The INBA is thrilled to release the winners of our second annual INBA Crystal Mic Awards. The awards will be presented at our Fall Convention in Bloomington on Saturday, Oct. 8. To register, head to our Eventbrite link. You can also book a room at the Parke Regency Hotel and Conference Center at our group rate through Sept. 16. To book now, click here.

Small Market Radio

Best Station                          

1st place               WCBU-FM, Peoria                                              

2nd place              WNIJ-FM, DeKalb

Best Newscast                     

1st place               WGLT-FM, Normal                                              

2nd place              WLBK, DeKalb

Best Reporter                      

1st place               Joe Deacon, WCBU-FM, Peoria                                        

2nd place              Lyndsay Jones, WGLT-FM, Normal

Breaking News                     

1st place               WMBD, Peoria, “BioUrja Ongoing Disaster”                                  

2nd place              WILL, Urbana, “Rare December Tornado Hits Coles County”

Best Digital Presence         

1st place               WVIK-FM, Quad-Cities

2nd place              WNIJ.org/Hola, DeKalb

Investigative Report           

1st place               WNIJ-FM, DeKalb, Peter Medlin, “Water Woes”

2nd place              WIUM-FM, Macomb, Jane Carlson, “A One Hospital Town”

Sports Report                      

1st place               WILL, Urbana, “Women’s Basketball Hires Shauna Green As Head Coach”

2nd place              WIUM-FM, Macomb, Jane Carlson, “A National Champion”

Use of Sound                       

1st place               WTAX, Springfield, “Fair Fare”

2nd place              WVIK-FM, Quad Cities, “Do You Want To Work On The Railroad?”

Best Writing                         

1st place               WTAX, Springfield, Dave Dahl

2nd place              WNIJ-FM, DeKalb, Yvonne Boose

Large Market Radio

Best Station                          

1st place                WBBM-Chicago                                   

Best Newscast                     

1st place               WBBM-Chicago                                   

2nd place              WLS-Chicago

Best Reporter                      

1st place                Lisa Fielding, WBBM, Chicago                                          

2nd place              Eric Schmid, KWMU, St. Louis

Investigative Report           

1st place                KWMU, St. Louis, “Lack Of Tornado Safe Rooms For Metro East Warehouses”

Sports Report                      

1st place                WBBM, Chicago, “Sports Report with Jeff Joniak”

Use of Sound                       

1st place                KWMU, St. Louis, “This app lets you see what Cahokia Mounds looked like 1,000 years ago”

2nd place              WBBM, Chicago, Lisa Fielding

Small Market TV

Best Station                          

1st place               WREX-TV, Rockford                                            

2nd place              WCIA-TV, Champaign

Paul Davis Best Newscast                  

1st place               WREX-TV, Rockford                                            

2nd place              WGEM-TV, Quincy

Best Reporter                      

1st place                Mike Miletich, WGEM-TV, Quincy                                    

2nd place              Shelby Kluver, WQAD-TV, Moline    

Breaking News                     

1st  place              WGEM-TV, Quincy, “Firefighters Battle Fire And Ice”

2nd place              WIFR-TV, Rockford, “Jury Finds Floyd Brown Guilty Of Second Degree Murder”

Best Digital Presence         

1st place               WREX-TV, Rockford

2nd place              WMBD-TV, Peoria

Investigative Report           

1st place               WEEK-TV, Peoria, Kyle Beachy, “Panhandling in Peoria: How A Pandemic Has Fueled A Problem”

2nd place              WAND-TV, Decatur, Deron Molen/Eric Ahola, “Transferring Trauma”

Sports Report                      

1st place               WQAD-TV, Moline, “La Panterita”

2nd place              WEEK-TV, Peoria, “All-American Hometown Hero”

Use of Video                        

1st place               WQAD-TV, Moline, “John Deere Strike”

2nd place              WMBD-TV, Peoria, “Destination Illinois: Bob & Tom Excellent Adventures”

Best Writing                         

1st place               WIFR-TV, Rockford, Mike Garrigan

2nd place              WQAD-TV, Moline, Josh Lamberty

Best Weather Operation

1st place               WGEM-TV, Quincy

2nd place              WREX-TV, Rockford

Large Market TV

Best Station                          

1st place               KSDK, St. Louis                                    

2nd place              WLS-TV, Chicago

Paul Davis Best Newscast                  

1st place               KSDK, St. Louis                                    

2nd place              WLS-TV, Chicago

Best Reporter                      

1st place                PJ Randhawa, KSDK, St. Louis                                           

2nd place              Emily Manley, KTVI, St. Louis

Breaking News                     

1st  place               WGN, Chicago, “Oak Brook Mall Shooting”                   

Best Digital Presence         

1st place               WLS-TV, Chicago

2nd place              KSDK, St. Louis

Sports Report                      

1st place               KSDK, St. Louis, “Justin Hardy Story”

2nd place              WGN, Chicago, “Ukrainian Boxers”

Use of Video                        

1st place                KSDK, St. Louis, “Stone Carver”

Best Writing                         

1st place                KSDK, St. Louis, Mike Bush

Best Weather Operation

1st place                WLS, Chicago

We are excited to share that the INBA Fall 2022 Convention registration is open. The convention is Oct. 7-9 in Bloomington at the Parke Regency Hotel and Conference Center. To register, CLICK HERE.

Convention Schedule

Friday Oct. 7

• 12:00 p.m. – INBA Board Meeting at Parke Regency
• 3:00 p.m. – Hotel check-ins begin
• Evening welcome reception

Saturday Oct. 8

• 9:00 a.m. – President’s Welcome
• 9:15-10:30 a.m. – The future of Electric Vehicles
  • Panelists: 
    • Tucker Kennedy, Ameren Illinois
    • Chris Koos, Mayor of Normal              
    • Session Description:  Increased incentives for electric vehicle production are leading to questions about existing and needed infrastructure to support this evolution in transportation. Learn how energy experts and city leaders are keeping up with the changes.

• 10:30-10:45 a.m. – Break
• 10:45-12:00 p.m. – Cameras and Microphones in the Courtroom
  • Presenters:  
    • William Scanlon of McLean County Courts
    • Maggie Hradecky, Media Coordinator
    • Session Description: It’s been a decade since the pilot program which allowed cameras in the courtroom in Illinois. In 2016, the Illinois Supreme Court filed an Order amending the Policy for Extended Media Coverage in the Circuit Courts of Illinois and adopting the program as permanent. This discussion will focus on lessons learned over the past ten years as well as how we can be the best stewards of the additional press freedoms we have been granted.
• 12:00 p.m. -1:15 – Lunch and Business Meeting
• 1:30-2:00 p.m. – Keeping Stamina in News Reporting
  • Panelist:  Alex Degman, Illinois Public Radio
  • Session Description: Getting a job in news is one thing, staying with it is quite another. We hear from a longtime INBA member who has experienced the industry from a variety of roles and recently chose to come back to Illinois to serve as statewide audience in a demanding, daily reporting role.
• 2:30-3:15 p.m. – Vocal Delivery Workshop
  • Presenter: Shawn Allee / WBEZ
  • Session Description: You’ve got a great script, but now what? We learn to mark up scripts for teleprompter apps or paper, warming up, visualizing a listener, handling pick-up lines, and noting which tracks to keep and which to cut.
• 3:30-4:00 p.m. – Illinois Public Radio Meeting
• 4:00 p.m. – INBA Foundation Meeting (Location TBD)
• 5:30 p.m. – Doors Open for Evening Reception
• 6:00 p.m. – Dinner
  • Keynote Speaker: Alexis McAdams, Fox News Correspondent

• About our Keynote: Alexis McAdams currently serves as a national correspondent based in New York City. She joined the Fox network in October 2021.Most recently, McAdams reported live from the Tops grocery store in Buffalo, New York, where 10 people were killed in a mass shooting. McAdams previously worked at ABC affiliate WLS-TV in Chicago where she covered the city’s crime beat. In addition, she covered major breaking news stories across the Midwest including natural disasters, mass shootings and major court cases as well as extensive reporting on the protests in Chicago following the death of George Floyd. A graduate of Illinois State University, McAdams holds a Bachelor’s degree in broadcast journalism.
  • INBA Crystal Mic Awards Presentation

Sunday Oct. 9

• 9:30-10:15 a.m. – Pandemic messaging lessons learned

• Presenter: OSF Healthcare
  • Session Description: The media relied on healthcare professionals to get accurate and timely information out to Illinois residents since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. A lot has been learned about the virus itself and how to treat and prevent it. A moderated discussion on what has been learned from both sides of the messaging on best practices to ensure the safety of residents and the audiences we serve.

10:30-11:00 a.m. – Illinoisan of the Year 

Susan Stephens is northern Illinois’ host of All Things Considered on WNIJ. She is also a reporter and former President of the INBA.

Stephens knows she was “bit by the radio bug” as a kid, and talks about her childhood interest in radio. In this podcast interview with INBA & WBBM’s Margaret Larkin, she talks about how INBA has always been an affordable outlet for learning, networking, and having fun with other broadcasters across the state.

Stephens says one of the things she’s learned throughout her award-winning career is, “just about everyone has an interesting story and the trick is getting it out of them.”

Whether you’re a sucker for radio, work in TV, or you’re still figuring out your place in broadcasting, check out this podcast for some valuable advice and anecdotes.

The INBA Spring 2022 Convention is May 6-8 at the Peoria Marriott Pere Marquette Hotel.

Our keynote speaker is Ray Long, author of The House That Madigan Built. He’ll speak that Saturday evening and will sign books afterward.

The convention starts Friday evening at 6:00 with an open bar and hors d’oeuvres at the Peoria Riverfront Museum’s Dome Planetarium. The museum curator will show several rare items and the planetarium director will present a show on the overhead dome. A shuttle bus will provide transportation to and from the hotel, all in Peoria’s lively downtown.

SATURDAY SESSIONS

•  9:00-9:45 AM – Time, Stress and Health Management with a psychologist, dietician, and others
•  10:00-11:15 AM – Transportation and Infrastructure with former U. S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, current Illinois Transportation Secretary Omer Osman, and others
• 11:30 AM -12:45 PM – Environment and Climate Reporting with Illinois State Climatologist Trent Ford and others
• 1:00-2:00 PM – Lunch and Business Meeting
• 2:30-3:45 PM – The Face of Law Enforcement with representatives of the Illinois Fraternal Order of Police and Chiefs of Police Association
• 2:30 PM – Concurrent session for student resume & reel feedback
• 6:00 PM – Banquet with Ray Long, scholarship winners and SINBA awards

SUNDAY SESSION

• 9:30-10:45 AM – Covering Partisan Politics with Ray Long, Brad McMillan, and Tiffany White of the Dirksen Congressional Center

The deadline for room reservations at the hotel is April 22. Please mention the INBA for a rate of $109 plus tax. Call 309-637-6500 to book your room or click here. Convention registration is open until April 29. Click here to register for the convention. If you can’t attend the whole weekend, there are options to attend different parts of the weekend.

Contact H Wayne Wilson at hwilson@mtco.com with any questions or requests.

To book a room at our group rate of $109 per night with free parking, please click here or call 309-637-6500.

Deadline for room reservations is April 22.

Convention registration cost: 

Members: $115

Spouses: $95

Students: $95

Non-members: $130

Saturday day only (includes lunch): $50

Saturday evening banquet only: $50

Citizens Police Data Project

10:45 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Saturday

Panelists:

Andrew Fan is the chief operating officer at the Invisible Institute, where he helps coordinate work across the organization’s teams. Andrew has a Master’s in Public Policy from the Harvard Kennedy School, where he was the editor-in-chief of the Asian American Policy Review. Andrew is also a data reporter and was part of the team that produced the series “Mauled: When Police Dogs are Weapons,” a year-long investigation into police K-9 units which won the 2021 Pulitzer Prize in National Reporting. His work has appeared in the Chicago Reader, WBEZ, and USA Today.

Chaclyn Hunt is a civil rights attorney. She works with both the Youth / Police Project and the Citizens Police Data Project.

Sam Stecklow is a journalist, researcher and editor with the Invisible Institute. He has previously worked at the Salt Lake Tribune and South Side Weekly.

The Citizens Police Data Project (CPDP.co) is a tool for holding police accountable to the public they serve. Citizens Police Data Project (CPDP) takes records of police interactions with the public – records that would otherwise be buried in internal databases – and opens them up to make the data useful to the public, creating a permanent record for every CPD police officer. Originally intended to serve as a national model for transparency, the Citizens Police Data Project emerged from a decade-long collaboration with the University of Chicago Law School’s Mandel Legal Aid Clinic. CPDP is now the hub of several inter-woven projects and partnerships that share the common goal of making police data more useful to the public through transparency, investigation, and accountability.

Making Sense of the Census

9:15-10:30 a.m. Saturday

Presenters: Sherrie Taylor, Senior Research Specialist, NIU Center for Governmental Studies, Bob Evans, Rockford University

After pandemic-related delays, the latest census numbers have finally been released. Researchers anticipated population losses in Illinois for the past decade, particularly in rural areas of the state. This session will address research on where residents are going and the economic impact of the communities they leave behind. It will also include tools for reporters on visualizing these demographic changes.

Pandemic and Beyond: What have we learned?

1:30-2:45 p.m. Saturday

Panelists: Maggie Hradecky, News Director WIFR, Shaun Newell, News Director, WMBD, Yvonne Boose, Report for America Reporter, WNIJ

Description: The past year and a half has been a year of pivoting, adapting, and learning new ways to reach audiences with life-saving information. It hasn’t been easy, but our industry has been forever changed. In this session, panelists and convention participants swap successes and lessons learned. We’ll share practical tips and tools for broadcasters.

CLICK HERE to register. You have the option of attending the whole weekend, or just Saturday.

Small Market Radio

Large Market Radio

Small Market Television

Large Market Television

Grzech joined Chicago-based cable network NewsNation earlier this year as its Vice President of News, Managing Editor.

She oversees the network’s day-to day news gathering and production process and supervises a staff of more than 100 reporters, producers, writers, and photojournalists. 

Grzech previously served as Vice President of Fox News, responsible for managing the operations of the network’s Washington, D.C., news bureau, where she developed content for eight hours of daily programming.  She provided daily editorial guidance for more than a dozen teams of journalists working at the White House, Pentagon, and a variety of other federal departments and agencies, and spearheaded the Washington, D.C., bureau’s coverage of the 2020 Presidential campaign.

From 2009 to 2018, Grzech was Fox News’ Senior Director of Politics in Washington, D.C., serving as the network’s primary editorial liaison to both the Democratic and Republican parties.

Grzech began her career in broadcast journalism as an intern and on-air reporter at WJBF-TV in Augusta, Georgia, now owned by Nexstar Media Inc.

In 1995 she supervised a staff of 35 at WILX-TV in Lansing, Michigan and was the youngest female news director in the U.S.  At local news powerhouse WRAL-TV in Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina, she served as Assistant News Director and helped advance all of Capitol Broadcasting businesses with programs built on stretched growth and cross-training. She won an Edward R. Murrow regional award for excellence at KATU-TV in Portland, Oregon, where she was Managing Editor and oversaw a staff of 85.

Grzech graduated from Michigan State University, earning her Bachelor’s degree in Journalism/Political Science.  She received her Master’s degree in Journalism/New Media from American University.  

To register for our convention on Sept. 25, CLICK HERE.

For many years, INBA conventions served as host for the annual Illinois Associated Press awards. These competitive categories allowed us to share in the recognition and celebration of the impressive work of broadcasters who serve Illinois markets. It has been one of the highlights of our conventions.  

The Illinois Associated Press notified the INBA board this past winter that it would be discontinuing its statewide awards.

One of my first tasks as incoming INBA President was to determine if and how we would continue to provide a space to celebrate the accomplishments of broadcasters through an awards ceremony. 

There was quick interest in forming a new awards contest. There was also caution of the time, energy, and financial considerations to conduct an awards program. 

INBA formed and ad-hoc (now permanent) awards committee. We discussed best practices in managing a competition with integrity that would be competitive, affordable, and financially viable for INBA. 

We named a contest administrator H Wayne Wilson to develop category descriptions and contest rules. We contracted with Rock Our Awards, an industry leader in managing submissions. Additionally, we arranged a “judge swap” with the Iowa Broadcast News Association. INBA membership also voted unanimously to name The INBA Crystal Mic award for Best TV Newscast in honor of two-time INBA Illinoisan of the Year Paul Davis. Davis is a former WGN-TV News Director and past president of INBA. Just before his death in April, Davis called the honor, “A remarkable present– a nice tip of the hat.” 

I appreciate the efforts of this committee to focus on a smaller scale initially with an eye on expanding our categories long-term. We feel this year’s categories will represent the “Best of the Best.” The Crystal Mics themselves are pretty impressive pieces of art too for you to share with your team and audience should you snag one this year! 

I may have buried the lead here, but what we need now are your entries. We have heard from many stations already, but feel there is room for more. Believe me, the daily deadlines make sitting down and reflecting on the past year and a half a tough task to schedule. But we believe it is essential for us all to look back at the work of our reporters and teams and submit them for consideration to be recognized for their impact on the audience. That’s why we are extending the entry deadline until August 7^th.  

CLICK HERE FOR CONTEST DETAILS AND TO ENTER

ROCKFORD (INBA) – The Illinois News Broadcaster’s Association is pleased to announce its first in-person event since the pandemic.

“INBA members remained active and connected during the pandemic, but we know there is simply no substitute for the networking and lively engagement of an in-person convention. We are thrilled to gather safely in Rockford for a weekend to remember,” said INBA President and WNIJ News Director, Jenna Dooley.

Our fall convention will be in Rockford from Sept. 24-26 at the Embassy Suites.

REGISTER FOR CONVENTION HERE.

RESERVE HOTEL ROOM AT SPECIAL RATE HERE:

Details about our workshops, panels, and speakers are coming soon. On top of reconnecting with broadcast journalists across the state, there will be a ceremony for our first ever INBA Crystal Mic Awards.

The INBA Crystal Mic Awards will be presented at Saturday night’s banquet. Here are the award categories:

• Station of the Year
• Digital Presentation of the Year
• Reporter of the Year
• Weather Operation of the Year (TV Only)
• Radio Newscast of the Year and the Paul Davis TV Newscast of the Year

To enter to win, CLICK HERE.

We can’t wait to see you and catch up!

COVID-19 Precautions

We are asking all attendees to follow current CDC and IDPH guidelines for COVID-19.

Right now that means we’re asking unvaccinated attendees to wear a face mask during INBA gatherings.

Masks are not required for vaccinated individuals.