Alum Rick Sallinger inducted into National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Silver Circle

Rick Sallinger (BS ’71, MS ’72, advertising) was inducted into the Heartland Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Silver Circle.

The Silver Circle honors media professionals who have contributed 25 years or more to the television industry, and who also have made a meaningful and significant contribution to broadcasting and/or new media. 

Sallinger, who worked at WPGU from 1967-71 as an announcer, music and program director. He was inducted into the Illini Media Hall of Fame in 2022.

After working as a radio reporter in Cleveland and Chicago, Sallinger moved on to television news working at stations in Indianapolis, Denver, and Chicago.

In 1990, Sallinger became a foreign war correspondent for CNN based in London covering events like the Gulf War, the war in Yugoslavia, and the reunification of Germany.

He settled in Colorado, joining KCNC-TV, a CBS affiliate in Denver, in 1993 where he continues to work today. (Update: He retired in December 2023.) 

Sallinger has covered nearly every major Colorado story in recent years including the Columbine High School shootings, the Oklahoma City bombing trials, and the murder of JonBenet Ramsey. In 2005, Sallinger won the George Foster Peabody Award for a series he did on Army recruiting.

This video from CBS Denver highlights Sallinger’s career and recent honor:

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