In this brief but heartfelt segment, John Williams honors his friend and fellow broadcaster Steve Bertrand for his years of service and his extraordinary presence on the airwaves. Bob Kessler also joins in to share memories and pass along well wishes. This segment is a celebration of friendship, craftsmanship, and the unmistakable spark Steve has brought to Chicago radio history. While no one’s life can be summed up in a mere collection of words, John weaves together a heartfelt tribute to his friend who, in retirement, will no doubt be traveling the world and creating lasting memories in no time.

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, Austin Berg, Executive Director of the Chicago Policy Center and author the The Last Ward, and long-time Chicago journalist Cate Plys, publisher of Roseland, Chicago: 1972. The Rascals begin the podcast talking about ‘Operation Midway Blitz’ leaving Chicago. The Rascals discuss the government’s immigration effort and how the last 6 weeks have played out. Now, what’s next? Earlier this week, President Trump posted about crime and vacancies on Chicago’s ‘Miracle Mile’ and called for more troops to be sent in. Do the Rascals believe the president was completely out of line? Both Democrats and Republicans have released thousands of emails from the Jeffrey Epstein estate that include multiple references to Donald Trump. What are the big takeaways from the release of these documents? Dick Durbin and 7 other senators sided with the GOP to end the government shutdown. Eric explains why caving was the wrong move. Austin believes this shutdown proves that the FAA should be privatized. And finally, we are officially not doing red light, yellow light, green light, but somehow there are recommendations!

Jennifer Valade, Veteran Support Services, Salvation Army NCI Division, joins John Williams to talk about the services they provide to veterans, the needs of the veterans that they serve, the difficulty some veterans have in reaching out for help, how they encourage veterans to ask for help, what makes the Salvation Army’s services unique, the amount of veterans on their team, and The Salvation Army event taking place this Saturday. Jewel-Osco, the Chicago Bears, and Miller Lite are teaming up to benefit The Salvation Army and honor our veterans with free turkey dinners. Click here to register.

Your donations to The Salvation Army will help keep families in their homes, put food on their tables, and brighten the holidays for children. And all gifts stay local to the Chicagoland area. Last year, The Salvation Army provided nearly 1 million meals, 400,000 cases of emergency assistance, and over 160,000 bags of groceries to neighbors in need. Click here to donate to John’s kettle!

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.

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 President Trump announcing a deal to lower the price of weight loss drugs, why iron deficiency in adults may be more common than thought, and what can be done to improve access to physicians.

Eric Zorn, Publisher of The Picayune Sentinel, joins John Williams to talk about why he’s disappointed in the Democrats that voted to end the government shutdown, the possibility that ‘Operation Midway Blitz’ is coming to an end, and President Trump posting that military troops should go to Michigan Avenue to fight crime.

Mortgage and real estate expert David Hochberg joins John Williams to share his thoughts on the Trump administration proposing 50-year mortgages. David says that the option of 50-year mortgages could be beneficial to some, but it probably is not the best idea over the long run.

David hosts “Home Sweet Home Chicago” on Saturdays from 10am to 1pm on WGN Radio. You can call him at 855-56-David, or check out the Team Hochberg website.

WGN Radio won in three categories at the 2025 Illinois Broadcasters Association (IBA) Silver Dome Awards, including two honors for the WGN Radio newsroom. The awards, which recognize the top-tier in Illinois broadcasting were announced on November 6 at a reception held at the InterContinental Hotel in Chicago.

WGN Radio received the following Silver Dome Awards:

IBA also recognized Dave Eanet, whose two stints on WGN Radio encompass more than 30 years, with the 2025 Chicago/W. Russell Withers Jr. Broadcast Pioneer Award. Eanet is the voice of Northwestern Wildcat football and men’s basketball, as well as serving as a fill-in anchor on the WGN-TV sports desk.  He is a respected voice in college athletics and has been synonymous with Northwestern football radio broadcasts since 1990. The award is named after the late W. Russell Withers Jr, founding father of the Illinois Broadcasters Foundation.

The Northwestern University alum first joined WGN Radio in 1984 as the morning sports anchor and was part of the Chicago Bears WGN Radio team until leaving in 1988. He returned to the station in 1996 as sports director when WGN Radio became the rightsholder for Northwestern University Athletics and Eanet added men’s basketball play-by-play to his resume. Eanet also filled in on play-by-play for Chicago Cubs broadcasts on WGN Radio in the late 1990s through early 2000s.

Eanet has consistently earned recognition throughout his career, receiving multiple honors as a leading sportscaster and for excellence in play-by-play from the Illinois Broadcasters Association, Chicago Headline Club and Associated Press. He was named a 2005 honorary inductee into the Northwestern University Athletics Hall of Fame and the 2011 Illinois Sportscaster of the Year by the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association.

The event also featured the induction of Pat Hughes into the Illinois Broadcasters Hall of Fame. Hughes has been the radio voice of the Chicago Cubs since 1996, including 18 years on WGN Radio.

• Dave Eanet (Mary Boyle/WGN Radio)
• Bill Murdoch, Steve Eanet, Dave Eanet, Karen Eanet, Marlene Wells, Mary Boyle, Ashley Bihun, Jack Heinrich (Mary Boyle/WGN Radio)
• Dave Eanet and Pat Hughes (Mary Boyle/WGN Radio)
• Dave Eanet, Marlene Wells and Pat Hughes (Mary Boyle/WGN Radio)
• Dave Eanet, John Williams and Pat Hughes (Mary Boyle/WGN Radio)
• Sylvia Snowden reacts to winning her award (Mary Boyle / WGN Radio)
• Sylvia Snowden receives an award from Mark Rivera and Ravi Baichwal from ABC7 (Mary Boyle / WGN Radio)
• Sylvia Snowden (Mary Boyle / WGN Radio)
• John Williams on stage (Mary Boyle / WGN Radio)
• John Williams (Mary Boyle / WGN Radio)
• John Williams receives an award from Erin McElroy and Tahman Bradley from WGN-TV (Mary Boyle / WGN Radio)
• Mary Boyle (Mary Boyle / WGN Radio)
• Dave Eanet (Mary Boyle/WGN Radio)
• Marlene Wells (Mary Boyle/WGN Radio)
• Sylvia Snowden, Mary Boyle, John Williams (Mary Boyle / WGN Radio)
• Dave Eanet and Mary Boyle (Mary Boyle / WGN Radio)
• Jack Heinrich and Dave Eanet (Mary Boyle / WGN Radio)