JON OF ALL TRADES
I
t ’ s hard to describe everything Jon Hansen brings to Chicago media . He ’ s really a Jonof-all-trades , able to shift from television to radio to just about anything else that requires a microphone .
First and foremost , he ’ s one of the stars of the nightly gabfest ( 6-7 pm ), The Jam on WCIU-TV . “ It ’ s your Twitter feed on TV ,” he explains . “ We tackle all sorts of different topics . It ’ s basically the big Chicago stories of the day and what has people talking . The facts , but also our opinions about them , and how they affect us . It can be politics or sports or weather or a local news event . There ’ s no set formula about how we do it on any particular day . We just come out of the gate with the
By Rick Kaempfer
Jon Hansen
most important story of the day — the thing that most people are talking about — and we roll with it .”
He approaches it with the same philosophy he approaches everything . “ I just try to be the same person on the air and off the air . If I have a thought in my head , I have to assume someone else will have a similar one . If I have a corny joke to share , I share it because that ’ s who I am . I can also tear up on a story that affects me deeply . I think authenticity is valued , and it ’ s harder than it sounds . I ’ ve been lucky . Here at WCIU , I asked right off the bat if I could say I was gay . They ’ ve been so great about that . Norm Shapiro ’ s whole philosophy is telling the stories that need to be told from people who often don ’ t have a seat at the table . They want me to talk about those issues that affect me and my community . I ’ ll occasionally read a comment or text that makes me grimace , but for the most part , people have responded really well to that .”
However , his favorite part of being on the show is when he is sent out to report from the field . Considering he is also responsible for giving weather reports , it can make for a challenging task . “ When the show originally launched in 2017 , the bosses wanted to do things differently . Whatever bit I was doing that day , I also had to incorporate that into the weather report . When I ’ m in a snowstorm , that ’ s one thing . When I ’ m interviewing a barbershop quartet , that ’ s something else . I ’ m pretty much known for saying ‘ yes ’ to any request , especially if it means I get to do another segment ( laughs ).”
And now he ’ s an Emmy Winner . “ I think it was a recognition of my unconventional approach . I don ’ t just report from the snowstorm ; I see if I can deliver the entire report while sledding down a hill . Another time I was sweeping off car windshields as I reported the weather . I like being out in the elements . I know a lot of people worry about the reporters , and a lot of reporters don ’ t like it , but the same people want to see what steam looks like coming off the lake at 20 below . And they can ’ t believe it when we show there are runners out there in that weather . What are they doing ?”
In addition to his Emmy-award-winning work on television , Hansen has become the main fill-in at WGN Radio . That ’ s a role he relishes . “ I was a talk radio nerd as a kid . It ’ s a real thrill . I love that every show has a different feel , and though I can ’ t be Bob Sirott or John Williams or Anna Davlantes , I can do the type of show their listeners expect . I like the variety and the different skill set I have to bring to each different show .”
He admires all of the shows on WGN , but he has particular praise for their midday personality . “ I have always loved listening to John Williams . I just marvel at his ability to bounce back and forth from silly topics to really serious ones . He also does something you don ’ t hear often . He admits he doesn ’ t know everything , and he is comfortable in the gray area of the world . He recognizes there is nuance in everything , and he ’ s open to having his mind changed if someone makes a convincing argument . That ’ s incredibly refreshing .”
Williams is obviously a radio influence . Hansen lists Paul Konrad at WGN-TV as his main television influence . As for his other gigs , he may be influenced more by a utility baseball player like former Cub Ben Zobrist because Hansen can do it all . “ I ’ m Gene Honda ’ s backup as the PA guy for the Blackhawks , but in the last two years , I ’ ve also become the gameday arena emcee on the jumbotron – pre-COVID , of course – entertaining the crowd with the types of bits I do on the U .”
If you ’ re keeping score at home ; he ’ s on television every weekday ( 6 pm on WCIU ), he ’ s often on the radio ( WGN ), he ’ s entertaining the folks at Blackhawks games . And now , Hansen has added one more thing to his plate . “ Block Club Chicago is launching a weekly podcast , and I ’ m going to host it . It ’ s going to be a good news podcast , focusing on all the good stories in Chicago . We ’ ve had so much negativity over the last year , enough to last a lifetime , so this is a welcome twist to me . We ’ re going to represent every part of the city and bring people some positivity .”
Here ’ s to hoping he also gets to take an occasional nap .
16 illinoisentertainer . com april 2021