Rick Kogan off WGN Radio's Sunday lineup
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Rick Kogan is leaving WGN Radio's Sunday lineup, another sign of the station's shift away from some of its longtime Chicago voices.
The latest: Kogan's Sunday evening show, "After Hours," will no longer be heard on the station. His show is replaced by two radio simulcasts of NewsNation television shows, "NewsNation's The Hill Sunday" and "Batya!"
Yes, but: A podcast is in the works.
What they're saying: "In the 30 or so years I have been yammering on local radio, I have moved plenty of times, to different stations (WBBM, WLUP, WBEZ, WGN) and various time slots," Kogan tells Axios.
- "WGN would still like to have me, in a podcasting fashion, and I am more than willing to give that a shot."
Reality check: "Shifting Rick's show to a podcast allows for the content to be consistently available regardless of schedule or sports preemptions," WGN Radio general manager Mary Boyle tells Axios.
- "It also allows the flexibility of uninterrupted long-form conversations with his guests, without the restriction of commercial and news breaks or time limits."
Context: Kogan first became a fixture at WGN Radio with "Sunday Papers," an arts-and-culture program that aired Sunday mornings. After a stint hosting WBEZ's "The Afternoon Shift," he returned to WGN in 2013 to host Sunday afternoons, a role he held for more than a decade.
- Kogan became a local radio star with "Media Creatures," his popular 1990s show alongside NBC 5's Richard Roeper. The WMVP-AM radio show turned into a television segment on Fox 32.
Between the lines: Of course, radio is not Kogan's day job. He continues in his capacity as the unofficial dean of Chicago journalism.
- He still writes several columns and stories about Chicago, including this week's feature on the new Green Mill owners.
State of play: Kogan's departure comes on the heels of another big personality shift on WGN's Sunday lineup.
- Nexstar laid off longtime host Dean Richards from both his television and radio jobs in February. Richards hosted "Sunday Mornings," a franchise that was once helmed by Chicago great Roy Leonard.
Yes, but: WGN Radio's Sunday lineup still has local programming, including Richards' old show, which is now hosted by longtime Chicago personality Wendy Snyder.
- Steve Dale and Karen Conti also host programs.
The bottom line: The move shifts another longtime Chicago media voice away from traditional radio — though Kogan says listeners may hear him again soon in podcast form.
- "We shall see (hear) in a few weeks, once I've been taught some new technological ropes," Kogan adds.