Andy Shaw to step down from BGA top job
Monday, Jan 22, 2018 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Press release…
Better Government Association President and Chief Executive Officer Andy Shaw will be stepping down from his day-to-day responsibilities at the nonpartisan, nonprofit civic watchdog organization later this year.
Shaw, 69, has led the BGA since 2009 after spending 37 years as a print and television journalist in Chicago.
Under his leadership, the BGA has grown from a staff of three people and a budget of $300,000 to a full-service statewide organization with 30 full, part-time, freelance and contract employees and an annual budget of more than $3.5 million.
“Andy has done a phenomenal job elevating the scope and impact of this vitally important watchdog organization,” said BGA Board Chairman Mark Rust. “He has made a lasting contribution to the fight for government that is more honest, efficient, transparent and accountable.”
Once his successor is chosen, Shaw will remain active in supporting the BGA’s fund-raising, journalistic and civic engagement efforts.
In addition to his BGA leadership duties, Shaw is a columnist and regular contributor to radio and TV stations in Chicago and Springfield. He is also a frequent guest speaker at business and civic events.
“There’s still a lot of work ahead of us if we’re ever going to have the good government we’re entitled to in exchange for our hard-earned tax dollars,” Shaw said. “I plan to support our board and new leadership team in whatever ways I can to keep the BGA in the forefront of this critically important mission.”
The BGA has won dozens of national, state and local awards for journalistic excellence and civic contributions, including last year’s national Society of Professional Journalists’ First Amendment Award for unearthing the Chicago mayor’s private emails, which prompted major changes in the city’s private email policies.
The BGA will celebrate its 95th anniversary this year. The organization was founded in 1923 by a group of Chicago business, civic and religious leaders who were sick of corruption at City Hall and mobster Al Capone’s influence on local politics and government.
The search for Shaw’s replacement is being directed by BGA board member Clark Bell, former Journalism Program Director of the Robert R. McCormick Foundation. Internal and external candidates will be considered. Those interested in applying should email a cover letter and resume to Ernest Crowder, the BGA’s VP of Operations (ecrowder@bettergov.org).
He’s been one heck of a fundraiser and has lately restored the group’s investigative chops.
…Adding… Andy also sent out a personal message about his decision. Click here to read it.
- Galena Guy - Monday, Jan 22, 18 @ 11:56 am:
Sad. He will be missed. Hopefully his replacement will have the same moxie as Andy.
- Jim Thorpe - Monday, Jan 22, 18 @ 12:22 pm:
‘Better Government Association’…HA! He was and is an egotistic hack, beholden to special interests, of the ‘investigate’ whatever gothcha scandal is thrown through the transom by a favored PR firm, school, of ‘investigative journalism’. Unctuous to the powerful, willfully blind to big fish corruption, and well passed his effective sell by date. Let’s hope that the BGA returns to its very important mission by hiring an actual muckraker with integrity, not another charlatan.
- Dirty Red - Monday, Jan 22, 18 @ 12:23 pm:
Did the staff ever formally organize?
- OH - Monday, Jan 22, 18 @ 12:39 pm:
No doubt, you can make the case he’s helped “revive” the BGA. There are some really good reporters there doing important stories. And given the avalanche of newsroom layoffs over the last decade, they’ve helped fill a vacuum in local journalism.
But the revival — and the fundraising behind it — has raised some ethical concerns.
They solicit and accept donation from politically connected companies and individuals (including Bruce Rauner,) which obviously raises concerns about their independence. And they also act as a registered lobbying organization, taking official positions on pending legislation and even initiating bills themselves. Might they target a legislator or alderman with an “investigative report” if he or she opposes an unrelated piece of legislation the BGA is pushing?
It’s just not ethically possible to be a news gathering organization and a politically interested public advocacy group at the same time.
- wordslinger - Monday, Jan 22, 18 @ 12:55 pm:
Hope you find that microphone.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djHCi3QzT_k
- FTR - Monday, Jan 22, 18 @ 1:17 pm:
@wordslinger
Thanks for that link. As a government PR flack in the 90’s who who had to deal with Shaw’s unique blend of petulance and arrogance, that brings back lots of memories.
- A guy - Monday, Jan 22, 18 @ 1:17 pm:
Slow clap maybe. Not standing though. Uh,uh.
- Michelle Flaherty - Monday, Jan 22, 18 @ 1:58 pm:
Wordslinger, you beat me to it.
MICROPHONE!
Never gets old.
- Father Ted - Monday, Jan 22, 18 @ 2:24 pm:
The gotcha journalism raised awareness and fundraising, but did little to achieve the BGA’s mission or force significant change. Hypocrisy was fairly rampant, noted in one of many ways above. The blowhard era at the BGA comes to an end.
- Annonin' - Monday, Jan 22, 18 @ 3:59 pm:
hand-out andy never got close to the BGA days of Brunner and Mike Lyons…got lucky when media entered “Free Content Era” so anything pumped out hit P1.
Everyone knows late on Jan 22 is the perfect time to announcement rather than wait for the centennial. Sure.
- Honeybadger - Monday, Jan 22, 18 @ 4:03 pm:
Was never really a big fan of Andy Shaw. Did think he was more biased against unions and certain politicians and pretty much gave Rauner a free passwss
- Roman - Monday, Jan 22, 18 @ 6:21 pm:
== Free Content Era ==
Thought the same thing, Annonin’.
They’re nowhere near as blantant with their political bias, but the BGA under Shaw operates similar to the Illinois Policy Institute, at least when in comes to offering free “news” content to Chicago media shops.
Rauner made donations to them and with the exception of a couple of fact checks done as part of their local partnership with PolitiFact, the BGA has never laid a glove him. No big “investigative reports” on state government since he’s been governor that I’m aware of.
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- justacitizen - Monday, Jan 22, 18 @ 7:56 pm:
I always enjoyed listening to Andy and thought he did a lot of good things with the FOIA stuff. I’m not as critical as some CF bloggers. Good luck Andy
- Anonymous - Monday, Jan 22, 18 @ 10:03 pm:
How about Pam Zekman?
- W.S. Wolcott - Monday, Jan 22, 18 @ 10:10 pm:
I will only miss the ability to troll him. Used to give him the business on WBEZ. I wasn’t a fan of style in the early days and and his time at the BGA made me batty. Good luck to him as he moves on, I’m sure he’ll find a soft landing in the near future based on the “work” he put in while at the BGA.
- Mireya - Tuesday, Jan 23, 18 @ 1:15 am:
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