A senior technical director at CBS 58 (WDJT-TV) in Milwaukee is the recipient of the 2022 Results Broadcasting Education Grant.

Allison Eggers graduated from UW-Madison in 2011 and started her career as a technical director for the CBS affiliate in Rockford, Illinois. She joined CBS 58 in Milwaukee in February 2013 where she serves as senior technical director.

Weigel Broadcasting’s Milwaukee General Manager, Anne Brown, said Eggers is a deserving recipient.

“I’m so thrilled for Allison and very appreciative of Results Broadcasting’s support of broadcasters like her,” Brown said. “Allison is a hard-working, talented employee and more importantly, a lovely person. It’s wonderful to know she and others can get support to help pay off their student loans through grants like this.”

CBS 58 Production Manager Karl Svatek wrote a letter of recommendation for Eggers.

“Allison has grown quickly over her time here, learning new equipment, training new employees, and adding her experience and expertise towards new projects being undertaken at the station,” Svatek wrote. “She is a hard worker and fast learner who is able to quickly adapt to the fast-paced nature of daily newscasts.”

Eggers was chosen from a long list of applicants by a subcommittee of the WBA Foundation Board.

“It is such an honor to be selected among the many talented candidates,” Eggers wrote. “I am so proud to be a strong female presence in the Wisconsin broadcasting industry, and it is wonderful to have my hard work and dedication recognized. Wisconsin, and the city of Milwaukee, mean so much to me and I feel lucky to have built my career here.”

Bruce and Don Grassman of Results Broadcasting had the vision to establish the grant. It is an idea that is being replicated by other state broadcast associations.

“Thank you to Bruce and Don Grassman, and the WBA Foundation for establishing this grant,” Eggers wrote. “And thank you to CBS 58 and Weigel Broadcasting for allowing me to do what I love every day.”

Rachel Frye, a morning producer at WTMJ-AM in Milwaukee, was awarded the first ever Results Broadcasting Education Grant. Last year the second grant went to Morgan Schillinger, a producer at WBAY-TV.

Anyone interested in applying for the grant can find more information here.

Applications for the next round will be accepted beginning Jan. 1, 2023.

The Wisconsin Broadcasters Association Foundation is proud to announce the 2022 Local Broadcast Legends honorees:

·        Jonathan Green was a staple of afternoon radio in Milwaukee for 41 years and is known for his authenticity, good humor, and community service.

·        Mike Hayes has been the morning voice on WIZM-AM in La Crosse for more than 35 years, interviewing thousands of people as part of his effort to serve the people of the La Crosse area.

·        Terry West spent 40 years in broadcasting with a reputation for her hundreds of compelling interviews of Country music legends.

·        Tom Zalaski has been on the air in northeast Wisconsin for more than 42 years anchoring more than 70,000 newscasts, guiding viewers through all the major stories over those many years. 

The Wisconsin Broadcasters Association Local Broadcast Legends Award was established in 2015 under the direction of Bruce Grassman, owner/president of Results Radio. The Local Broadcast Legends Award is a great honor and recognition for individuals that work behind the scenes and within their communities fulfilling the commitment broadcasters have made to serve their local communities. They are individuals who exemplify localism. This award is a means to extend recognition of these individuals beyond their local communities.

Individuals with 15 years or more service in Wisconsin broadcasting may be nominated by their company, co-workers, community leaders, family members, and friends. The station or organization which the nominee is associated with submits the nomination on behalf of the nominating individual(s).

The WBA is grateful to Bruce Grassman for his vision to establish a means for dedicated local broadcast employees to be recognized for their contributions to Wisconsin broadcasting. This award is for those who unconditionally support their stations and community.

The 2022 WBA Hall of Fame inductees will be announced Tuesday.

Our 2022 Local Broadcast Legends honorees are as follows:

Jonathan Green

Jonathan Green was a staple of afternoon radio in Milwaukee for 41 years and is known for his authenticity, good humor, and community service.

After several radio jobs in his native Ohio, Jonathan spent his military obligation in the US Army as a journalist in Turkey and then as the morning show host on the American Forces Network in Frankfurt, Germany. He joined WTMJ-AM in Milwaukee in 1969 hosting WTMJ’s afternoon drive show which he called The Green House.

Uniquely, on several Earth Days Jonathan canoed to the studio on the Milwaukee River reporting on the morning show using a walky-talky. His passion for riding led to WTMJ’s connection with Harley-Davidson during its anniversary celebrations, which welcomed thousands of Harley enthusiasts to Milwaukee.

Jonathan started the Kids2Kids Toy Drive in 2006, teaching listeners’ kids about the spirit of giving while collecting more than 250,000 toy donations for needy kids. He also led the WTMJ’s Teddy Bear Patrol with local law enforcement agencies.

Jonathan’s proudest accomplishment is his intern program: The Green House Air Force. Many young and ambitious kids got to be a part of the show, leading to many future careers in broadcasting.

Jonathan’s peers say his popularity is the result of humor and authenticity. He has demonstrated talent, passion, and willingness to inspire others.

He retired in 2010.

Mike Hayes

Mike Hayes has been the morning voice on WIZM-AM in La Crosse for more than 35 years. In that time, he’s interviewed thousands of people as part of his effort to serve the people of the La Crosse area.

Mike is known for his gift of gab and his willingness to talk to anyone about anything and keeping his audience informed about what’s going on in the world. He is credited with connecting his audience with a great diversity of interview subjects and viewpoints from his guests. He is also known for allowing a wide range of opinions on the air and interview subjects say Mike treats them fairly.

Generations of WIZM listeners have learned about government, activism, services, and local businesses through Mike and his morning show.

In a true sign of his dedication to La Crosse, Mike was married, live on the air, on a riverboat, the La Crosse Queen, on the Mississippi River.

Active in the community, Mike is also involved with the Pump House Regional Arts Center, serving on that board and also the board of the local chapter of Big Brothers, Big Sisters. He is involved in local community projects and station initiatives, like Freedom Honor Flight.

Mike is described as consistently honest, forthright, and sincere in his efforts to provide an informative show for his audience. 

Terry West

Terry West spent 40 years in broadcasting with a reputation for her hundreds of compelling interviews of Country music legends.

Terry started her career in 1980 when she was named one of only two winners of a Brown Institute School of Broadcasting scholarship. Her first on-air job was at KKXL in Grand Forks, North Dakota where she was the first woman on the station.

In 1983 Terry moved to Eau Claire where she was on the air at WIAL until 1992 when she moved to WAXX where she was on the air hosting middays until she retired in 2021.

Terry interviewed more than 200 County music stars like Blake Shelton, Shania Twain, Luke Bryan, Martina McBride, Clint Black, and Faith Hill, to name only a few. Her interviews at Country Jam USA in Eau Claire and Country Fest in Cadott were a staple on WAXX from the late 80s until her retirement.

Terry took on community work with several different local charitable organizations during her career and she earned a WBA award for her public service interviews on behalf of Transitus House. In 1995, Terry was named a Woman of Distinction by the American Girl Scout Council.

Her peers say Terry “related to her audience very well through her devotion to providing well-prepared, insightful interviews. They describe Terry as passionate, prepared, and persistent.  

Tom Zalaski

“The Wisconsin Broadcasters Hall of Fame is a wonderful landmark to showcase Wisconsin’s rich broadcasting heritage,” Vetterkind said. “Thank you to the Hilton Milwaukee City Center for providing such a great venue and being such a wonderful partner.”

The WBA Foundation also thanks WITI-TV in Milwaukee for producing the spots.

Four scholarships will be given out during the WBA Student Seminar on March 5 to students studying broadcasting in Wisconsin. Learn more about the WBA Student Scholarship program and apply here. Interested in supporting the scholarship program? Learn more here.

The recipients are:

Kaylee Staral

Kaylee Staral is the 2022 Wisconsin Broadcasters Association Foundation Scholarship recipient.                 

Staral is attending Marquette University and majoring in journalism with minors in digital media and communications studies. She is planning to graduate in the spring of 2023.

Staral’s career goal is to be a broadcast and multimedia journalist and reporter covering national stories that make an impact on people and help them stay informed about issues they may not know about.

In her work in student media on campus, Staral has won numerous awards from the regional Society of Professional Journalists and National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. She’s served as assistant news producer and executive news producer for Marquette Wire. She is a business reporting intern for the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.

One of her instructors describes Staral is a prolific reporter, photojournalist, and news anchor and said, “She handled the intense workload and deadline pressure with grace and style, continually showing her dedication to the task at hand and her willingness to work hard.”

Gaby Vinick

Gabrielle Vinick is the 2022 Morgan Murphy Media Scholarship recipient.                 

Vinick is attending the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She is majoring in journalism and political science. She is planning to graduate in the spring of 2022.

Vinick’s career goal is to cover a wide variety of people and places of interest through broadcast journalism. She wants to report on environmental issues with a focus on people at the forefront of the struggle for equity and environmental protection.

Vinick introduced a new chapter of The Women’s Network (TWN) to campus. TWN is a national collegiate women’s networking organization focused on connecting students to their peers and female leaders across various industries, including journalism and communications. Her team recruited more than 1,000 active members in one year.

In addition to working at the Daily Cardinal, Vinick works at both Madison Magazine and News Not Noise, founded by award-winning journalist Jessica Yellin. She writes stories, fact-checks pieces, conducts research and pitches weekly story and interview ideas.

Vinick is described as a natural leader who knows how to identify challenges and put people first.

Kim Leadhom

Kim Leadholm is the 2022 David L. Nelson Scholarship recipient.                 

Leadholm is attending the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She is majoring in journalism and political science. She is planning to graduate in the spring of 2022.

Leadholm aspires to be a multimedia journalist and also has interest in producing.

On campus Leadholm writes for the Badger Herald and won gold in the Milwaukee Press Club’s 2020 Excellence in Journalism Awards for the class website “2020 in 20-20” where she was managing editor.

Leadholm is an intern on Here and Now on PBS Wisconsin, a communications intern for Habitat for Humanity of Dane County, and communications intern for the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery.

Leadholm is described by an intern supervisor as energetic, enthusiastic, and can-do. Both of her letters of recommendation noted the strength of her resume as early as high school and her passion for journalism. One wrote, “Her boundless curiosity and tenacity ensure that work is not only completed on time, but also, thoroughly.”

Vanessa Rivera

Vanessa Rivera is the 2022 Howard Gernetzke Scholarship recipient.                 

Rivera is attending Marquette University. She is majoring in Journalism. She is planning to graduate in the spring of 2022.

Rivera would like to produce multimedia content in a meaningful, impactful way about the communities she serves while continuing to grow as a journalist as a whole.

She was involved on the Marquette campus as the executive producer for the Marquette Wire and previously served as the assistant news producer. She is an intern at the O’Brien Fellowship in Public Journalism where she’s experimenting with long-form journalism using video and print. She’s currently a news producer at WTMJ-TV in Milwaukee.

Two of Rivera’s newscasts were nominated for Best

Newscast College Production Awards from the Chicago/Midwest Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.

One of her instructors describes Rivera as “smart, dedicated, passionate, and deeply committed to our culture of excellence, hard work, kindness, collaboration, diversity, and inclusion.”

WBA Hall of Famer Terry Baun died Saturday. He was 74.

Known to all as Terry, his broadcast career started in 1967 at Milwaukee’s classical music station, WFMR-FM. After ten years there, he began a series of moves into corporate engineering, while also forming his own consulting firm, Criterion Broadcast Services, in Milwaukee. Through the years, he worked for Sudbrink Broadcasting, Multimedia Broadcasting, and Cumulus Broadcasting. He completed his broadcasting career working for the Wisconsin Educational Communications Board where he oversaw the engineering and operations of the delivery system for Wisconsin Public Radio and Television throughout the state of Wisconsin, retiring in 2017 after 10 years. He was a graduate of Marquette University.

Baun’s activity in the Society of Broadcast Engineers began in 1976 when he first joined the Society and became involved in Chapter 28 of Milwaukee, serving in several leadership capacities. Later in his career, while living in Indiana, he served as Certification Committee Chair for Chapter 25 in Indianapolis.

Baun’s contributions to the SBE at the national level were numerous and significant. He was first elected to the national SBE Board of Directors in 1987, serving a two-year term and was elected to a three-year term in 1991. That term was interrupted after two years as he was elected national vice president in the fall of 1993. Baun served in that position for two years before being elected to two consecutive terms as national president, beginning in 1995.

During his terms as national president, the Society instituted the Leadership Development Course. Baun worked to develop stronger ties and awareness of the SBE by the state broadcaster associations nationwide. He initiated a significant upgrade of the Society’s national office data management capability. The Society successfully transitioned from the multi-association World Media Expo, which ended in 1996, to the SBE National Meeting concept that’s still in use today. The SBE self-published the EAS Primer, written by fellow Wisconsinite Leonard Charles, during his term and the Society held its first strategic planning meeting during Baun’s presidency. During his two years as president, SBE membership grew as did the SBE’s financial strength.

His dedication to the development of continuing education for broadcast engineers has been evident in his tenure as chair of the SBE National Certification Committee (from 1998 to 2001) and later as the developer and instructor of a computer networking technologist course which facilitated many broadcast engineers to bridge the gap between traditional broadcast engineering and information technology skill sets, as well as becoming SBE Certified Broadcast Networking Technologists. Much of Baun’s professional life has been spent working for and on behalf of the Society and mentoring the broadcast engineer on the lecture circuit and through promotion of the SBE Certification program.

Baun was a member of the SBE national Certification Committee for 21 years, from 1998 to 2019, serving as the committee chair for three of those years.

Baun was instrumental in the creation and subsequent tutorial of the SBE Certified Broadcast Networking Technologist (CBNT) certification. His dedication to this program resulted in one of the highest participation rates of any SBE certification level. Baun was also instrumental in the development of the SBE AM Directional Specialist (AMD) certification, providing many of the essay questions.

As a speaker, Baun presented more than 35 full and half-day seminars covering topics such as broadcast computer networks, managements skills for engineers, chief operator rules review, FCC compliance review and RF fundamentals for studio engineers.

Baun joined the SBE in 1976. He was named the SBE’s Broadcast Engineer of the Year in 1991, the very first time the award was presented. He was named SBE Fellow in 1999, and in 2003 Baun was awarded the SBE Educator of the Year award recognizing his many contributions in support of professional development for broadcast engineers. He holds the Certified Professional Broadcast Engineer, AM Directional Specialist and Certified Broadcast Networking Technologist certifications from the SBE. In 2010, Baun was awarded the SBE’s John H. Battison Award for Lifetime Achievement.

Baun also contributed much to his home state via the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association. He was one of the original members of the WBA Summer Engineering Conference Steering Committee. Baun founded the WBA Media Technology Institute in 2011.

He played a key role in developing the self-inspection program within the broadcast industry and is considered a leader in this field. Baun was one of the architects of the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association’s Alternative Broadcast Station Inspection Program, serving as the WBA’s chief inspector for more than ten years, beginning with the program’s inauguration in 1995. In addition to Wisconsin, he conducted alternative station inspections for broadcast associations in Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio. As an inspector himself, Baun took on the primary role of mentor with stations to help them with their compliance issues rather than the role of an enforcer. His desire was to have stations comply with the rules rather than looking for reasons to cite them for noncompliance.

In 2000, Baun initiated the 24-hour hotline for engineers in the state of Wisconsin through the WBA, which he manned 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Based on his program model, other state broadcast associations have adopted the 24-hour engineering hotline. For all of his efforts in Wisconsin, Baun was inducted into the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association Foundation Hall of Fame in 2004.

In his position with the Wisconsin Educational Communications Board, Baun played a key role in guiding the transition of Wisconsin Public Television to full digital broadcasting. In addition to his duties associated with ECB and Wisconsin Public Television, he spent a good deal of time working with the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association in a variety of activities that not only benefited the ECB and WPT, but the entire television community. The WPT transition included the early cutover to digital for WPT’s six translators and included coordinating a triage plan with WPT programming staff for the five full-power transmitters in advance of the original Feb. 17, 2009 shut-off date.

Baun implemented the planning process with ECB staff for the next generation of the Broadcast Interconnect which delivers Wisconsin Public Radio, Wisconsin Public Television, EAS and Amber Alert programming throughout the state.

He served as a role model and has worked diligently on the partnership model between the ECB and the University of Wisconsin public radio and television issues.

Baun implemented a “paperless” reporting system for engineering updates from field staff. It’s a system that allows ECB engineering staff from throughout the state to have a snapshot of projects and issues at each site. Projects that Baun oversaw included the WHHI tower, the WHAA-FM – Coloma radio project the University of Wisconsin System built in 2011, and the Chilton gap filler tower, a joint project with the Wisconsin Department of Transportation. Baun also watched over the HD radio installations at ECB’s FM stations.

Baun also penned many contributions to publications. His articles have appeared in Milwaukee Magazine, Radio World, Broadcast Engineering, and the Milwaukee Press Club Annual. He also co-authored a chapter on facilities documentation in an edition of the NAB Engineering Handbook and applied for a patent on an internet media streaming delivery system.

Besides his long membership with the SBE, Baun was a member of the Audio Engineering Society, the Association of Federal Communications Consulting Engineers, and the IEEE. He also served on the Milwaukee Area Technical College Broadcast Communications Engineer Advisory Committee, which revamped the curriculum and brought the lab and studio equipment up to current broadcast standards.

His dedication to broadcasting in general and broadcast engineering, the SBE, the WBA and his employers, are clearly evident. What differentiates Baun from other exceptional engineers is his ability to share his engineering expertise with industry peers as a great communicator teacher.

In the WBA video tribute to Baun earning his 2004 induction into the Wisconsin Broadcasting Hall of Fame, Baun shared his thoughts on broadcast engineering and his career, “Engineers are a critical part of the broadcasting enterprise. They’re technologists who bring broadcasting to life. I’ve always thought of myself as a broadcaster. Period. And within the scope of broadcasting, I feel that my contributions have been primarily in the technical side, the engineering side.

“My career: Something involved with technology, and also involved with helping other people learn about technology to help their careers move along. I guess the educational aspect of what I’m doing is probably going to be my proudest moment when it’s all said and done.”

In September 2002, Baun married Linda Godby. When they married, he was inducted into his most challenging role: that of being a father to Leslie and Stacey. Terry would say, “You have a father and I respect that. I am here for you in any capacity that you need, and I am not going anywhere.”

Baun said one of his proudest moments was when both daughters asked him to be beside them and walk them down the aisle on their wedding days. Leslie (Wood) has three children: Cayleigh, Logan and Hunter. Stacey (Overman) is married to Nick Overman. They have two children: Grayson and Amiah.

Baun loved trains, classical music, Fleetwood Mac, and the Beatles. He was mortified when Stacey asked him what a Beatle was. He loved the Packers, but also loved to talk to Leslie on Sunday and discuss the games that the Colts and the Packers played that day.

Baun enjoyed reading to his grandchildren and playing trains with Grayson. He watched his fair share of Dora, Vampirina, Thomas the Train, and Curious George. Even though he didn’t get to ride the teacups, Baun enjoyed going to Disney with all the family. Being the avid reader that he is, he read many books and watched a biopic on Walt Disney. He surmised, though flawed as we all are, that Walt was a genius but not sure he would have appreciated where his world is today.

Baun said he wanted a party (a big one). Therefore, there will be a celebration with food, friends, drink and music, and many other surprises on Sunday, Jan. 16 at the Madison Marriott West from 5 p.m. until whenever.

WBA Hall of Famer and lifelong broadcaster, Jim Schuh, has died.

Schuh, 83, died Wednesday at Marshfield Medical Center in Weston, according to his obituary.

Schuh was a Milwaukee native and graduate of Marquette University. His career began in 1957 with a 6-year stint as an announcer and reporter for four different Milwaukee area radio and television stations. WSPT/WXYQ, Stevens Point was his home from 1963-88, where he served as a host, news director, program director and for 15 years, as general manager. He also served as general manager of WBIZ/WJJK in Eau Claire and WNAM/WUSW in Neenah‑Oshkosh from 1986 to 1989.

From 1990 to 1999, when he retired from active broadcasting, he was the president and managing partner of WIZD‑FM in Plover.

Beginning in 1983 and continuing after his retirement from broadcasting, Schuh served as a lecturer in the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point Department of Communications. He was honored in 1969 with Marquette University’s Distinguished Alumnus Award.

He served on the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association Board Directors from 1983 to 1989 and as President of the WBA in 1987-88. He was inducted into the WBA Hall of Fame in 2003.

In lieu of flowers donations in Jim’s name to; Operation Bootstrap, St. Bronislava Parish, United Way of Portage County and UWSP Foundation would be appreciated.

Mass of Christian Burial will be 11 a.m. on Wednesday Nov. 3 at St. Bronislava Catholic Church at 3200 Plover Road in Plover. Rev. James Trempe will officiate. Entombment will be in the parish cemetery.

Visitation for family and friends will be Tuesday from 4 p.m. concluding with a rosary prayed at 7 p.m. at the Pisarski Community Funeral Home at 2911 Plover Road in Plover. Also, from 9:30 a.m. until the time for Mass Wednesday Morning at the Church.

Masks will be required at the visitation on Tuesday evening at the funeral home.