In Chicago, all-News WBBM-AM and simulcast partner WCFS-FM had until his recent retirement been led by Ron Gleason.
Effective January 23, a new Brand Manager and News Director for the Audacy Corp. stations will be in place.
Taking the duties is Craig Schwalb.
“When Ron Gleason announced his retirement last summer, we knew we had a major challenge in replacing him, since Ron has been the driving force behind WBBM for nearly two decades,” said Greg Solk, Vice President of Programming and Operations for Audacy in Chicago. “We believe we have struck gold in tapping Craig Schwalb as WBBM’s new Brand Manager. Craig’s vast experience in news and spoken word formats, most recently running content and operations at WTOP in Washington, gives him the ideal skill set to lead this brand and drive innovation and growth for Chicago’s most trusted news voice.”
Schwalb has served as Director of Content Integration and Operations at WTOP News since March 2020, working with SVP/GM Joel Oxley. Before that he spent seven years at Cumulus Media and was Program Director of WABC-AM between January 2014 and June 2019. He also programmed WPRO-AM and WPRV-AM in Providence. From December 2007-February 2012 he served as Sr. Director of Talk Programming at SiriusXM.
“The chance to lead WBBM is an incredible opportunity that doesn’t come around often,” said Schwalb. “It brings me back to my home state and to a city that I adore, while working with the team behind one of the nation’s elite news radio brands. Thank you to Jeff Sottolano, Rachel Williamson, Greg Solk and Bill Smee for their support in allowing me the honor of leading this great station.”
Earlier in his career Schwalb served as a programmer for CBS Radio, as PD for the former WKRK in Detroit, an FM Talk station, from late 2003-2007. Before that, he served as Asst. PD for pioneering Hot Adult Contemporary “Blink 102.7,” WNEW-FM in New York, in March 2000. While ultimately unsuccessful, the basic programming elements of “Blink” can today be heard across Canada on Stingray Radio’s “TODAY RADIO” Hot Adult Contemporary stations.
