JOHN GEHRON, Radio Master

JOHN GEHRON is a name synonymous with Chicago Radio; he began programming the legendary WLS in 1974 and built it into a music radio institution. He also created a national standard for the “smooth jazz” format while at Chicago’s WNUA-FM, followed with senior officer and COO titles at American Radio and Infinity Broadcasting, including the role of Senior Vice President of Programming for all of Infinity/CBS. When Oprah Winfrey decided to start her own radio show she turned to John as the obvious choice to guide its programming. John's philosophy is deceptively simple: hire great talents and give them every tool and opportunity to succeed.