Steve Edwards

Steve Edwards, vice president and chief content officer at WBEZ, has spent nearly 20 years as an award-winning journalist, producer and program host. Covering everything from politics to pop culture, his work has appeared on BBC, Bloomberg News, PBS and numerous public radio stations around the United States.

A native of Kansas City, Edwards was a Knight-Wallace Fellow at the University of Michigan and earned his undergraduate degree in political science from Amherst College. Edwards worked at WBEZ Chicago for 14 years before leaving in 2012 to join the University of Chicago’s Institute of Politics.

During his tenure at WBEZ, Edwards also served as the host of two acclaimed daily news and culture programs, “The Afternoon Shift” and “Eight Forty-Eight.” Edwards also led the station’s digital and multimedia content efforts, hosted a weekly political show, and was the correspondent for a BBC World Service documentary on the culture of political corruption in Chicago.

Edwards worked closely with the University of Chicago’s Institute of Politics, an organization for students interested in public-service careers. The nonpartisan institute is led by former White House Senior Advisor David Axelrod. Edwards began as a deputy director, transitioning to executive director in 2013. He oversaw the institute’s programs and staff, managed its grants and fundraising, and built strategic partnerships with other units of the University and outside organizations.

After four years of work, Edwards left the Institute of Politics in 2017. He returned to or WBEZ as Vice President and Chief Content Officer, viewing the new role as an opportunity to continue to advance the IOP’s public service mission.

Edwards stepped up at the Interim CEO of WBEZ in September of 2019 after outgoing CEO Goli Sheikholeslami left for New York Public Radio.