Linda Yu facts for kids

Linda Yu is a famous Chinese-American former news anchor and author. She is best known 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 amazing work in broadcasting, Linda Yu won five local Emmy Awards. One of these awards was for her report about what happened after the events of 9/11 in 2001. In 1984, she also received a National Gold Medal for her documentary, "The Scars of Belfast."

About Linda Yu

Her Early Life and Schooling

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 she first arrived in the U.S., Linda only spoke Mandarin. She knew only two English words: "hello" and "thank you."

Her family lived in Pennsylvania for four years and Indiana for two years. They finally settled in California when Linda was 12 years old. Linda Yu studied journalism at the University of Southern California. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in 1968.

Her Career in News

Linda Yu started her career in broadcasting in 1970. She worked as a writer and producer for KTLA-TV in Los Angeles. Later, she became a writer for 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, Linda moved back to California. She got a job as a general assignment reporter and back-up anchor for KGO-TV in San Francisco. She worked there until 1979. In August 1977, a news report by Linda Yu helped create a new state law. This law aimed to protect people from drivers who did not 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, Linda 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 on March 30, 1981. She received another Emmy award the next year. This was for her report on a construction accident in downtown Chicago's Loop area.

In November 1983, Linda Yu became unhappy with the management at WMAQ-TV. She left the station in March 1984 after five years. In April 1984, Linda 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 11:30 AM newscast with Sylvia Perez. This started in 1992. In 1987, Linda won another Emmy for outstanding news coverage. 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 was retiring from WLS-TV. She retired from TV news after 46 years in the business. She had worked 37 of those years in Chicago. Linda Yu's last news broadcast was on November 23 at 4 PM. Earlier that day, a show called Windy City Live (an ABC 7 program) honored her. Her friends, family, and co-workers celebrated her career and her contributions to the city.

Linda Yu's Personal Life

Linda Yu married Dr. Richard Baer, a psychiatrist, on June 12, 1982. Their wedding was at St. James Cathedral in Chicago. Soon after their wedding, Linda and Richard were in a car accident during their honeymoon in southern France. Richard had to go to the hospital because of a mild concussion.

Linda Yu has two children. Her son, Ricky, was born in July 1985. Her daughter, Francesca, was born in February 1989. Linda and Richard divorced in 1996. In January 2014, Linda broke her leg in a car accident.