Tribune stations dish up ‘Best Bites’ reality TV

AMERICA’S BEST BITES is a new half-hour reality show from Tribune Broadcasting, where the hosts take tips from viewers via Facebook and Twitter and travel to those areas to sample the “must eat” fare.

Hosts are Ted Brunson, host of Chicago’s Best, and L.A.-based Natalie Forte, who has hosted and reported features for ABC Family and Reelz Channel.

The syndicated show is produced by Tribune/WGN division Oak Brook Productions (OBP), a full-service video production company for WGN-TV and CLTV shows and commercials, and also for advertisers within the Tribune Media Group. 

Executive producers are director of programming David Rosenberg and Josh Kaufman.

America’s Best Bites will air weekends in September on WGN/9 and other Tribune stations this fall.

FOUNDATION CONTENT is one of the visual media industry’s very few companies to achieve  Women’s Business Enterprise certification from the city of Chicago.  The five-year old company is owned and led by Samantha Hart.  

Hart is spending the summer in L.A. overseeing Foundation’s recently opened branch in Culver City’s Hayden Tract development The studio has a 30×30-ft. stage, four editorial bays, an open production area, mezzanine for executive offices – all furnished “green,” with organic sustainable materials.

A LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT MAAX AWARD will be presented August 1 to TV pioneer Don Jackson, chairman/CEO of Central City Productions, best known as producer of The Stellar Gospel Music Awards, at the Wyndham Hotel.  

Jackson is one of the seven recipients and the only one from Chicago to be honored by the 6th annual Marketing to African Americans with Excellence Awards in marketing, advertising, media, public relations and consumer research.

Jackson’s 40-year old CCP has produced more than 1,000 TV shows, including the Soul Train Music Awards, The Minority Business Report, The Bud Biliken Back-to-School Parade and The NAACP ACT-SO Awards.  

BRIDGES MEDIA hosts a 10th anniversary party July 22 at its studio at 100 W. Kinzie … Audio post Bam!’s Summer Party takes place July 28 at the Vertigo Sky Lounge at 2 W. Erie, cater-corner from its studios at 1 E. Erie.

A NEW COMPANY for Liz Laine Reps’ client roster is animation studio Trollback & Company of New York, a collaborative group of designers led by executive creative directors Jakob Trollbäck and Joe Wright.  

This marks a reunion of Laine and Trollback executive producer Mike Eastwood. They had worked together nine years ago as reps for Blah Blah Blah.

AMERICA’S #1 KID CRITIC, 12-year-old film critic Jackson Murphy of New York, who reviews family movies for his Lights-Camera-Jackson website, will be a guest critic on Ebert Presents At the Movies.

Master Murphy, an enviable four-time Emmy winner, will share his views on 3D films with hosts Christy Lemire and Ignatiy Vishnevetsky on the July 22 and July 29 shows on WTTW/11.  He’s thrilled to work with Roger Ebert, whom, he says, “is one of his idols.”