, the WGN radio and television stations moved to a studio facility on West Bradley Place in the North Center neighborhood, a move undertaken for civil defense concerns in order to provide the station a safe base to broadcast in case of a hostile attack targeting downtown Chicago.[36] WGN radio moved back to North Michigan Avenue in 1986, relocating its operations to a studio in the Pioneer Court extension (WGN-TV remained at the Bradley Place facility, where that station operates to this day).[37] The former WGN annex onto Tribune Tower is now used as a retail space containing Dylan's Candy Bar.

Over many decades, WGN was a "full service" radio station. The station played small amounts of music during the mornings and afternoon hours, moderate amounts of music on weekends during the day, aired midday and evening talk shows, and sports among other features. The station aired middle of the road (MOR) music until the 1970s, when its switched to more of an adult contemporary-type sound. Music programming was phased out during the 1980s, and by 1990, the station's lineup mainly consisted of talk shows.

Past personalities

Some former well-known personalities on WGN include longtime morning hosts Wally Phillips, Bob Collins, Spike O'Dell, Paul Harvey and Roy Leonard. Orion Samuelson had been the station's farm reporter since 1960, he retired in 2020. Late-night hosts over the years have included Franklyn MacCormack, Ed "Chicago Eddie" Schwartz, Don Vogel and the husband-and-wife team of Steve King and Johnnie Putman.

The Sousa Archives and Center for American Music at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign holds the WGN Radio Station Studio Orchestra Music Library and Records, 1925–1956,[38] which consists of scripts, programs, production notes, correspondence, music library rental records, sheet music manuscripts, and music scores with annotations that document the WGN Studio Symphonic Orchestra from 1925 to 1956.

Controversial management

WGN continues to recover from the controversial rule of former Tribune head Randy Michaels, who resigned under pressure in 2010 amid allegations of inappropriate and sexist behavior in the workplace, and former WGN Program Director Kevin Metheny.[39] Industry observers described Metheny's tenure as one that nearly destroyed the venerable WGN, with staff moves that included replacing a popular evening host with radio rookie Jim Laski, a Chicago politician and convicted felon.[40]

Metheny and Laski were both fired weeks after Michaels was forced to resign by a Tribune Board of Directors facing spiraling losses at the hands of Michaels' management style.[40] In 2005, Tom Langmyer was appointed as vice president and general manager of WGN.

On April 30, 2008, the station entered into a three-year deal to broadcast Chicago Blackhawks hockey games through the 2010–2011 season.[41]

New ownership

On April 1, 2007, Chicago-based real estate investor Sam Zell announced plans to purchase the Tribune Company in an $8.2-billion leveraged buyout that gave Tribune employees stock and effective ownership of the company. The transaction and concurring privatization of the company was completed upon termination of Tribune stock at the close of trading on December 20, 2007. 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).[42][43][44] On December 8, 2008, Tribune filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, citing a debt load of around $13 billion – making it the largest media bankruptcy in American corporate history – that it accrued from the Zell buyout and related privatization costs as well as a sharp downturn in revenue from newspaper advertising. After a protracted four-year process, on December 31, 2012, Tribune formally exited from bankruptcy under the control of its senior debt holders, Oaktree Capital Management, JPMorgan Chase and Angelo, Gordon & Co.[45][46][47]

On July 10, 2013, Tribune announced plans to split off its broadcasting and newspaper interests into two separate companies. 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). The split was completed on August 4, 2014, ending the Tribune's joint ownership with WGN-TV and WGN Radio after 66 and 94 years, respectively. However, WGN-TV continues to maintain a content partnership with the Tribune.[48][49]

Programming changes

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.[50] That year, morning host Spike O'Dell retired from radio; WGN then moved the station's midday host at the time, John Williams to the morning slot. Williams' former timeslot, 1-4 p.m. was left vacant for several months, with the station's other radio hosts filling in on a rotating basis – including weekend host Nick Digilio, and Bob Sirott, who formerly hosted "The Noon Show" on the same station, in addition to a weekend program that is pre-recorded with his wife, Marianne Murciano (Sirott was also a prominent news anchor at NBC owned-and-operated station WMAQ-TV, channel 5, and later at Fox-owned WFLD, channel 32).

In March 2009, longtime Chicago radio host Garry Meier was given an audition for the 1-4 p.m. slot. Meier hosted four shows, which is believed to have caused a surge in interest among younger people, who traditionally rarely listened to WGN. Chicago media message boards exploded with traffic and posts, many excited over a possible permanent Meier presence on the station. After the four Meier auditions, Jerry Springer was given a four-day stint as "guest host", followed by Rita Cosby a few weeks later. On April 2, 2009, WGN announced that Meier would join the station full-time as host of a program in the 1-4 p.m. slot (airing most weekdays when the program is not pre-empted by Chicago Cubs broadcasts); his first official show occurred that same day. On May 22, 2009, WGN announced the cancellation of The Kathy and Judy Show effective after that day's broadcast. The final show was largely a retrospective of the program's 20 years on WGN radio; this occurred shortly after the replacement of much of the station's weekend lineup.

On June 15, 2009, the station announced that Greg Jarrett would become its new morning-drive host starting on June 22, with John Williams being shifted to Kathy and Judy's former late morning timeslot.[51] In June 2010, WGN announced the hiring of longtime Cincinnati-based host Mike McConnell from WLW for the late morning (8:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.) slot, shifting Williams back to his original midday time slot (now from 12:30-3:00 p.m.) on August 9, 2010.

Coinciding with the hire of Jarrett, WGN dropped its "News/Talk 720" brand and began identifying itself simply as "Chicago's WGN Radio 720." This new identity was implemented in all station promos, and used by all on-air talent. On August 13, 2010, the station's branding changed again to "News 720 WGN." In November, after the firing of controversial program director Kevin Metheny, Tom Langmyer instructed staff to identify the station as "720 WGN." Weekend hosts Jerry Agar and the "News Junkie" Sean Wasson left the station, in a shift towards more general and less controversial talk programming.

On December 2, 2011, WGN announced that Jonathon Brandmeier was named the new morning drive time host, effective December 9. 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. Former morning host Greg Jarrett was released from the station. Overnight hosts Steve King and Johnnie Putman left WGN on December 9 after a week-long series of live "Farewell Celebration" shows. Bill Leff took over the midnight to 5:30 a.m. slot on December 12. 2011.[52]

In 2012, John Williams announced his departure from the station upon the December 31 expiration of his contract (leaving on December 21, 2012), in order to concentrate exclusively on his program on WCCO in Minneapolis instead of splitting time between stations.[53][needs update] In October 2012, then back into Tribune Tower in October 2012.[54] On December 17, 2012, WGN Radio executives announced that the long-running program "Extension 720", hosted by Dr. Milton J. Rosenberg, would end its 39-year run three days later on December 20.

In June 2013, Tribune Broadcasting CEO Larry Wert hired Jimmy DeCastro as WGN radio's president and general manager. In addition, Bob Sirott and Marianne Murciano's program moved to the weekday lineup and Steve Cochran was announced to be returning to WGN. The changes are an attempt to shift WGN closer to the programming format it had prior to Kevin Metheney and Randy Michaels' tenure with WGN and Tribune, while placing more emphasis on new media; this included the move of Mike McConnell's program to the station's secondary Internet radio station WGN Plus (formerly WGN-2) until the remainder of his contract was bought out around October 10, 2013,[55] the move of Jonathon Brandmeier's morning show to a new station branded "The G" (which has since launched as an additional Internet-only station but is planned to eventually move to an FM frequency to be acquired by Tribune) in favor of Cochran, and increased synergy with WGN-TV (including the replacement of WGN radio's "Voice of Chicago" slogan with WGN-TV's longtime slogan, "Chicago's Very Own").[56] On May 21, WGN Radio announced that their schedule would change again effective May 27, 2014, which includes the return of John Williams to the airwaves of WGN Radio that he will pretty much do the show live from Minneapolis, while still doing his afternoon show on WCCO 830. His time slot announced was 10:00 A.M to 12:00 P.M, which moved then mid morning hosts Bill Leff and Wendy Snyder to the afternoon drive from 3:00-7:00 p.m. Garry Meier would be moved to WGN.FM, with Steve Cochran's morning show getting expended by 1 hour, and Bob Sirott and Marianne Murciano still having their 12:00-3:00 p.m. show.[57]

Chicago Cubs leave WGN

On June 5, 2014, the Chicago Cubs announced that radio broadcasts of its games would move from WGN to WBBM for the 2015 season under a seven-year deal. The deal ends the team's 90-year association with WGN.[58]

On November 20, 2014, Chicago media blogger Robert Feder reported that WGN management planned to end operation of both WGWG-LP and internet station WGN.FM on December 31, 2014. Jonathan Brandmeier and Garry Meier were released and their programs canceled immediately, with repeat shows airing through the end of December. While Brandmeier was reportedly not under contract with Tribune Media at the time of his release, Meier's contract with Tribune continued through September 2015.

On December 31, 2014, the WGN.FM website was redirected to the WGN Plus website, where Tribune offers various digital media content. WGWG-LP began an interim simulcast of WGN radio at 10 p.m. on December 31, 2014. The Chicago Tribune reported that the simulcast would continue through January 2015, after which Chicago-based Weigel Broadcasting was expected to assume operation of 87.7 FM; Weigel eventually began programming what is now WRME-LD on February 23, 2015.

On October 5, 2016, Jimmy DeCastro announced he was planning to leave WGN Radio at the end of the month. 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." At the time of his leaving he had spent 31⁄2 years serving as the President and General Manager of WGN Radio. His last day at WGN Radio was October 31. 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. Larry Wert has said he has not decided on naming a successor to DeCastro, so for now the sales and programming operations will report directly to Wert.

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.[59] The station began using its new studios on Wacker Drive for news reports in May 2018,[60] with the final show originating from Tribune Tower on June 18, 2018.[61]

Chicago White Sox broadcasts

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. The agreement is for three years.[4]

Acquisition by Nexstar

Tribune Media was acquired by Nexstar Media Group for $4.1 billion in September 2019, marking the first time since 1924 that WGN radio would not be owned by any iteration of the Tribune Company.[62] The sale made WGN the only radio property owned by Nexstar, which primarily owns television stations;[62] in an interview with Crain's Chicago Business in December 2018, shortly after the deal was announced, Nexstar CEO Perry Sook stated that he "doesn’t 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.[63]

Under Nexstar, several changes were made to the station's lineup, management, and branding. Bob Sirott was hired to replace Steve Cochran during morning drive hours, longtime mid-day duo Bill Leff and Wendy Snyder were ousted, and at a later date, evening host Justin Kaufmann was let go as well. These staffing changes were made over the course of months after Sean Compton began to oversee radio operations as Nexstar's Executive Vice President of WGN America, WGN Radio & Director of Content Acquisition. Morning producer Mary Boyle was appointed General Manager of the station after former Station Manager Todd Manley was terminated on the first day of Nextar's takeover. Veteran Chicago News Anchor Bill Kurtis was replaced in his role as voiceover talent by New York based voiceover artist Steve Kamer. Similarly, new radio jingles from JAM Creative Productions and sister company PAMS of Dallas were introduced to the station. Cuts from JAM jingle packages Top News, Talktrax, Talking Points, Non-Stop Power, You'll Like Our Style, Follow The Leader, Variety Pack, Nothing But Class, and Ameritalk are regularly featured in station identifications, sounders, and promotions. Nexstar also dropped their affiliation with ABC News Radio and instead is supplying national news updates for WGN America's national newscast, NewsNation with WGN newscasters and audio from Nexstar-owned television stations.

Notable former on-air personalities

References

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  50. ^ "WGN Radio to Partner with WGN-TV to Deliver Top Local Weather Reporting to Listeners". WGN Radio. October 10, 2008.
  51. ^ . WGN Radio. wgnradio.com. June 15, 2009. Archived from the original on June 18, 2009. Retrieved June 17, 2009.
  52. ^ "Some Answers To Some Questions | SteveAndJohnnie's "Both Sides Now" Blog". Steveandjohnnie.wordpress.com. December 5, 2011. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  53. ^ "Quitting time: Two jobs are one too many for WGN's Williams". TimeOut Chicago. timeoutchicago.com. October 23, 2012.
  54. ^ McLane, Paul (8 February 2012). "Radio 720 WGN Moves Upstairs". Radio World. Retrieved 29 November 2012.
  55. ^ "Report: Mike McConnell, WGN Settle Contract, Host Leaving". All Access. 10 October 2013. Retrieved 10 November 2013.
  56. ^ Channick, Robert (August 20, 2013). "WGN Radio to return to its roots in station shakeup". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved August 21, 2013.
  57. ^ Channick, Robert (2014-05-21). . Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on 2014-06-06. Retrieved 2014-11-14.
  58. ^ "Cubs, WBBM make radio deal official". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 9 June 2014.
  59. ^ Feder, Robert (July 25, 2017). "WGN Radio leaving Tribune Tower next year". RobertFeder.com. Retrieved July 26, 2017.
  60. ^ Feder, Robert (2018-05-15). "Robservations: WGN Radio is on the move — 18 stories up". RobertFeder.com. Retrieved 2018-06-19.
  61. ^ "Thanks for the Memories! Nick D and The Final Broadcast From The Tribune Tower". wgnradio.com. 2018-06-18. Retrieved 2018-06-19.
  62. ^ a b "New Owner Close At Hand For Chicago's WGN Radio". Inside Radio. September 16, 2019. Retrieved September 20, 2019.
  63. ^ Marek, Lynne (December 7, 2018). "Nexstar CEO expects WGN will team with other Illinois stations". Crain's Chicago Business. Retrieved September 20, 2019.
  64. ^ "| WGN Radio - 720 AM". wgnradio.com. Retrieved 2019-12-09.
  65. ^ Feder, Robert. "Roe Conn, Nick Digilio out in WGN Radio shakeup". www.robertfeder.com. Retrieved 2020-09-05.

External links

  • WGN Radio – official website
    • WGN Radio schedule
  • WGN in the FCC AM station database
  • WGN on Radio-Locator
  • WGN in Nielsen Audio's AM station database
  • FCC History Cards for WGN (covering 1927-1981)

January 10, 2023
this, article, about, radio, station, local, chicago, television, station, cable, channel, formerly, known, america, newsnation, commercial, radio, station, chicago, illinois, with, studios, 18th, floor, east, wacker, drive, chicago, loop, news, talk, format, . This article is about the radio station For the local Chicago television station see WGN TV For the cable channel formerly known as WGN America see NewsNation WGN 720 kHz is a commercial AM radio station in Chicago Illinois with studios on the 18th floor of 303 East Wacker Drive in the Chicago Loop 2 WGN has a news talk format along with broadcasts of Chicago Blackhawks hockey and Northwestern University football and basketball WGNChicago IllinoisBroadcast areaChicago metropolitan area Northern Illinois Northwest Indiana Southeast Wisconsin Eastern IowaFrequency720 kHzBranding720 WGNProgrammingFormatNews talkAffiliationsNewsNationChicago Blackhawks Radio NetworkOwnershipOwnerNexstar Media Group Tribune Media Company Sister stationsWGN TV NewsNationHistoryFirst air dateMay 19 1922 100 years ago 1922 05 19 WDAP March 29 1924 98 years ago 1924 03 29 first Tribune WGN June 1 1924 98 years ago 1924 06 01 WDAP becomes WGN 1 Former call signsWDAP 1922 1924 WGN WLIB 1928 1933 Call sign meaning World s Greatest Newspaper Chicago Tribune slogan Technical informationLicensing authorityFCCFacility ID72114ClassAPower50 000 wattsTransmitter coordinates42 0 42 N 88 2 7 W 42 01167 N 88 03528 W 42 01167 88 03528 main antenna 42 0 34 N 88 1 59 W 42 00944 N 88 03306 W 42 00944 88 03306 auxiliary antenna LinksPublic license informationPublic fileLMSWebcastWGN 720 live WGN Extra Channel 1 WGN Extra Channel 2WebsiteWGN RadioWGN Previous Logo WGN is the only radio station owned by Nexstar Media Group which primarily owns television stations 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 WGN is a clear channel Class A station broadcasting at the maximum power of 50 000 watts and using a non directional antenna The transmitter is on Martingdale Road in Elk Grove Village near Interstate 290 3 During daytime hours near perfect ground conductivity gives WGN at least secondary coverage to almost two thirds of Illinois as far south as Springfield as well as large slices of Wisconsin Indiana Michigan and Iowa During nighttime skywave hours with a good radio it is audible over most of the Eastern and Central United States and Central Canada The station also streams its programming on its website and supplies podcasts as well WGN is responsible for the activation of the Chicago metropolitan area Emergency Alert System when hazardous weather alerts disaster area declarations and child abductions are issued Contents 1 Programming 1 1 News and talk 1 2 Sports teams 2 Broadcasting areas 2 1 Illinois 2 2 Indiana 2 3 Iowa 2 4 Michigan 2 5 Wisconsin 3 History 3 1 WDAP 3 2 Chicago Tribune 3 3 Shows and programming 3 4 CBS and Mutual Broadcasting System 3 5 FM and TV stations 3 6 Change in ownership 3 7 Move to North Center 3 8 Past personalities 3 9 Controversial management 3 10 New ownership 3 11 Programming changes 3 12 Chicago Cubs leave WGN 3 13 Chicago White Sox broadcasts 3 14 Acquisition by Nexstar 3 15 Notable former on air personalities 4 References 5 External linksProgramming EditNews and talk Edit Weekdays begin with a morning news and information show hosted by Bob Sirott followed by a midday program hosted by John Williams In the PM drive time the station features Chicago s Afternoon News with Steve Bertrand and Lisa Dent In the evening shows from John Records Landecker Rollye James and Dave Plier are heard Weekends feature shows on home repair law pets the outdoors and travel John Williams hosts a Sunday evening adult standards show and Dave Plier plays the music of Frank Sinatra on Sunday mornings WGN is one of the few talk stations in the U S to broadcast all local talk shows during the day and evening But in recent years it has added some nationally syndicated talk shows at night Monday through Saturday it carries The Jim Bonhannon Show from Westwood One during late night hours On Sundays it runs Live on Sunday Night It s Bill Cunningham from WLW Cincinnati WGN was the longtime Chicago outlet for Paul Harvey from 1951 until his death on February 28 2009 Harvey s news and commentary shows were carried nationally by ABC Radio although he was based in Chicago and the programs aired locally on WGN WGN airs local news headlines weather forecasts supplied by WGN TV traffic reports and sports headlines every half hour on weekdays from 6 00 a m to 7 00 p m and every hour nights and weekends Also during weekdays the radio station simulcasts the first two hours of the WGN Morning News at 4 00 a m Sports teams Edit WGN serves as the flagship radio outlet for Chicago Blackhawks hockey and Northwestern University football and men s basketball For the 2018 and 2019 seasons WGN was the flagship station for the Major League Baseball Chicago White Sox 4 WLS 890 AM previously had the contract to carry the White Sox but its parent company Cumulus Media ran into financial problems and gave up the rights to White Sox broadcasts With the 2020 season WMVP 1000 AM became the White Sox flagship radio outlet WGN had a long association with the MLB Chicago Cubs from 1925 to 2014 the last 56 years of that period as the exclusive flagship station Following the 2014 season Cubs radio broadcasts moved to 780 AM WBBM 5 Shortly after Nexstar took control of WGN the station began to broadcast national NFL play by play on Sunday afternoons from Compass Media Networks The station used ABC News Radio for national news reports as the network s Chicago affiliate 6 On September 1 2020 WGN Radio dropped ABC News Radio in favor of being an audio news hub for the co owned NewsNation TV channel Broadcasting areas EditWGN AM is broadcast in five states Illinois Iowa Wisconsin Indiana and Michigan it is broadcast in its local area of the Chicago metro and in Northern Illinois and parts of Central Illinois and is also broadcast in Southeast and Northeast Wisconsin parts of Eastern Iowa and Northwest Indiana 7 Illinois Edit Chicago Metropolitan Area Cook County DeKalb County DuPage County Grundy County Kankakee County Kane County Kendall County Lake County McHenry County Will County Rockford metropolitan area Boone County Ogle County Stephenson County Winnebago County Dixon IL micropolitan area Lee County Quad Cities metropolitan area Rock Island County Mercer County Henry County Sterling Micropolitan Area Whiteside County Carroll County Dubuque metropolitan area Jo Daviess County Indiana Edit Chicago metropolitan area Jasper County Lake County Newton County Porter County Iowa Edit Quad Cities metropolitan area Scott County Muscatine micropolitan area Muscatine County Cedar County Clinton Micropolitan Area Clinton County Dubuque Metropolitan Area Dubuque County Jones County Jackson County Michigan Edit Berrien CountyWisconsin Edit Chicago metropolitan area Kenosha County Milwaukee metropolitan area Dodge County Jefferson County Milwaukee County Ozaukee County Racine County Walworth County Washington County Waukesha County Dubuque Metropolitan area Grant County Madison metropolitan area Dane County Columbia County Green County Iowa County History EditWDAP Edit The station first signed on the air on May 19 1922 It was granted the sequentially issued call letters WDAP to Mid West Radio Central Inc in Chicago 8 The corporation was headed by Thorne Donnelley and Elliott Jenkins WDAP was originally located at the Wrigley Building The studios were moved to the Drake Hotel the following July 9 In mid 1923 ownership was transferred to the Board of Trade 10 and the next year the Whitestone Company managers of the Drake Hotel took control 11 Chicago Tribune Edit The Chicago Tribune purchased WDAP and on June 1 1924 renamed it WGN 12 The call letters came from World s Greatest Newspaper a slogan used since 1911 13 This was the second Tribune affiliated radio station to hold the WGN call letters The original WGN began operating on the evening of March 29 1924 after the newspaper took over programming of the former WJAZ 14 1 The WGN call sign had been assigned to a Great Lakes vessel SS Carl D Bradley However the ship s skipper and namesake agreed to relinquish it in order to free it for adoption by the newspaper 9 The ship s call letters were changed to KFSI Shows and programming Edit Early programming was noted for its creativity and innovation It included live music political debates comedy routines and some of radio s first sporting event broadcasts including the 1924 Indianapolis 500 and a live broadcast of the 1925 Scopes Trial from Dayton Tennessee Wallace M Rogerson conducted the Keep Fit to Music programme 15 In 1926 WGN broadcast Sam amp Henry a daily serial with comic elements created and performed by Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll 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 16 By the fall of 1928 the owners of the Tribune company and its sister publication Liberty magazine controlled two stations in addition to WGN in the Chicago area WLIB and WTAS On September 1 1928 the Federal Radio Commission FRC ruled that this was two stations too many and ordered that their operations be consolidated 17 WTAS was deleted 18 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 On May 15 1933 after the FRC requested that stations using only one of their assigned call letters drop those that were no longer in regular use WLIB was eliminated and the station reverted to just WGN 19 CBS and Mutual Broadcasting System Edit WGN s main studio in the Tribune Tower c 1930s 1940s It could seat 600 people On November 1 1931 WGN s network affiliation changed from NBC to CBS as a result of NBC s purchase of a half interest in WMAQ which then became Chicago s NBC station 20 During this period Count Cutelli installed one of the most advanced sound effects system to date into the WGN studios the same system used in Hollywood films 21 In 1934 WGN became a founding member of the Mutual Broadcasting System WGN joined with WOR New York City WXYZ Detroit and WLW Cincinnati to form the network a rival to NBC and CBS During the Golden Age of Radio Mutual was the home of The Lone Ranger The Adventures of Superman and The Shadow For many years it was a national broadcaster for Major League Baseball the National Football League and Notre Dame football 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 22 In 1939 Carole Mathews the Miss Chicago of 1938 launched a WGN radio program entitled Breakfast Time with Carole Mathews It ended later that year when she left the station for an acting career in Hollywood 23 FM and TV stations Edit In 1941 WGN began operating an FM station 24 Most of its short history WGNB was found at 98 7 MHz which today is the frequency for classical music station WFMT WGNB s schedule was primarily simulcast from the AM station with some FM only music shows broadcast as well But with few people owning FM radio receivers in that era management did not think WGNB would become profitable It decided to take the FM station off the air and hand in the license in the early 1950s In 1946 the Tribune Company applied to the Federal Communications Commission FCC for a construction permit to build a television station On April 5 1948 WGN TV Channel 9 signed on the air 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 Change in ownership Edit After McCormick died from pneumonia related complications on April 1 1955 ownership of WGN AM TV the Chicago Tribune and the News Syndicate Company properties transferred to the McCormick Patterson Trust assigned to the Robert R McCormick Tribune Foundation in the names of the non familial heirs of McCormick whose two marriages never produced any children and familial heirs of Patterson The trust was dissolved in January 1975 with a majority of the trust s former beneficiaries including descendants of the McCormick and Patterson families owning stock in the restructured Tribune Company entity which assumed oversight of all properties previously overseen by the trust afterward 25 26 27 28 29 Officer Baldy and the WGN traffic copter in 1959 In November 1958 WGN became the first radio station in Chicago to broadcast helicopter traffic reports featuring Police Officer Leonard Baldy Flying Officer Baldy was killed in a helicopter crash while on duty on May 2 1960 30 31 32 Eleven years later WGN suffered another helicopter related tragedy when Flying Officer Irv Hayden and his pilot were killed on August 10 1971 after their helicopter struck a utility pole in the Chicago suburb of Bellwood 33 34 35 Move to North Center Edit In 1961 the WGN radio and television stations moved to a studio facility on West Bradley Place in the North Center neighborhood a move undertaken for civil defense concerns in order to provide the station a safe base to broadcast in case of a hostile attack targeting downtown Chicago 36 WGN radio moved back to North Michigan Avenue in 1986 relocating its operations to a studio in the Pioneer Court extension WGN TV remained at the Bradley Place facility where that station operates to this day 37 The former WGN annex onto Tribune Tower is now used as a retail space containing Dylan s Candy Bar Over many decades WGN was a full service radio station The station played small amounts of music during the mornings and afternoon hours moderate amounts of music on weekends during the day aired midday and evening talk shows and sports among other features The station aired middle of the road MOR music until the 1970s when its switched to more of an adult contemporary type sound Music programming was phased out during the 1980s and by 1990 the station s lineup mainly consisted of talk shows Past personalities Edit Some former well known personalities on WGN include longtime morning hosts Wally Phillips Bob Collins Spike O Dell Paul Harvey and Roy Leonard Orion Samuelson had been the station s farm reporter since 1960 he retired in 2020 Late night hosts over the years have included Franklyn MacCormack Ed Chicago Eddie Schwartz Don Vogel and the husband and wife team of Steve King and Johnnie Putman The Sousa Archives and Center for American Music at the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign holds the WGN Radio Station Studio Orchestra Music Library and Records 1925 1956 38 which consists of scripts programs production notes correspondence music library rental records sheet music manuscripts and music scores with annotations that document the WGN Studio Symphonic Orchestra from 1925 to 1956 Controversial management Edit WGN continues to recover from the controversial rule of former Tribune head Randy Michaels who resigned under pressure in 2010 amid allegations of inappropriate and sexist behavior in the workplace and former WGN Program Director Kevin Metheny 39 Industry observers described Metheny s tenure as one that nearly destroyed the venerable WGN with staff moves that included replacing a popular evening host with radio rookie Jim Laski a Chicago politician and convicted felon 40 Metheny and Laski were both fired weeks after Michaels was forced to resign by a Tribune Board of Directors facing spiraling losses at the hands of Michaels management style 40 In 2005 Tom Langmyer was appointed as vice president and general manager of WGN On April 30 2008 the station entered into a three year deal to broadcast Chicago Blackhawks hockey games through the 2010 2011 season 41 New ownership Edit On April 1 2007 Chicago based real estate investor Sam Zell announced plans to purchase the Tribune Company in an 8 2 billion leveraged buyout that gave Tribune employees stock and effective ownership of the company The transaction and concurring privatization of the company was completed upon termination of Tribune stock at the close of trading on December 20 2007 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 42 43 44 On December 8 2008 Tribune filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection citing a debt load of around 13 billion making it the largest media bankruptcy in American corporate history that it accrued from the Zell buyout and related privatization costs as well as a sharp downturn in revenue from newspaper advertising After a protracted four year process on December 31 2012 Tribune formally exited from bankruptcy under the control of its senior debt holders Oaktree Capital Management JPMorgan Chase and Angelo Gordon amp Co 45 46 47 On July 10 2013 Tribune announced plans to split off its broadcasting and newspaper interests into two separate companies 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 The split was completed on August 4 2014 ending the Tribune s joint ownership with WGN TV and WGN Radio after 66 and 94 years respectively However WGN TV continues to maintain a content partnership with the Tribune 48 49 Programming changes Edit 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 50 That year morning host Spike O Dell retired from radio WGN then moved the station s midday host at the time John Williams to the morning slot Williams former timeslot 1 4 p m was left vacant for several months with the station s other radio hosts filling in on a rotating basis including weekend host Nick Digilio and Bob Sirott who formerly hosted The Noon Show on the same station in addition to a weekend program that is pre recorded with his wife Marianne Murciano Sirott was also a prominent news anchor at NBC owned and operated station WMAQ TV channel 5 and later at Fox owned WFLD channel 32 In March 2009 longtime Chicago radio host Garry Meier was given an audition for the 1 4 p m slot Meier hosted four shows which is believed to have caused a surge in interest among younger people who traditionally rarely listened to WGN Chicago media message boards exploded with traffic and posts many excited over a possible permanent Meier presence on the station After the four Meier auditions Jerry Springer was given a four day stint as guest host followed by Rita Cosby a few weeks later On April 2 2009 WGN announced that Meier would join the station full time as host of a program in the 1 4 p m slot airing most weekdays when the program is not pre empted by Chicago Cubs broadcasts his first official show occurred that same day On May 22 2009 WGN announced the cancellation of The Kathy and Judy Show effective after that day s broadcast The final show was largely a retrospective of the program s 20 years on WGN radio this occurred shortly after the replacement of much of the station s weekend lineup On June 15 2009 the station announced that Greg Jarrett would become its new morning drive host starting on June 22 with John Williams being shifted to Kathy and Judy s former late morning timeslot 51 In June 2010 WGN announced the hiring of longtime Cincinnati based host Mike McConnell from WLW for the late morning 8 30 a m 12 30 p m slot shifting Williams back to his original midday time slot now from 12 30 3 00 p m on August 9 2010 Coinciding with the hire of Jarrett WGN dropped its News Talk 720 brand and began identifying itself simply as Chicago s WGN Radio 720 This new identity was implemented in all station promos and used by all on air talent On August 13 2010 the station s branding changed again to News 720 WGN In November after the firing of controversial program director Kevin Metheny Tom Langmyer instructed staff to identify the station as 720 WGN Weekend hosts Jerry Agar and the News Junkie Sean Wasson left the station in a shift towards more general and less controversial talk programming On December 2 2011 WGN announced that Jonathon Brandmeier was named the new morning drive time host effective December 9 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 Former morning host Greg Jarrett was released from the station Overnight hosts Steve King and Johnnie Putman left WGN on December 9 after a week long series of live Farewell Celebration shows Bill Leff took over the midnight to 5 30 a m slot on December 12 2011 52 In 2012 John Williams announced his departure from the station upon the December 31 expiration of his contract leaving on December 21 2012 in order to concentrate exclusively on his program on WCCO in Minneapolis instead of splitting time between stations 53 needs update In October 2012 then back into Tribune Tower in October 2012 54 On December 17 2012 WGN Radio executives announced that the long running program Extension 720 hosted by Dr Milton J Rosenberg would end its 39 year run three days later on December 20 In June 2013 Tribune Broadcasting CEO Larry Wert hired Jimmy DeCastro as WGN radio s president and general manager In addition Bob Sirott and Marianne Murciano s program moved to the weekday lineup and Steve Cochran was announced to be returning to WGN The changes are an attempt to shift WGN closer to the programming format it had prior to Kevin Metheney and Randy Michaels tenure with WGN and Tribune while placing more emphasis on new media this included the move of Mike McConnell s program to the station s secondary Internet radio station WGN Plus formerly WGN 2 until the remainder of his contract was bought out around October 10 2013 55 the move of Jonathon Brandmeier s morning show to a new station branded The G which has since launched as an additional Internet only station but is planned to eventually move to an FM frequency to be acquired by Tribune in favor of Cochran and increased synergy with WGN TV including the replacement of WGN radio s Voice of Chicago slogan with WGN TV s longtime slogan Chicago s Very Own 56 On May 21 WGN Radio announced that their schedule would change again effective May 27 2014 which includes the return of John Williams to the airwaves of WGN Radio that he will pretty much do the show live from Minneapolis while still doing his afternoon show on WCCO 830 His time slot announced was 10 00 A M to 12 00 P M which moved then mid morning hosts Bill Leff and Wendy Snyder to the afternoon drive from 3 00 7 00 p m Garry Meier would be moved to WGN FM with Steve Cochran s morning show getting expended by 1 hour and Bob Sirott and Marianne Murciano still having their 12 00 3 00 p m show 57 Chicago Cubs leave WGN Edit On June 5 2014 the Chicago Cubs announced that radio broadcasts of its games would move from WGN to WBBM for the 2015 season under a seven year deal The deal ends the team s 90 year association with WGN 58 On November 20 2014 Chicago media blogger Robert Feder reported that WGN management planned to end operation of both WGWG LP and internet station WGN FM on December 31 2014 Jonathan Brandmeier and Garry Meier were released and their programs canceled immediately with repeat shows airing through the end of December While Brandmeier was reportedly not under contract with Tribune Media at the time of his release Meier s contract with Tribune continued through September 2015 On December 31 2014 the WGN FM website was redirected to the WGN Plus website where Tribune offers various digital media content WGWG LP began an interim simulcast of WGN radio at 10 p m on December 31 2014 The Chicago Tribune reported that the simulcast would continue through January 2015 after which Chicago based Weigel Broadcasting was expected to assume operation of 87 7 FM Weigel eventually began programming what is now WRME LD on February 23 2015 On October 5 2016 Jimmy DeCastro announced he was planning to leave WGN Radio at the end of the month 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 At the time of his leaving he had spent 31 2 years serving as the President and General Manager of WGN Radio His last day at WGN Radio was October 31 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 Larry Wert has said he has not decided on naming a successor to DeCastro so for now the sales and programming operations will report directly to Wert 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 59 The station began using its new studios on Wacker Drive for news reports in May 2018 60 with the final show originating from Tribune Tower on June 18 2018 61 Chicago White Sox broadcasts Edit 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 The agreement is for three years 4 Acquisition by Nexstar Edit Tribune Media was acquired by Nexstar Media Group for 4 1 billion in September 2019 marking the first time since 1924 that WGN radio would not be owned by any iteration of the Tribune Company 62 The sale made WGN the only radio property owned by Nexstar which primarily owns television stations 62 in an interview with Crain s Chicago Business in December 2018 shortly after the deal was announced Nexstar CEO Perry Sook stated that he doesn t 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 63 Under Nexstar several changes were made to the station s lineup management and branding Bob Sirott was hired to replace Steve Cochran during morning drive hours longtime mid day duo Bill Leff and Wendy Snyder were ousted and at a later date evening host Justin Kaufmann was let go as well These staffing changes were made over the course of months after Sean Compton began to oversee radio operations as Nexstar s Executive Vice President of WGN America WGN Radio amp Director of Content Acquisition Morning producer Mary Boyle was appointed General Manager of the station after former Station Manager Todd Manley was terminated on the first day of Nextar s takeover Veteran Chicago News Anchor Bill Kurtis was replaced in his role as voiceover talent by New York based voiceover artist Steve Kamer Similarly new radio jingles from JAM Creative Productions and sister company PAMS of Dallas were introduced to the station Cuts from JAM jingle packages Top News Talktrax Talking Points Non Stop Power You ll Like Our Style Follow The Leader Variety Pack Nothing But Class and Ameritalk are regularly featured in station identifications sounders and promotions Nexstar also dropped their affiliation with ABC News Radio and instead is supplying national news updates for WGN America s national newscast NewsNation with WGN newscasters and audio from Nexstar owned television stations Notable former on air personalities Edit Wally Phillips Jonathon Brandmeier Garry Meier Marianne Murciano Dave Hoekstra Nocturnal Journal host Ji Suk Yi Monday Friday Evening Host host 64 now Digital anchor for NewsNation WGN America Roe Conn afternoon drive host 65 Nick Digilio Former Sunday Thursday overnight host 11PM 4AM and fill in Bill Leff Former mid day co host now host for Toon In with Me on MeTVReferences Edit a b WGN Radio Timeline 1920s 1930s Wgngold com Chicago WGN Radio 2008 04 30 Archived from the original on July 22 2012 Retrieved 2008 10 29 Contact Us wgnradio com Retrieved 2018 06 19 Radio Locator com WGN a b Feder Robert 14 February 2018 Play ball WGN Radio picks up White Sox Robert Feder blog Retrieved 15 February 2018 WGN Cubs Partnership Ends Chicago Tribune Retrieved April 11 2015 ABC News Pres eMails His Team With Great News AllAccess com 2014 12 23 Retrieved 2015 12 12 Radio Locator com WGN New Stations Radio Service Bulletin June 1 1922 page 2 a b WGN A Pictorial History WGN Inc 1961 pages 9 16 Alterations and Corrections Radio Service Bulletin July 2 1923 page 10 Alterations and Corrections Radio Service Bulletin June 2 1924 page 7 Alterations and Corrections Radio Service Bulletin August 1 1924 page 6 The World s Greatest Newspaper slogan was first used in a February 1909 feature commemorating the 100th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln s birth which served as the motto from August 29 1911 until December 31 1976 World s Greatest 1911 1976 Chicago Tribune Tribune Publishing June 8 1997 Retrieved March 26 2019 W G N Tribune Radio Starts Tonight Chicago Daily Tribune March 29 1924 pages 1 11 Zenith had decided to move WJAZ to a suburban transmitter site It sold the original WJAZ to the Edgewater Beach Hotel management which changed the call letters to WEBH Alterations and Corrections Radio Service Bulletin June 2 1924 page 7 WEBH was eventually deleted in November 1928 when it was consolidated with KYW Strike out all particulars Radio Service Bulletin November 30 1928 page 12 Obituary Wallace M Rogerson Chicago Tribune 1943 02 25 p 21 Retrieved 2022 08 11 Hilmes Michelle ed 1997 Radio Voices American Broadcasting 1922 1952 University of Minnesota Press p 384 ISBN 0816626219 Retrieved 28 September 2010 Annual Report of the Federal Radio Commission For the Year Ended June 30 1928 page 162 Strike out all particulars Radio Service Bulletin November 30 1928 page 12 Double Call Letters Are Being Eliminated Washington D C Evening Star June 25 1933 Part 4 page 6 WGN Joins CBS Net PDF Broadcasting October 15 1931 Retrieved 29 September 2014 Chicago Tribune Historical Newspapers Chicago Tribune 17 July 1944 Strauss Valerie Hines Michael Perspective In Chicago schools closed during a 1937 polio epidemic and kids learned from home over the radio Washington Post Retrieved 16 August 2021 Carole Mathews Glamour Girls of the Silver Screen Retrieved February 27 2014 Broadcasting Yearbook 1950 page 130 Broadcasting amp Cable Col Robert McCormick Dies WGN AM TV Among Holdings PDF Broadcasting Telecasting Broadcasting Publications Inc April 4 1955 p 78 Retrieved March 20 2019 via American Radio History McCormick Will Names Five To Head Tribune Stations PDF Broadcasting Telecasting Broadcasting Publications Inc April 11 1955 p 102 Retrieved March 20 2019 via American Radio History For the Record PDF Broadcasting Telecasting Broadcasting Publications Inc June 20 1955 p 111 Retrieved March 20 2019 via American Radio History For the Record PDF Broadcasting Telecasting Broadcasting Publications Inc July 18 1955 p 108 Retrieved March 20 2019 via American Radio History For the Record PDF Broadcasting Telecasting Broadcasting Publications Inc December 16 1974 p 48 Retrieved March 20 2019 via American Radio History WGN Radio traffic reporter Len Baldy Wlshistory com Retrieved 2015 12 12 Patrolman Leonard F Baldy Chicago Police Department Illinois Odmp org Retrieved 2015 12 12 The History of Chicago s WGN Radio 720 Archived from the original on 2012 07 22 Retrieved 2015 12 12 Eight Chicago Police Stars Retired During Ceremony at Chicago Police Headquarters PDF Chicagopolice org Retrieved 2015 12 12 Patrolman Irving Francis Hayden Chicago Police Department Illinois Odmp org Retrieved 2015 12 12 The History of Chicago s WGN Radio 720 2012 07 22 Archived from the original on 2012 07 22 Retrieved 2015 12 12 WGN Television 2501 West Bradley Place Chicago Illinois 60618 Chicagoarchitecture info Archived from the original on 2015 12 07 Retrieved 2015 12 12 Ibata David 6 March 1985 WGN Radio To Move Into Tribune Tower Chicago Tribune Retrieved 29 November 2012 WGN Radio Station Studio Orchestra Music Library and Records 1925 1956 The Sousa Archives and Center for American Music Library illinois edu Retrieved December 12 2015 At Flagging Tribune Tales of a Bankrupt Culture The New York Times Retrieved 2015 12 12 a b Pig Virus quarantined Metheny Laski driven out from WGN Wbez org November 11 2010 Archived from the original on December 18 2010 Retrieved December 12 2015 Rosenthal Phil April 30 2008 Blackhawks skating over to WGN AM Chicago Tribune Retrieved October 29 2008 Katharine Q Seelye Andrew Ross Sorkin April 2 2007 Zell to acquire Tribune Co The New York Times Retrieved March 20 2019 Chris Zappone April 3 2007 Zell buys Tribune Co Cubs to be sold CNNMoney com Time Warner Cynthia Littleton December 20 2007 Zell completes Tribune buyout Variety Reed Business Information Retrieved March 20 2019 Robert Channick December 30 2012 Tribune Co to emerge from bankruptcy Monday Chicago Tribune Tribune Publishing Retrieved March 20 2019 Richard Perez Pena December 8 2008 Tribune Company Seeks Bankruptcy Protection The New York Times Retrieved August 24 2012 Randall Chase July 13 2012 Bankruptcy Exit Plan Gets OK TVNewsCheck NewsCheck Media Associated Press Tribune Co to Split in Two The New York Times July 10 2013 Retrieved July 11 2013 Robert Channick June 23 2014 Tribune Publishing targets Aug 4 for spinoff Chicago Tribune Tribune Publishing WGN Radio to Partner with WGN TV to Deliver Top Local Weather Reporting to Listeners WGN Radio October 10 2008 WGN Radio Announces New Morning Line up WGN Radio wgnradio com June 15 2009 Archived from the original on June 18 2009 Retrieved June 17 2009 Some Answers To Some Questions SteveAndJohnnie s Both Sides Now Blog Steveandjohnnie wordpress com December 5 2011 Retrieved December 12 2015 Quitting time Two jobs are one too many for WGN s Williams TimeOut Chicago timeoutchicago com October 23 2012 McLane Paul 8 February 2012 Radio 720 WGN Moves Upstairs Radio World Retrieved 29 November 2012 Report Mike McConnell WGN Settle Contract Host Leaving All Access 10 October 2013 Retrieved 10 November 2013 Channick Robert August 20 2013 WGN Radio to return to its roots in station shakeup Chicago Tribune Retrieved August 21 2013 Channick Robert 2014 05 21 WGN Radio brings back veteran host John Williams Chicago Tribune Archived from the original on 2014 06 06 Retrieved 2014 11 14 Cubs WBBM make radio deal official Chicago Tribune Retrieved 9 June 2014 Feder Robert July 25 2017 WGN Radio leaving Tribune Tower next year RobertFeder com Retrieved July 26 2017 Feder Robert 2018 05 15 Robservations WGN Radio is on the move 18 stories up RobertFeder com Retrieved 2018 06 19 Thanks for the Memories Nick D and The Final Broadcast From The Tribune Tower wgnradio com 2018 06 18 Retrieved 2018 06 19 a b New Owner Close At Hand For Chicago s WGN Radio Inside Radio September 16 2019 Retrieved September 20 2019 Marek Lynne December 7 2018 Nexstar CEO expects WGN will team with other Illinois stations Crain s Chicago Business Retrieved September 20 2019 WGN Radio 720 AM wgnradio com Retrieved 2019 12 09 Feder Robert Roe Conn Nick Digilio out in WGN Radio shakeup www robertfeder com Retrieved 2020 09 05 External links Edit Chicago portalWGN Radio official website WGN Radio schedule WGN in the FCC AM station database WGN on Radio Locator WGN in Nielsen Audio s AM station database FCC History Cards for WGN covering 1927 1981 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title WGN AM amp oldid 1130059918, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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