Feder: Emanuel wouldn't be first Chicago mayor to turn TV pundit

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel's appearance on "This Week with George Stephanopoulos" Sunday stirred up speculation that he's shopping around for a new job in television news when he leaves City Hall in May, Robert Feder writes.

For now, the North Side Democrat, who also served as a U.S. congressman and President Barack Obama's chief of staff, isn't commenting on his plans. ("Don't worry about my future, because I'm very focused on the city's future," he told the Chicago Tribune.) But Emanuel wouldn't be the city's first former mayor to try his hand as a TV pundit.

Nearly 30 years ago, Jane Byrne, the only woman to serve as mayor of Chicago, signed on as a paid political analyst for WBBM-Channel 2. In 1989 the CBS-owned station hired her for $40,000 to make up to 10 appearances on the air. Byrne was represented by Don Ephraim, the Chicago superagent, whose client list included such TV heavyweights as Bill Kurtis, John Drury, Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert.

Get the full report and more Chicago media news at robertfeder.com.