2021 Chicago Silver Circle Honors Program Book

JACKIE BANGE
Jackie Bange is an award-winning journalist who has worked
in Chicago for more than 30 years and is currently weekend
anchor for WGN News at Five, Nine and Ten. Jackie joined
the WGN-TV News team in 1993 as a general assignment
reporter and anchored the WGN Morning News from
January 1995 to October 1995. Jackie also spent 21 years
working with the Weekend team of Robert Jordan, Jim
Ramsey and Rich King. All have since retired. Jackie
continues her weekend work with Tahman Bradley, Mike
Janssen and Lauren Magiera.
Prior to her arrival at WGN-TV, Jackie was a general assignment reporter and weekend
anchor for WMAQ-TV in Chicago from 1989-1992. Before moving to Chicago, Jackie was a
reporter and noon anchor for WPEC-TV in West Palm Beach, Florida where she covered city
hall and had the only weekly local scuba diving report in the nation.
Among the countless stories Jackie has covered are the Presidential election nights of
Barack Obama and the election of President Joe Biden. Jackie has also reported from
international locales, including Tanzania, Africa and Paris, France. After Hurricane Katrina,
Jackie brought WGN viewers “Into the Darkness,” a story profiling two local pilots and their
crew who were the first to arrive in New Orleans and help rescue hundreds of stranded
residents. Utilizing night-vision goggles, Jackie recreated the rescue for viewers, and her
report won the Illinois Associated Press award for Best Hard News Feature.
Jackie won an Emmy ® in 1999 for her series as a member of a group who attained a world
record for the largest skydive formation. She also won an AP award for the series and for
aerial photography. She received a Peter Lisagor award in 2009 for her report that helped a
widow “get justice” for her husband who was killed by a suspected drunk driver.
Jackie has worked with Elmhurst College’s Mentor Program for students interested in
journalism. She serves on the board of The Michael Matters Foundation, an organization
created to help those fighting brain cancer. Jackie is involved in the fundraising efforts for A
Safe Place, a domestic violence prevention organization in Lake County. She also volunteers
at the Northern Illinois Food Bank, The West Deerfield Township Food Pantry and Feed My
Starving Children. For her devotion to family, she received the Woman of Honor award from
Thornton Township.
Jackie received her post-baccalaureate degree in Telecommunications from the University
of Florida where she graduated with distinction. Jackie’s undergraduate degree was from
Florida State University in Management Information Systems. She is proud to carry on a
family tradition of television journalism. Her father was a news anchor at WPLG in Miami,
Florida, and at WGAL Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Her mother was a weathercaster in Lancaster,
Pennsylvania. She is married with three children. In her free time, Jackie enjoys traveling,
scuba diving, skydiving and athletic training. She has completed seven Triathlons.