Former WGN Radio news anchor Steve Bertrand was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the RTDNA Foundation at their 2026 First Amendment Awards.

The foundation’s awards celebrate the efforts to promote responsible journalism and preserve the constitutionally guaranteed rights to do so. Past honorees include local reporters, network anchors, members of the U.S. House of Representatives and multiple U.S. Senators.

A cornerstone of the airwaves for four decades, Steve Bertrand retired from WGN Radio in November 2025. His tenure with the station began as an intern in the 1980s, eventually transitioning to anchoring the news in 1992.

Watch Steve’s acceptance speech:

Listen to Steve’s acceptance speech:

Click here for video of the full event from the RTDNA website.

Click here for more on the event from the RTDNA website.

Photo gallery:

• Steve Bertrand accepting Lifetime Achievement Award
• Steve Bertrand gets NBC’s Tom Llamas to call his mom
• Page from the program at the Radio Television Digital News Association 2026 First Amendment Awards
• Page from the program at the Radio Television Digital News Association 2026 First Amendment Awards
• Steve Bertrand accepting the Lifetime Achievement Award from the RTDNA 2026 First Amendment Awards
• WGN Radio News Director, Ryan Burrow with Steve Bertrand at the RTDNA 2026 First Amendment Awards in Washington, D.C.
• Watergate hotel in Washington, D.C.
• Several Northwestern University Medill School of Journalism students were honored at the 2026 RTDNA First Amendment Awards, and wanted to meet Steve.
• Vladimir Duthiers (CBS News), Steve Bertrand (WGN Radio), Juju Chang (ABC News) were among the award winners
• German journalists with the RIAS Berlin Commission celebrated Steve Bertrand’s Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2026 RTDNA First Amendment Awards at the Watergate Hotel in Washington, D.C.
• Steve Bertrand and CBS 2 Chicago’s Asal Rezaei were honored by the Radio Television Digital News Association at the 2026 First Amendment Awards

Enjoy this edition of “The Best of Speed Jokes.” What was your favorite joke of the week? Keep sending your jokes to [email protected]!

It’s time once again for our Best of the Midwest feature for 2026! Are you trying to come up with some quick getaway ideas that are only a short trip from the Chicago area? Well, John Williams has some great recommendations for you! Today, we head to Wisconsin and visit with Kathleen Papcke, Chair, Women’s Weekend Committee, Geneva Lake Women’s Association! Kathleen tells John everything about this year’s Women’s Weekend events coming up this April. Find more information here.

Professor Samir Khuller, Chair, Northwestern’s Computer Science Department, joins John Williams to talk about the university offering a major in AI next year.

John Williams brings you another round of Speed Jokes. Keep sending yours to [email protected].

The Mincing Rascals this week are John Williams of WGN Radio, Eric Zorn, publisher of The Picayune Sentinel, multi-media journalist Brandon Pope, author of Brandon Pope’s Screening Room, and long-time Chicago journalist Cate Plys, publisher of Roseland, Chicago: 1972. This week, the Rascals start the podcast discussing the war in Iran. How and when does this war end? Last week, HHS Secretary RFK Jr. called out Dunkin’ Donuts and Starbucks for serving high-sugar drinks. Should the government be regulating these types of drinks? This week, Uber launched their women-only ride option. Do the Rascals have any issues with this option? Also this week, The Wall Street Journal has a piece on how AI could save local news. How are the Rascals feeling about this? And speaking of AI, former congressman Bobby Rush used AI in a campaign ad to voice his support for Jesse Jackson Jr. Do the Rascals believe this is a good use of AI? And finally, the Rascals make some election day / Oscar predictions.

Bob Bertog, president of Bertog Landscape Co. in Wheeling and a certified landscape professional with the National Association of Landscape Professionals, joins John Williams to answer all of your lawn and garden questions. Bob says it’s a little too early to start seeding, but definitely get debris cleaned up and make sure to get leftover fall leaves off your lawn. We are ‘keeping it green’ with Bob!

Local farmer John Andermann, President of the Will County Farm Bureau, joins John Williams to talk about his farm and his yield last year, what he’s doing with his field right now, how very few farmers turned a profit last year, the cost of fertilizer going up, and how the war in Iran is impacting business.

John Williams brings you another round of Speed Jokes. Keep sending yours to [email protected].

Dr. Jeffrey Kopin, Chief Medical Officer for Northwestern Medicine Catherine Gratz Griffin Lake Forest Hospital, joins John Williams to talk about being on the back-end of flu season, how most of the respiratory illness they saw in the hospital was influenza, how far we have come with COVID since 2020, if popular weight loss drugs could become a new treatment for addiction, and a new study that showed AI could identify other serious health conditions during breast cancer screenings.