Bernie Tafoya

Mornings, 5a-1p

Follow Bernie Tafoya:

Follow Bernie Tafoya:

Bernie is a lifelong Chicagoan and could never see himself living anywhere else (except maybe on a part-time basis in Hawaii!).

He was born on the North Side in 1958, but have lived all but the first three months of his life south of 95th Street. That said, thank the ‘69 Cubs for making Bernie such a die-hard Cubs fan. Bernie grew up in the CHA projects–the Trumbull Park Homes in the South Deering neighborhood. He graduated from O.T. Bright Public School, Mendel Catholic College Prep, and the University of Illinois-Chicago.

He has been with WBBM Newsradio 780 since 1986 and thinks he has one of the best jobs around. Bernie the morning drive reporter and gets to cover everything from education and politics (including Democratic National Conventions 1996, 2000 and 2008) to crime and religion (including the Catholic Bishops Conference in Dallas that dealt with the priest sex abuse scandal).

Bernie has reported tragedies such as the Brown’s Chicken Massacre in Palatine and the Amtrak train crash in Bourbonnais, but he has also seen his share of thrills. Bernie was fortunate enough to ride for nearly an hour aboard one of the Blue Angels FA-18 fighter jets and cover Cubs fans at Wrigley Field during the 2016 World Series. His work has been honored numerous times over the past 35-plus years. Among those honors: Best Reporter awards from the Associated Press and United Press International, Peter Lisagor Awards from the Chicago Headline Club, an Edward R. Murrow Award, and a Boyden Award from the Chicago Journalists Association.

Bernie loves to workout and ride his bicycle and he golfs every chance he gets. If he didn’t need winter gloves, chances are you’d find him swinging the clubs. Bernie is working to “break 90” more regularly and hopes to “break 80” someday. After 55 years living on the South Side of the city, Bernie now lives with his wife, Nancy, in the southwest suburbs. He has three adult children of whom he is very proud. If you have any questions or comments or would like to e-mail a news tip to Bernie, use the links.