Jennifer Graves

Jennifer L. Graves has been at the helm of Chicago’s top-rated news organization since October 2001, when she was promoted to the position of Vice President of News,    ABC 7 Eyewitness News.  Under her leadership, ABC 7 has been Chicago’s choice for news, claiming more top-rated newscasts than any other station in the market.

In her role as Vice President of News, Graves directs the station’s 24/7 news coverage for all on-air and digital platforms.  She oversees everything from breaking news and major event coverage to political debates, half-hour news specials and day-to-day news planning. She manages more than 100 employees. During her tenure, ABC 7 Eyewitness News has been honored for excellence with numerous awards including Associated Press, local Emmy and Peter Lisagor Awards, as well as a National Emmy Award for investigative news reporting and numerous Illinois Broadcasters Association Awards.

Graves has been a major contributor to the station’s cutting edge technological advances including the recent installation of ABC 7’s state-of-the art news set, an all-digital newsroom, High Definition news and the development of the historic broadcast facility, the State Street Studio.

From 1998 to 2001, Graves was the Assistant News Director at ABC 7.  She joined the station in 1992 as an executive news producer.

Before joining ABC 7, Graves was at WAGA-TV News in Atlanta, Georgia, from 1988-1992, where she was promoted from news producer to executive producer.  Prior to that, she worked as a producer and assignment editor at KSDK-TV in St. Louis, Missouri.

Graves is a member of the Radio Television Digital News Association and The Chicago Network, a women’s business leadership organization.

She graduated from the University of Missouri-Columbia with a Bachelor of Journalism degree.

Graves lives with her husband and twin daughters in the north suburbs.