July 8, 2024 • 21 mins
iHeartMedia Chicago presents the Women Inspire Chicago Podcast hosted by iHeart Chicago’s SVP of Public Engagement, Angela Ingram and produced by iHeart Chicago’s Jasmine Bennett. Angela hosts inspiring conversations with some of Chicago’s top women executives.
Sally Ramirez, Senior Vice President of News, NBC5 Chicago and Telemundo Chicago, joined Angela for her 1st Anniversary Special Edition Episode.
With more than 30 years of local/national broadcast journalism experience, Sally Ramirez returned to Chicago in 2023 to restructure and lead the newsrooms at two of Chicago’s most prestigious media properties: NBC 5 Chicago (WMAQ-TV) and Telemundo Chicago (WSNS-TV).
Sally has been honored with numerous industry awards, including five Edward R. Murrow Awards, four Emmy Awards and the Alfred I. du-Pont-Columbia University Award, among others.
Check it out and be inspired!
The Women Inspire Chicago Podcast is sponsored by Potbelly.
Connect with Sally Ramirez:
(NBC 5 Chicago):
Twitter (X): @nbcchicago
Instagram: @nbcchicago
TikTok: @nbcchicago
(Telemundo Chicago):
Twitter (X): @TelemundoCHI
Instagram: @telemundochicago
(Sally Ramirez):
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/sally-ramirez
Twitter (X): @SallyRamirez
Instagram: @sallyceli_news
Sally Ramirez, Senior Vice President of News, NBC5 Chicago and Telemundo Chicago, joined Angela for her 1st Anniversary Special Edition Episode.
With more than 30 years of local/national broadcast journalism experience, Sally Ramirez returned to Chicago in 2023 to restructure and lead the newsrooms at two of Chicago’s most prestigious media properties: NBC 5 Chicago (WMAQ-TV) and Telemundo Chicago (WSNS-TV).
Sally has been honored with numerous industry awards, including five Edward R. Murrow Awards, four Emmy Awards and the Alfred I. du-Pont-Columbia University Award, among others.
Check it out and be inspired!
The Women Inspire Chicago Podcast is sponsored by Potbelly.
Connect with Sally Ramirez:
(NBC 5 Chicago):
Twitter (X): @nbcchicago
Instagram: @nbcchicago
TikTok: @nbcchicago
(Telemundo Chicago):
Twitter (X): @TelemundoCHI
Instagram: @telemundochicago
(Sally Ramirez):
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/sally-ramirez
Twitter (X): @SallyRamirez
Instagram: @sallyceli_news
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Celebrating its first anniversary. I HeardMedia Chicago presents the Women Inspire Chicago podcast,
hosted by IHA Chicago's SVP of PublicEngagement, Angela Ingram and produced by
Chicago's Jasmine Bennetts. Angela hosts inspiringconversations with some in Chicago's top women executives,
and we are so grateful for ourpast guests that have joined us in
(00:20):
this first year. Sally Ramirez,Senior vice president of News NBC five Chicago
and Telemundo Chicago, join Angela forher first anniversary special edition episode. Check
it out and be inspired. SallyRamirez, Welcome to Women Inspire Chicago.
Today's a special day. This isthe first anniversary, so you are appearing
(00:45):
on a special edition. I'm honored. Thank you so much for having me.
Oh, you know, I feellike Oprah, but I don't have
the gifts. But it's just agreat day. Sally Ramirez is the senior
vice president of News for NBC fiveChicago and Telemundo SHO So, share a
little bit about your background with us. I am born and raised in the
city of Chicago, went to elementaryschool, high school, college, and
(01:08):
coming back to Chicago as a seniorvice president of News for NBC and Sanemundo.
Is a full circle moment for me, and that circle has been very
It's a large circle. Always knewI wanted to be a journalist since I
was a little girl. In thesecond grade, I started writing for the
school paper. You know, Igrew up in a very Irish Italian neighborhood.
(01:29):
We were only the second Hispanic familyto move into our block, the
others or my cousins who lived acrossthe street, So you know, it
was hard growing up and really everthinking I'd be able to realize the dream
that I have today, of thisgreat, great industry that I've been able
to work and contribute to. Aftercollege here, I went to to Paul
University in Chicago. I graduated andmoved to al Paso, Texas to get
(01:49):
my first start in TV. Iwas an associate producer there and that too
was sort of a special moment asI look back now. Because my parents,
who were immigrants from Mexico, theylived just across the border of El
Paso, Texas, and my motherwould cross into al Paso to clean houses.
She would later become a legal resident, but she would come over on
a work permit in clean houses inal Paso, which is the first market
(02:12):
that I ever got my job inthis business, so there's something there.
Right after al Paso, I movedto Tucson producing. I moved from Tucson
to Washington, d C. Madeit back to Chicago, where I worked
for WGNTV, which at that pointwas seen all over the country and even
in some other other countries. ThenI got married and moved out to Sacramento,
California, still in the producing world, executive producing. Then from Sacramento,
(02:36):
I moved to Portland. I'd gottenmarried in Sacramento, so I moved
to Portland, where I'd lived therefor eighteen years, went into higher management
there, then went to Houston.My company moved me to Houston as the
news director of KHOU, the CBSaffiliate there, and then after that I
went to the network. I workedto work for CNBC where I was the
executive producer of the news with ShepherdSmith. And then after that I came
(02:58):
back to Chicago for this big fullcircle moment where I work for NBC and
Telemundo. Congratulations, what a stellarcareer. So our paths crossed about i'd
say six months ago when we wereresearching for our Women who Win initiative that
we launch every year doing Women's HistoryMonth where we celebrate dynamic women leaders in
(03:20):
Chicago, and so your name justkept popping up. It just kept popping
up, kept popping up, andwe would meet and we would look at
our list and we say, well, we can move this person to next
year, and I says no,but Sally needs to be this year.
Then we'd have another name, andSally just kept coming up, and so
we started our research and I knowwhy. It is a blessing that you
are a part of iHeartMedia Chicago's Womenwho Win class of twenty twenty four,
(03:45):
and so that started our partnership relationship. And so as we were interviewing you
for that initiative, we listened toyour story. I told our team,
I said, she has a storyand we can't keep this. We need
to share this story. So Ithink the very same day as we were
in one of you and you forWomen who Win, we said, Sally,
we also need you for women Inspire. So thank you so much for
being here with us today. Butwhen I look at your background, it
(04:09):
just speaks of transformational leadership. Whatis at the root of that type of
leadership. Thank you. I amso honored. At the root is really
my upbringing. It starts at home. It starts with family. It starts
with parents who instilled core values ofdoing the right thing, being a good
(04:30):
person, working hard. It reallystarts there. And I always felt that
I could make a difference. Ididn't know in what way in my world
where this would lead me to,but I always felt that I had to
do something, mostly because of howhard my parents work to give me the
education and the opportunity. Even beforethat education, really was the opportunity to
(04:54):
come here, to live in Chicago, a big city, to be in
this country. I was born here, but they weren't. Well, my
mother wasn't. My dad technically wasborn in the United States. But again
I'm first generation. So I knowwhat a blessing it is to have the
opportunity, and so I just wantedto take advantage of that opportunity. It
came through education. They instilled theimportance of education with that honestly, with
(05:17):
high school that opened the world forme. Where I was growing up,
my elementary school, everybody in theneighborhood went to the same elementary school,
but I went to a magnet schoolfor high school, Whitney Young here in
Chicago, and that was the firsttime I was outside my bubble of my
block and I really got to meetpeople from all over the city, from
(05:38):
all different backgrounds, all different upbringings. And at that point, it wasn't
a question for anyone there are yougoing to go to college? It was
what college are you going to?And again I always knew I wanted to
go to school to college to hireed, but it was really there that
you start to feel like, Okay, I'm part of this and this is
what I'm going to do. Thengoing into college and you know, preparing
(06:00):
for the career that I'm in now. Really at the core, I believe
that journalism is a public service,So again you are serving a community.
And as I went, you know, from a producer to an executive producer,
to an assistant news director, toa news director to a senior vice
president, every place, in everyseat that I've sat in, I can
affect change. But as I've climbedthat ladder, the change is just at
(06:21):
a larger level. And I thinkall of those steps in my background and
all the cities that I've lived inthroughout the country have really given me the
opportunity to understand people. And regardlessI've learned of where you live, whether
it's the West Coast, the Eastcoast, the South, we all are
the same. At our core,we just really want, you know,
(06:44):
we want to provide for our families. We want a good life, we
want good health, and so weall, regardless of status, we share
that. And I take that andtry to bring it to work every day
in the stories that we tell,the stories we choose to tell, and
in the people I hire and howI manage people. And that is so
reflective. The one thing that impressedme the most when we first connected was
(07:08):
the family and the foundation of family. You at the heart and soul of
who you are goes back to yourfamily. And so, Sally, why
don't you tell us about this specialguests that we have in the studio with
us today. Yes, I havemy mother, Alice, She's eighty nine
years young. I'm so blessed tohave her. My dad passed away three
years ago this July, and Iwish you were here. And that's the
(07:30):
one thing my mom said today,Oh, I wish your dad could see
this and could be here. Forthis, but I know he's with me.
I carry him with me, youknow. If it wasn't for them
taking the risks of moving from Mexicointo the United States and then making the
truck from the border town of ElPaso to Chicago, where again my siblings
and I were born, because theywanted that opportunity, they wanted a better
(07:53):
life for us, I wouldn't bewhere I am today. And my dad
always always just do it, doit, you know, And I think
that's where I got that sense ofI'm not afraid to take a risk.
I'm not afraid to move anywhere I'vemoved, I wouldn't say I'm not one
hundred percent afraid. You've always gota little nerves, right, But I
always thought, what's the worst thatcan happen, what's the worst that can
(08:13):
happen? Like, I'll just gohome and fortunately for home, Like I
said, I've been blessed. Ihave a sister and two brothers, and
we all are very close knit,and we all were raised the same way.
Right that we just we do theright thing. We work hard.
I say this a lot, youhear a lot, but just be kind
(08:33):
and treat people with respect. Youknow, my grandmother always said that you
can be kind to anyone, Youcan speak to anyone no matter how they
are reacting or responding to you,that you can. We had an event
earlier today featuring Sally Ramirez, andso as we looked at your family and
your brother who was here, andyour daughter who just graduated from college,
(08:54):
congratulations, and knowing that you werein the midst of celebrating the twenty seventh
wedding anniversary. Just to see yourfamily around you, and not only your
physical family, but you're NBC five, Telemundo Chicago family that was here today,
it just really it just speaks volumes. But yet I hear you say
sometimes I shouldn't be here. Doyou wrestle with you know what they call
(09:18):
imposter syndrome from time to time.I absolutely do. I do you know
you mentioned the event earlier and Italked a little bit about this. I
have a great education. I graduatedfrom DePaul University, and it's a great
university. I was the first inmy family to graduate college. I mean
the first, like even extended cousinseverything. So it was new to me.
(09:39):
You know, I live in twoworlds, I say, right,
I live in this world that Igrew up in, which is you know,
not the high end downtown high riseCEO is mingling with those. It's
two very different worlds. I speakSpanish at home with my mom and then
I speak you know, corporate rightin our in our world, and so
(10:00):
I wrestle sometimes do I belong herebecause I at my core, I'm still
that little girl who grew up withyou know, an Hispanic household and a
bright red house that we lived in. It was bright brick red, and
I was even embarrassed back in theday. Right now, I'm just so
proud that at least we owned thathome and my dad was able to you
know, he paid cash for itand fixed it up. But it was
(10:24):
they gave us a home. Ihad a roof over our head, We
always had food in the fridge,and lots of love in all of those
walls. And I shared a bedroomwith my sister. We had one bathroom
for all of us. And youknow, now, you know, you
look back, You're like, that'sagain what made me who I am today.
And I'm really proud of my backgroundand where I come from and how
(10:46):
I will never forget that. It'severy day that imposter syndrome is because I
look in the mirror and I stillcan't believe I am where I am.
I still feel like, do theyknow where I come from? Do they
know where I've been? Especially becauseso much of my own family face discrimination
growing up, and I witnessed itand saw it and I have as well,
(11:09):
believe it or not. You know, sometimes people don't realize that I'm
Hispanic and speak Spanish, and becauseI could blend depending, some people think
I'm Middle East hear and some peoplethink I'm Italian. But I felt that
too, and I just choose toI think people are ignorant, you know,
they just don't know. And Ibelieve that my Angelo quote, when
you know better, you do better, and I always try and think that.
(11:31):
I'm like, you know what,they just don't know any better,
But if they know better, they'lldo better. So again I use my
position and my you know, whenI go out or introduce myself like then
they get to know me, andyou just learn to earn people's respect.
And that is really the key,is earning that respect. Your household sounds
like my household when I was growingup. I am proud of where I'm
(11:54):
from. And that is Louisville,Kentucky. As a matter of fact,
my vehicle tagts is Kentucky. Breadis all a part of who Angela is
today. Right, So every step, every move that you've taken from family
to professional, it comes full circle. Yeah, And so I think that
as leaders we must recognize that sometimeswe want to block out a certain part
(12:16):
of our life and it's oh yeah, yeah that you know, Yeah I
came from it and just keep itmoving. But you can't do that,
no, definitely. And you know, again, in our roles as leaders,
I try and make sure that myteam's my staff. I always say,
I know there's a big fancy titlebehind my name, but really I'm
just like you. I just havea lot more responsibility. But I'm just
(12:37):
like you. Ignore the title becausepeople are either afraid or they just see
who you are today. As we'vetalked about earlier in our conversation, you
know, they don't know what ittook to get here. They don't know
how hard you've worked, the challengesyou've faced, the failures we've had to
get to where we are today.But what I've learned now is just to
(12:58):
really, like, to your point, I'm so proud of where I come
from. I would not change onething, not one thing, because it
is It's made me who I amtoday, and I really think it's what
makes me a better leader because I'mmore compassionate. I understand. I don't
think I know it all. Youknow, I'm not one of those bosses,
and it's really important that you surroundyourself with good people. So you
(13:18):
are Chicago and through and through Iam. How did you make that transition
from Chicago to Texas, say,for instance, Yeah, so that was
my first job when I left Chicagowas back in Texas, and it was
really difficult because I'd only lived ina big metropolitan city. So it was
really really difficult initially. But atthe same time, once you get to
know people again, when you kindof come out from whatever you're doing and
(13:41):
you just relate to people, yourealize, like, we're all the same.
We're all the same. From thereto two sound the same thing,
right. It was like whoa,Now I'm going to New the desert and
it's all you know, I know, winters and whatnot. But then again
you realize we're all the same,and you know, moving on to DC
and the New York City area andthe West Coast. I always stay grounded.
(14:03):
I know who I am, andas long as you don't change who
you are, I think that you'lljust stay grounded. Don't change who you
are, don't change anything. Andin fact, even when taking a job,
I always remember people telling me we'rebringing you into our operation. Don't
become like everybody else here. Weactually are hiring you for you and what
you bring to the table. Wewant people to be more like you,
(14:24):
so you're gonna have to you know, again, that leads to the culture
change. The time, I didn'treally understand it right there, just like,
oh, we just want you tobe you. We just want you
to be you. Everything from howI dressed, how I talk, to
what I do it's very different.So again, as I moved up,
I realize it's culture. I'm affectingthe culture. There's one thing when I
really look at your list of awardsfive Edward R. Meryll Awards, which
(14:45):
is really the pinnacle award for ourindustry, for Emmy Awards, and something
you said to us a few monthsago, my awards don't define me.
What did you mean by that?I really don't like having my name on
awards, and honestly, I hadto have my name on those awards,
like most of them are on Houstonbecause of I was the news director,
and so they have to put thenews director's name on a lot of awards.
But they belong to the team,like I always say, they belong
(15:09):
to the team. There are acouple that I feel very strongly about that
mean a lot to me. Theymean a lot to me, and you
can order ones for yourself, butthey don't define me because most of us
in the journalism world, we don'tdo it for the awards. In fact,
you feel really bad sometimes because theawards come after a really big story
that wasn't usually a good story.It's something tragic, and so you feel
(15:33):
like this is weird. I'm gettingan award for some horrible event that we
covered. But at the same timeI try to think it's just again a
community service that we've provided. Theawards. I don't do it for the
awards. I don't need an awardto tell me if I've done good work
or not. I really look atmy team now and what they're reaching,
have they grown, where have Itaken them? Where do they go next?
(15:54):
You know, there's the whole thing, like where are the people that
you hired in your past? Whatare they doing now? I think that
speaks more than an award. ButI know the awards are important, and
I'm very honored when I do getan award, but those I can't do
by myself. It's a team award. So that's also why I always feel
guilty, like my names on it, and like, oh, it's really
the entire staff. I just tryand as a leader make it happen for
(16:17):
them, right, what do theyneed to go tell those stories and make
that coverage happen. Yeah, Butthe two that mean a lot to me
are the Hurricane Harvey ones because whenI was in Houston, Hurricane Harvey came
through and it wiped us off theair. Our building eventually was demolished.
It was a hazmad situation. Butwe had fifty plus inches of rain and
we are building our stationte stood formore than sixty years, was right along
(16:41):
the by you there in the Houstonarea, and this catastrophic hurricane came through
and knocked us off the air andwe were off the air for like seven
hours and flooded our building with fivefeet of water in our newsroom, and
so we had to hurry up andget out and we broadcast out of a
one room newsroom of our the PBSstation there for eighteen months, for eighteen
(17:03):
months, and during that time wecovered five national stories. You know,
both Bushes died, Barbara Bush andGeorge Bush. At the time, we
had a horrific school shooting, wehad the Houston Astros win a World Series
for the first time, and whilewe were covering carry as well. So
there was a lot that came outof that eighteen months. But again it's
(17:23):
like there was nothing. And Ilearned there that it's not the building that
makes the station, it's the people. So you don't need anything. Again,
relating into my personal life as well, I've been very fortunate, very
blessed. But in the end,you don't really need anything as long as
you've got the people by you whoare going to get you through it.
(17:45):
My personal side is my family professionallyare great teammates. Yeah, it is
about the people that you surround yourselfwith. No question. This new generation,
let's talk about that for a moment. What advice do you have for
the new generation of leaders such asJasmin b who is a producer of the
Women Inspire Chicago podcast. She's alsoa host to other podcasts as well as
(18:06):
on their talent. And she remindsme of what you said earlier, get
your foot in the door, doeverything you can humanly possible, and your
time will come. So what advicedo you have for Jasmine? Well,
that's it. I do think thattoday everybody's about know you're worth right,
know your worth. So you walkin the door and you're like, I
demand this amount of money this schedule. But the truth is that's great,
(18:27):
but professionally you got to earn that. And if you are willing to do
whatever it takes to get in thedoor to you know, if it's media
or wherever you want to go,and you work really hard. I'm just
personally a big believer and a strongwork ethic and just show up. You
just got to want it a littlemore than somebody else, because somebody else
is going to go, oh,I don't want to work that overnight shift.
(18:48):
I don't want to work weekends.But if you're like, I'll do
whatever, you might be on thatshift for a month and then you're moving
up. But somebody else is lookingat like, I'm not going to work
weekends because I'll be stuck there forever. But you're not. You just it's
it's it's your foot in that door. So take it, take whatever shift,
take whatever pay, because very quicklyyour value will go up. Well,
thank you. That was beautiful,and I do agree because I believe
(19:11):
that I am that person. I'ma big believer in work ethic too,
So I have my quote. SteveGutier once said, but beware of this
about callings. They may not leadus where we intended to go, or
even where we want to go.If we choose to follow, we may
have to be willing to let goof the life we already planned and accept
to whatever is waiting for us.And if the calling is true, though
(19:33):
we may not have gone where weintended, we will surely end up where
we need to be. Wow,that's the thing about callings. You'll get
there. Eventually, you will getthere, and you know, sometimes it's
not on our time, no God'stime. We just have to be patient.
And yeah, what is that Youmake plans and you hear God laughing.
Yes, yeah, you know Isay a lot because we trust,
(19:56):
we wait. Mm hmm oh,I love that. That is so true.
Well, Sally, as we startto wrap up what or who inspires
you again, I have to goback to family. It's my family,
my mother who I'm sitting here lookingat right now. You know, my
parents, what they did to ensurethat we had an opportunity and a bright
future. Me. They gave itall, you know, I can't.
(20:18):
They're so selfless. They gave itall for us, and I think that
is why I just in turn wantedto make sure and make them proud.
So everything that I've achieved has justbeen because I just wanted to make my
parents proud, you know, becauseI've been so inspired by what they've given
us, by what they've given us, which is just love, morals,
(20:40):
right, morals and values, andthey gave me the opportunity to dream and
dream big. Those are all thingsyou can't put a price tag on,
you really can't. Sally Ramirez,thank you so much for being with us
today and especially our first anniversary specialedition. I don't think we could have
had a better guess our paths acrossagain, we're partners now, we're family.
(21:02):
We are family. We are family, and so thank you so much
for being with us today. Thankyou, thank you, This has been
so special, not just for mebefore my family. So thank you for
this blessing. Thank you, It'sbeen a blessing to us as well.
Thanks for listening to the Women InspiredChicago podcast hosted by Angela Ingram, presented
by iHeartMedia Chicago, and produced byJasmine Bennett. Sponsored by pot Belly.
(21:26):
Feed your group from small to larchwith pot Belly catering. Pot Belly,
You've got to get it Hot.
Celebrating its first anniversary. I HeardMedia Chicago presents the Women Inspire Chicago podcast,
hosted by IHA Chicago's SVP of PublicEngagement, Angela Ingram and produced by
Chicago's Jasmine Bennetts. Angela hosts inspiringconversations with some in Chicago's top women executives,
and we are so grateful for ourpast guests that have joined us in
(00:20):
this first year. Sally Ramirez,Senior vice president of News NBC five Chicago
and Telemundo Chicago, join Angela forher first anniversary special edition episode. Check
it out and be inspired. SallyRamirez, Welcome to Women Inspire Chicago.
Today's a special day. This isthe first anniversary, so you are appearing
(00:45):
on a special edition. I'm honored. Thank you so much for having me.
Oh, you know, I feellike Oprah, but I don't have
the gifts. But it's just agreat day. Sally Ramirez is the senior
vice president of News for NBC fiveChicago and Telemundo SHO So, share a
little bit about your background with us. I am born and raised in the
city of Chicago, went to elementaryschool, high school, college, and
(01:08):
coming back to Chicago as a seniorvice president of News for NBC and Sanemundo.
Is a full circle moment for me, and that circle has been very
It's a large circle. Always knewI wanted to be a journalist since I
was a little girl. In thesecond grade, I started writing for the
school paper. You know, Igrew up in a very Irish Italian neighborhood.
(01:29):
We were only the second Hispanic familyto move into our block, the
others or my cousins who lived acrossthe street, So you know, it
was hard growing up and really everthinking I'd be able to realize the dream
that I have today, of thisgreat, great industry that I've been able
to work and contribute to. Aftercollege here, I went to to Paul
University in Chicago. I graduated andmoved to al Paso, Texas to get
(01:49):
my first start in TV. Iwas an associate producer there and that too
was sort of a special moment asI look back now. Because my parents,
who were immigrants from Mexico, theylived just across the border of El
Paso, Texas, and my motherwould cross into al Paso to clean houses.
She would later become a legal resident, but she would come over on
a work permit in clean houses inal Paso, which is the first market
(02:12):
that I ever got my job inthis business, so there's something there.
Right after al Paso, I movedto Tucson producing. I moved from Tucson
to Washington, d C. Madeit back to Chicago, where I worked
for WGNTV, which at that pointwas seen all over the country and even
in some other other countries. ThenI got married and moved out to Sacramento,
California, still in the producing world, executive producing. Then from Sacramento,
(02:36):
I moved to Portland. I'd gottenmarried in Sacramento, so I moved
to Portland, where I'd lived therefor eighteen years, went into higher management
there, then went to Houston.My company moved me to Houston as the
news director of KHOU, the CBSaffiliate there, and then after that I
went to the network. I workedto work for CNBC where I was the
executive producer of the news with ShepherdSmith. And then after that I came
(02:58):
back to Chicago for this big fullcircle moment where I work for NBC and
Telemundo. Congratulations, what a stellarcareer. So our paths crossed about i'd
say six months ago when we wereresearching for our Women who Win initiative that
we launch every year doing Women's HistoryMonth where we celebrate dynamic women leaders in
(03:20):
Chicago, and so your name justkept popping up. It just kept popping
up, kept popping up, andwe would meet and we would look at
our list and we say, well, we can move this person to next
year, and I says no,but Sally needs to be this year.
Then we'd have another name, andSally just kept coming up, and so
we started our research and I knowwhy. It is a blessing that you
are a part of iHeartMedia Chicago's Womenwho Win class of twenty twenty four,
(03:45):
and so that started our partnership relationship. And so as we were interviewing you
for that initiative, we listened toyour story. I told our team,
I said, she has a storyand we can't keep this. We need
to share this story. So Ithink the very same day as we were
in one of you and you forWomen who Win, we said, Sally,
we also need you for women Inspire. So thank you so much for
being here with us today. Butwhen I look at your background, it
(04:09):
just speaks of transformational leadership. Whatis at the root of that type of
leadership. Thank you. I amso honored. At the root is really
my upbringing. It starts at home. It starts with family. It starts
with parents who instilled core values ofdoing the right thing, being a good
(04:30):
person, working hard. It reallystarts there. And I always felt that
I could make a difference. Ididn't know in what way in my world
where this would lead me to,but I always felt that I had to
do something, mostly because of howhard my parents work to give me the
education and the opportunity. Even beforethat education, really was the opportunity to
(04:54):
come here, to live in Chicago, a big city, to be in
this country. I was born here, but they weren't. Well, my
mother wasn't. My dad technically wasborn in the United States. But again
I'm first generation. So I knowwhat a blessing it is to have the
opportunity, and so I just wantedto take advantage of that opportunity. It
came through education. They instilled theimportance of education with that honestly, with
(05:17):
high school that opened the world forme. Where I was growing up,
my elementary school, everybody in theneighborhood went to the same elementary school,
but I went to a magnet schoolfor high school, Whitney Young here in
Chicago, and that was the firsttime I was outside my bubble of my
block and I really got to meetpeople from all over the city, from
(05:38):
all different backgrounds, all different upbringings. And at that point, it wasn't
a question for anyone there are yougoing to go to college? It was
what college are you going to?And again I always knew I wanted to
go to school to college to hireed, but it was really there that
you start to feel like, Okay, I'm part of this and this is
what I'm going to do. Thengoing into college and you know, preparing
(06:00):
for the career that I'm in now. Really at the core, I believe
that journalism is a public service,So again you are serving a community.
And as I went, you know, from a producer to an executive producer,
to an assistant news director, toa news director to a senior vice
president, every place, in everyseat that I've sat in, I can
affect change. But as I've climbedthat ladder, the change is just at
(06:21):
a larger level. And I thinkall of those steps in my background and
all the cities that I've lived inthroughout the country have really given me the
opportunity to understand people. And regardlessI've learned of where you live, whether
it's the West Coast, the Eastcoast, the South, we all are
the same. At our core,we just really want, you know,
(06:44):
we want to provide for our families. We want a good life, we
want good health, and so weall, regardless of status, we share
that. And I take that andtry to bring it to work every day
in the stories that we tell,the stories we choose to tell, and
in the people I hire and howI manage people. And that is so
reflective. The one thing that impressedme the most when we first connected was
(07:08):
the family and the foundation of family. You at the heart and soul of
who you are goes back to yourfamily. And so, Sally, why
don't you tell us about this specialguests that we have in the studio with
us today. Yes, I havemy mother, Alice, She's eighty nine
years young. I'm so blessed tohave her. My dad passed away three
years ago this July, and Iwish you were here. And that's the
(07:30):
one thing my mom said today,Oh, I wish your dad could see
this and could be here. Forthis, but I know he's with me.
I carry him with me, youknow. If it wasn't for them
taking the risks of moving from Mexicointo the United States and then making the
truck from the border town of ElPaso to Chicago, where again my siblings
and I were born, because theywanted that opportunity, they wanted a better
(07:53):
life for us, I wouldn't bewhere I am today. And my dad
always always just do it, doit, you know, And I think
that's where I got that sense ofI'm not afraid to take a risk.
I'm not afraid to move anywhere I'vemoved, I wouldn't say I'm not one
hundred percent afraid. You've always gota little nerves, right, But I
always thought, what's the worst thatcan happen, what's the worst that can
(08:13):
happen? Like, I'll just gohome and fortunately for home, Like I
said, I've been blessed. Ihave a sister and two brothers, and
we all are very close knit,and we all were raised the same way.
Right that we just we do theright thing. We work hard.
I say this a lot, youhear a lot, but just be kind
(08:33):
and treat people with respect. Youknow, my grandmother always said that you
can be kind to anyone, Youcan speak to anyone no matter how they
are reacting or responding to you,that you can. We had an event
earlier today featuring Sally Ramirez, andso as we looked at your family and
your brother who was here, andyour daughter who just graduated from college,
(08:54):
congratulations, and knowing that you werein the midst of celebrating the twenty seventh
wedding anniversary. Just to see yourfamily around you, and not only your
physical family, but you're NBC five, Telemundo Chicago family that was here today,
it just really it just speaks volumes. But yet I hear you say
sometimes I shouldn't be here. Doyou wrestle with you know what they call
(09:18):
imposter syndrome from time to time.I absolutely do. I do you know
you mentioned the event earlier and Italked a little bit about this. I
have a great education. I graduatedfrom DePaul University, and it's a great
university. I was the first inmy family to graduate college. I mean
the first, like even extended cousinseverything. So it was new to me.
(09:39):
You know, I live in twoworlds, I say, right,
I live in this world that Igrew up in, which is you know,
not the high end downtown high riseCEO is mingling with those. It's
two very different worlds. I speakSpanish at home with my mom and then
I speak you know, corporate rightin our in our world, and so
(10:00):
I wrestle sometimes do I belong herebecause I at my core, I'm still
that little girl who grew up withyou know, an Hispanic household and a
bright red house that we lived in. It was bright brick red, and
I was even embarrassed back in theday. Right now, I'm just so
proud that at least we owned thathome and my dad was able to you
know, he paid cash for itand fixed it up. But it was
(10:24):
they gave us a home. Ihad a roof over our head, We
always had food in the fridge,and lots of love in all of those
walls. And I shared a bedroomwith my sister. We had one bathroom
for all of us. And youknow, now, you know, you
look back, You're like, that'sagain what made me who I am today.
And I'm really proud of my backgroundand where I come from and how
(10:46):
I will never forget that. It'severy day that imposter syndrome is because I
look in the mirror and I stillcan't believe I am where I am.
I still feel like, do theyknow where I come from? Do they
know where I've been? Especially becauseso much of my own family face discrimination
growing up, and I witnessed itand saw it and I have as well,
(11:09):
believe it or not. You know, sometimes people don't realize that I'm
Hispanic and speak Spanish, and becauseI could blend depending, some people think
I'm Middle East hear and some peoplethink I'm Italian. But I felt that
too, and I just choose toI think people are ignorant, you know,
they just don't know. And Ibelieve that my Angelo quote, when
you know better, you do better, and I always try and think that.
(11:31):
I'm like, you know what,they just don't know any better,
But if they know better, they'lldo better. So again I use my
position and my you know, whenI go out or introduce myself like then
they get to know me, andyou just learn to earn people's respect.
And that is really the key,is earning that respect. Your household sounds
like my household when I was growingup. I am proud of where I'm
(11:54):
from. And that is Louisville,Kentucky. As a matter of fact,
my vehicle tagts is Kentucky. Breadis all a part of who Angela is
today. Right, So every step, every move that you've taken from family
to professional, it comes full circle. Yeah, And so I think that
as leaders we must recognize that sometimeswe want to block out a certain part
(12:16):
of our life and it's oh yeah, yeah that you know, Yeah I
came from it and just keep itmoving. But you can't do that,
no, definitely. And you know, again, in our roles as leaders,
I try and make sure that myteam's my staff. I always say,
I know there's a big fancy titlebehind my name, but really I'm
just like you. I just havea lot more responsibility. But I'm just
(12:37):
like you. Ignore the title becausepeople are either afraid or they just see
who you are today. As we'vetalked about earlier in our conversation, you
know, they don't know what ittook to get here. They don't know
how hard you've worked, the challengesyou've faced, the failures we've had to
get to where we are today.But what I've learned now is just to
(12:58):
really, like, to your point, I'm so proud of where I come
from. I would not change onething, not one thing, because it
is It's made me who I amtoday, and I really think it's what
makes me a better leader because I'mmore compassionate. I understand. I don't
think I know it all. Youknow, I'm not one of those bosses,
and it's really important that you surroundyourself with good people. So you
(13:18):
are Chicago and through and through Iam. How did you make that transition
from Chicago to Texas, say,for instance, Yeah, so that was
my first job when I left Chicagowas back in Texas, and it was
really difficult because I'd only lived ina big metropolitan city. So it was
really really difficult initially. But atthe same time, once you get to
know people again, when you kindof come out from whatever you're doing and
(13:41):
you just relate to people, yourealize, like, we're all the same.
We're all the same. From thereto two sound the same thing,
right. It was like whoa,Now I'm going to New the desert and
it's all you know, I know, winters and whatnot. But then again
you realize we're all the same,and you know, moving on to DC
and the New York City area andthe West Coast. I always stay grounded.
(14:03):
I know who I am, andas long as you don't change who
you are, I think that you'lljust stay grounded. Don't change who you
are, don't change anything. Andin fact, even when taking a job,
I always remember people telling me we'rebringing you into our operation. Don't
become like everybody else here. Weactually are hiring you for you and what
you bring to the table. Wewant people to be more like you,
(14:24):
so you're gonna have to you know, again, that leads to the culture
change. The time, I didn'treally understand it right there, just like,
oh, we just want you tobe you. We just want you
to be you. Everything from howI dressed, how I talk, to
what I do it's very different.So again, as I moved up,
I realize it's culture. I'm affectingthe culture. There's one thing when I
really look at your list of awardsfive Edward R. Meryll Awards, which
(14:45):
is really the pinnacle award for ourindustry, for Emmy Awards, and something
you said to us a few monthsago, my awards don't define me.
What did you mean by that?I really don't like having my name on
awards, and honestly, I hadto have my name on those awards,
like most of them are on Houstonbecause of I was the news director,
and so they have to put thenews director's name on a lot of awards.
But they belong to the team,like I always say, they belong
(15:09):
to the team. There are acouple that I feel very strongly about that
mean a lot to me. Theymean a lot to me, and you
can order ones for yourself, butthey don't define me because most of us
in the journalism world, we don'tdo it for the awards. In fact,
you feel really bad sometimes because theawards come after a really big story
that wasn't usually a good story.It's something tragic, and so you feel
(15:33):
like this is weird. I'm gettingan award for some horrible event that we
covered. But at the same timeI try to think it's just again a
community service that we've provided. Theawards. I don't do it for the
awards. I don't need an awardto tell me if I've done good work
or not. I really look atmy team now and what they're reaching,
have they grown, where have Itaken them? Where do they go next?
(15:54):
You know, there's the whole thing, like where are the people that
you hired in your past? Whatare they doing now? I think that
speaks more than an award. ButI know the awards are important, and
I'm very honored when I do getan award, but those I can't do
by myself. It's a team award. So that's also why I always feel
guilty, like my names on it, and like, oh, it's really
the entire staff. I just tryand as a leader make it happen for
(16:17):
them, right, what do theyneed to go tell those stories and make
that coverage happen. Yeah, Butthe two that mean a lot to me
are the Hurricane Harvey ones because whenI was in Houston, Hurricane Harvey came
through and it wiped us off theair. Our building eventually was demolished.
It was a hazmad situation. Butwe had fifty plus inches of rain and
we are building our stationte stood formore than sixty years, was right along
(16:41):
the by you there in the Houstonarea, and this catastrophic hurricane came through
and knocked us off the air andwe were off the air for like seven
hours and flooded our building with fivefeet of water in our newsroom, and
so we had to hurry up andget out and we broadcast out of a
one room newsroom of our the PBSstation there for eighteen months, for eighteen
(17:03):
months, and during that time wecovered five national stories. You know,
both Bushes died, Barbara Bush andGeorge Bush. At the time, we
had a horrific school shooting, wehad the Houston Astros win a World Series
for the first time, and whilewe were covering carry as well. So
there was a lot that came outof that eighteen months. But again it's
(17:23):
like there was nothing. And Ilearned there that it's not the building that
makes the station, it's the people. So you don't need anything. Again,
relating into my personal life as well, I've been very fortunate, very
blessed. But in the end,you don't really need anything as long as
you've got the people by you whoare going to get you through it.
(17:45):
My personal side is my family professionallyare great teammates. Yeah, it is
about the people that you surround yourselfwith. No question. This new generation,
let's talk about that for a moment. What advice do you have for
the new generation of leaders such asJasmin b who is a producer of the
Women Inspire Chicago podcast. She's alsoa host to other podcasts as well as
(18:06):
on their talent. And she remindsme of what you said earlier, get
your foot in the door, doeverything you can humanly possible, and your
time will come. So what advicedo you have for Jasmine? Well,
that's it. I do think thattoday everybody's about know you're worth right,
know your worth. So you walkin the door and you're like, I
demand this amount of money this schedule. But the truth is that's great,
(18:27):
but professionally you got to earn that. And if you are willing to do
whatever it takes to get in thedoor to you know, if it's media
or wherever you want to go,and you work really hard. I'm just
personally a big believer and a strongwork ethic and just show up. You
just got to want it a littlemore than somebody else, because somebody else
is going to go, oh,I don't want to work that overnight shift.
(18:48):
I don't want to work weekends.But if you're like, I'll do
whatever, you might be on thatshift for a month and then you're moving
up. But somebody else is lookingat like, I'm not going to work
weekends because I'll be stuck there forever. But you're not. You just it's
it's it's your foot in that door. So take it, take whatever shift,
take whatever pay, because very quicklyyour value will go up. Well,
thank you. That was beautiful,and I do agree because I believe
(19:11):
that I am that person. I'ma big believer in work ethic too,
So I have my quote. SteveGutier once said, but beware of this
about callings. They may not leadus where we intended to go, or
even where we want to go.If we choose to follow, we may
have to be willing to let goof the life we already planned and accept
to whatever is waiting for us.And if the calling is true, though
(19:33):
we may not have gone where weintended, we will surely end up where
we need to be. Wow,that's the thing about callings. You'll get
there. Eventually, you will getthere, and you know, sometimes it's
not on our time, no God'stime. We just have to be patient.
And yeah, what is that Youmake plans and you hear God laughing.
Yes, yeah, you know Isay a lot because we trust,
(19:56):
we wait. Mm hmm oh,I love that. That is so true.
Well, Sally, as we startto wrap up what or who inspires
you again, I have to goback to family. It's my family,
my mother who I'm sitting here lookingat right now. You know, my
parents, what they did to ensurethat we had an opportunity and a bright
future. Me. They gave itall, you know, I can't.
(20:18):
They're so selfless. They gave itall for us, and I think that
is why I just in turn wantedto make sure and make them proud.
So everything that I've achieved has justbeen because I just wanted to make my
parents proud, you know, becauseI've been so inspired by what they've given
us, by what they've given us, which is just love, morals,
(20:40):
right, morals and values, andthey gave me the opportunity to dream and
dream big. Those are all thingsyou can't put a price tag on,
you really can't. Sally Ramirez,thank you so much for being with us
today and especially our first anniversary specialedition. I don't think we could have
had a better guess our paths acrossagain, we're partners now, we're family.
(21:02):
We are family. We are family, and so thank you so much
for being with us today. Thankyou, thank you, This has been
so special, not just for mebefore my family. So thank you for
this blessing. Thank you, It'sbeen a blessing to us as well.
Thanks for listening to the Women InspiredChicago podcast hosted by Angela Ingram, presented
by iHeartMedia Chicago, and produced byJasmine Bennett. Sponsored by pot Belly.
(21:26):
Feed your group from small to larchwith pot Belly catering. Pot Belly,
You've got to get it Hot.
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