Jennifer Graves

  • Award: Broadcast Pioneer Award
  • Inducted in 2024

Jennifer L. Graves led Chicago’s top-rated news organization from October 2001 until her retirement in June 2024. Under her watch, every newscast in the ABC 7 lineup was rated #1 in the market. A 41-year veteran of local news, Graves worked at ABC 7 Chicago for more than 32 years.

In her role as Vice President – News, Graves managed all news employees and directed all ABC 7 news efforts, from breaking news and major event coverage to half-hour specials, political debates and day-to-day news planning. Major events during her tenure included the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the election of President Barack Obama, multiple professional sports championships and the Coronavirus pandemic. Under her leadership, ABC 7 Eyewitness News was honored for excellence with numerous awards including Illinois Broadcasters Association Silver Dome Awards, Associated Press, local Emmy and Peter Lisagor Awards, regional Edward R. Murrow Awards, as well as a National Emmy Award for investigative news reporting.

Graves was also a major contributor to the station’s cutting-edge technological advances, including an all-digital newsroom and the development of a state-of-the-art broadcast facility, the State Street Studio.

From 1998 to 2001, Graves was the Assistant News Director at ABC 7. She joined the station in 1992 as an executive news producer. Before joining ABC 7, Graves worked at WAGA-TV in Atlanta, Georgia from 1988-1992, where she was promoted from news producer to executive producer. Prior to that, she worked as a producer and assignment editor at KSDK-TV in St. Louis, Missouri from 1983-88.

Graves was a long-time member of the Radio Television Digital News Association and The Chicago Network, a women’s business leadership organization. She received the Dante Award from Chicago’s Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans in 2016.

She graduated from the University of Missouri-Columbia with a Bachelor of Journalism degree.

Graves is a native of Belleville, Illinois. She enjoys spending time with her husband and adult twin daughters.