WGN Radio Celebrates Work Anniversaries for Marlene Wells and Jim Holland
October 17, 2023
WGN Radio celebrated two of its employees, Marlene Wells and Jim Holland, who have a combined 106 years of service to the station.
This year marks the 56th anniversary for promotions and merchandising coordinator Marlene Wells and the 50th anniversary for engineer in charge Jim Holland.
Between the two, they have worked on everything from Kathy and Judy Conventions to Bozo’s Circus.
WGN 9 Chief Meteorologist Tom Skilling Announces Future Retirement
October 12, 2023
Tom Skilling, who helped define TV meteorology and has been forecasting the weather on WGN-TV for the past 45 years, divulged his plans to retire.
Announced on the WGN Evening News earlier this month, Skilling said, “If you had told young Tom Skilling that he would go on to have a career in weather spanning seven decades, working in Chicago, with some truly wonderful people, I think he would be overjoyed… And that’s how I feel today: Overjoyed at the colleagues I’ve worked with, the viewers I’ve met, the stories I’ve covered. Overjoyed and grateful. I wouldn’t trade a single minute of it for anything.”
“Tom Skilling is a Chicago institution. There isn’t another meteorologist in history of the city, or the country for that matter, who has been more impactful doing what he does,” said Paul Rennie, WGN-TV vice president and general manager. “His enthusiasm for the weather, backed by the constantly evolving technology, is simply unmatched. And above all else, he cares about people, from our viewers to his colleagues, he truly cares about the well-being of others. I’m not alone in saying we’ll really miss him.”
Skilling is a multiple Emmy Award-winner from the Chicago/Midwest chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences and funds a scholarship to assist a local college student each year. He was presented with the Illinois Broadcasters Association “Broadcast Pioneer” award in 2018. In recent years, he has dived headfirst into the science of climate change, leading talks and participating in conferences across Chicago and the United States.
“A colleague of mine once said ‘Chicago is like Broadway for weather people,’ said Skilling. “And I couldn’t agree more. From Lake Michigan to the storms that roll in from the plains to tremendous heat to gobs of snow, if you want a variety of weather to forecast, it makes the job awfully interesting. And you know it’s also true in another fashion, and that’s ‘the show must go on.’ And the show will go on; I just won’t be in that starring role.”
Skilling’s official retirement is scheduled to take place on February 28, 2024.
Jenae Barnes Joins Capital B Gary as Health and Environment Reporter
October 10, 2023
The Capital B Gary newsroom in Indiana welcomes Jenae Barnes as its health and environment reporter.
Barnes is a 2023 Wake Forest University Environmental and Epistemic Justice Fellow. Her passion for climate reporting was in part developed at the Earth Journalism Network, where she facilitated story grant projects for international newsrooms and supported the coverage of underreported climate stories across the globe.
Capital B Gary is scheduled to launch later this fall.
Chicago Sun-Times Appoints Kwame Opam Deputy Managing Editor, News
Thursday, October 5, 2023
The Chicago Sun-Times has hired Kwame Opam as deputy managing editor, news.
Opam brings more than a decade of media experience to the Sun-Times, having been a reporter, editor, producer and newsroom leader. Most recently, he served as the strategy and operations deputy for the breaking news teams at The New York Times.
Additional previous experience for Opam is with “The Problem With Jon Stewart” and The Verge.
Chicago Sun-Times Hires Justin Myers as Interactives Editor
Thursday, October 5, 2023
The Sun-Times also announced the hire of Justin Myers as interactives editor.
Myers arrives at the Sun-Times after spending more than eight years with The Associated Press. Most recently he was the news editor for data journalism at AP, where he managed a nationwide team of specialists in data-driven reporting. Before that, he contributed to investigative projects and other AP data reporting, and he was the newsroom’s first automation editor.
Myers previously produced interactive graphics for The Chronicle of Higher Education and the PBS NewsHour.
Former Chicago Sun-Times Reporter Allison Novelo joins CBS News as 2024 Campaign Reporter
October 4, 2023
CBS News announced additions to its political unit and that included former Chicago Sun-Times reporter Allison Novelo.
The University of Illinois and Northwestern University’s Medill School graduate joins an entire class of reporters as CBS News gears up its coverage of the 2024 political campaigns.
Novelo also served in the Illinois National Guard, which brought her to the U.S. Capitol following the Jan 6, 2021 attack.