Linda Yu facts for kids

Linda Yu (born December 1, 1946) is a Chinese-American who used to be a news anchor and author. She is famous for being a co-anchor on the Eyewitness newscast for WLS-TV in Chicago. She worked there from April 1984 until November 2016.

Linda Yu made history as Chicago's first Asian-American broadcast journalist. She started her news career in Chicago at WMAQ-TV in 1979. For her excellent work, Linda Yu won five local Emmy Awards. One award was for her report about what happened after 9/11 in 2001. In 1984, she also received a National Gold Medal for her documentary called "The Scars of Belfast".

About Linda Yu

Early Life and Education

Linda Yu was born in Xian, China. When she was three years old, her family moved to Hong Kong. In 1951, they moved to the United States.

When Linda first arrived in the U.S., she only knew two English words: "hello" and "thank you." She spoke only Mandarin. Her family lived in Pennsylvania for four years and Indiana for two years. They finally settled in California when Linda was 12. She graduated from the University of Southern California in 1968. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism.

Her Career in News

Linda Yu started her broadcasting career in 1970. She worked as a writer and producer for KTLA-TV in Los Angeles. Later, she wrote for ABC O&O KABC-TV, also in Los Angeles.

In early 1975, Linda moved to Portland, Oregon. She worked briefly as a reporter for KATU-TV. After a few months, she moved back to California. She got a job as a general assignment reporter and back-up anchor for ABC O&O KGO-TV in San Francisco. She worked there until 1979. In August 1977, a news report she did helped create a new state law. This law protected people from drivers who didn't have insurance.

Linda Yu moved to Chicago in early 1979. She started working at NBC's WMAQ-TV in June of that year. She began as a general assignment reporter and weekend co-anchor. By February 1980, she became a co-anchor for the 4:30 PM and 10 PM newscasts. She worked alongside Ron Magers.

In May 1981, Linda Yu won an Emmy award. This was for a special newscast about the attempt to harm President Ronald Reagan. She received another Emmy award the next year. This was for her report on a construction accident in downtown Chicago's Loop.

In November 1983, Linda Yu became unhappy with WMAQ-TV's management. She left the station in March 1984 after five years. In April 1984, she joined WLS-TV (ABC 7 Chicago). She became a co-anchor for the station's 4 PM newscast. She mostly worked with news anchor Joel Daly until he retired in 2005.

Linda Yu also co-anchored the 30-minute 11:30 AM newscast. She worked with Sylvia Perez starting in 1992. This newscast later became an hour long at 11 AM. It was canceled in 2013. In 1987, Linda Yu won another Emmy. This was for excellent achievement in a regular news program. Linda Yu and Sylvia Perez were the first women in Chicago to co-anchor a newscast together.

Retirement from News

On September 6, 2016, Linda Yu announced she would retire from WLS-TV. She retired from TV news after 46 years in the business. She had worked 37 years in the Chicago area. Her last news broadcast was on November 23 at 4 PM. Earlier that day, "Windy City Live," an ABC 7 show, aired a special tribute to Linda Yu. Her friends, family, and co-workers celebrated her career and her contributions to Chicago.

Personal Life

Linda Yu married Dr. Richard Baer, a psychiatrist, on June 12, 1982. They got married at St. James Cathedral in Chicago. Linda Yu has two children. Her son, Ricky, was born in July 1985. Her daughter, Francesca, was born in February 1989.