Dig In Chicago! Local gardening and cooking on TV (starts Saturday, 10:00 AM)

[Debbie Hillman]

Hi, all --

I just wanted to give you a heads-up that the long-time voice of Midwest local foods -- Mike Nowak -- is now on TV.

First Dig in Chicago show is tomorrow, Saturday, April 2, 10:00 AM.   

It's a Comcast cable show that can also be watched on-line at:   http://www.mydiginchicago.com/

Attached is Mike's announcement with lots of other details and information, including information about his Sunday morning radio show.    You can probably read everything about Mike's many and wide-ranging interviews and activities at:

www.mikenowak.net

Mike says he's open to suggestions for future TV segments (as well as ideas for radio segments).   Dig in Chicago is the 3rd of a national "chain" of local gardening and cooking shows.    As we all know, sometimes top-down intentions don't always translate to real local flavor.   I know Mike is going to be sensitive to that.   Ultimately it might come down to how many local advertising dollars can be brought into the mix.

Chicago as part of Illinois, as part of the Midwest foodshed.  As always (from my point of view), it's very important for anything that talks about "Chicago and food" to highlight the connections the rest of Illinois and to the rest of the Midwest.   Mike is a real Midwesterner -- from Detroit, has lived many years in Chicago, does speaking engagements all around the Midwest.   

Please consider this a gentle rabble-rousing:  If you are in another part of Illinois or the Midwest and sell into the Chicago-area market (or have other economic connections with people in the Chicago metro area), let Mike know that you're parpt of the Chicago gardening and cooking scene.   And let Blaine Howerton and Nick Arnold know.  They are the producers of the Dig in series,  It's not too early to make sure that a "local" show is truly local, in all its manifestations and connections.   I'm sure they'd also be interested in potential advertisers.   And Chicago viewers are definitely interested in reclaiming knowledge and awareness about their home state and regional foodshed.

Here's contact information if you have any suggestions about (1) future show segments, and (2) potential advertisers:

Mike Nowak:  mi...@mikenowak.net

Blaine Howerton and Nick Arnold

Yellow Gal HD TV

2875 S. Tejon St

Englewood, CO 80110

Phone:  720-255-1640

Website comment:  http://www.yghdtv.com/contact-us/

-- Debbie

Debbie Hillman

847/328-7175

DLHi...@sbcglobal.net

http://about.me/debbiehillman

Evanston Food Council   (co-founder and chairperson)

Illinois Local Food and Farms Coalition   (co-founder)

Illinois Local Food, Farms, and Jobs Council   (co-founder)

Cook County Food System Steering Committee (member)

From: Mike Nowak <mi...@mikenowak.net>

Date: April 19, 2012 5:30:13 PM CDT

To: dlhi...@sbcglobal.net

Subject: Local gardening and cooking on TV: It's Dig In Chicago!

Reply-To: mi...@mikenowak.net

Why Are These People Smiling? Dig In Chicago premieres on TV this week!       April 19, 2012    Dig In Chicago  Comcast Channel 102 Saturdays at 10 a.m. Like Dig In Chicago on Facebook! and don't forget... The Mike Nowak Show 9 to 11am CDT every Sunday morning on 92.5 FM (West), 92.7 FM (North), 99.9 FM(South), and as WCPT 820 AM. And, from www.mikenowak.net, you can get live streaming or podcasts.   Mike's Quick Links Mike's Website Chicago's Progressive Talk Rick DiMaio Weather Chicagoland Gardening Magazine Some sites that have caught my attention: The Plant  (hint: it's not what you think it is) The Cook County, Illinois Coyote Project  Dr. Wally's Gardening Tips    Thanks to for sponsoring this newsletter Click here to visit their website. Dear Debbie, Just a few months ago a guy called from Denver and said, "Hey, Mike, you wanna host a gardening show on television?" I coolly replied, "Sure. Why not?" Then I called Jennifer Brennan and said, "Oh. My. God. I'm gonna be on TV! You wanna help?" And the rest, as they say, is history. Dig In Chicago, a show about Chicagoland's local gardens, local food, and local issues will premiere on Saturday, April 21st, at 10:00am on Comcast Channel 102. (For those of you who don't have Comcast, it will also be available to view at the Dig In Chicago website.) Some of you know me from The Mike Nowak Show on Chicago's Progressive Talk and many of you know Jennifer, who has been talking to Tracy Butler on ABC 7 News This Morning for 16 years. She is also horticulture information specialist at Chalet in Wilmette. In the first few episodes, we'll be visiting some of Chicago's great gardens, including the Lurie Garden at Millennium Park, the campus of the Shedd Aquarium, and the new Edible Treasures Garden at the Field Museum. Along the way, we'll be getting gardening wisdom from horticultural experts Jennifer Davit, Roy Diblik, Christine Nye, LaManda Joy and Diane Ott Whealy. We also score cooking tips in the kitchens of Tavern at the Park in Millennium Park and La Encantada on North Avenue in Humbolt Park. We took a lot of photos during our first marathon three day shoot in early April and you can see some of the results at http://www.mikenowak.net/DigIn.htm.  By the way, the guy who called from Denver is Blaine Howerton, the executive producer of Dig In. We're the third market that Blaine and partner Nick Arnold have conquered on their way to horticultural domination in America. You can link here for to see Dig In Colorado and Dig In Dallas/Ft. Worth.  That's it for now, folks... Now that you can watch me on Dig In Chicago on Saturday mornings at 10am and listen to me on The Mike Nowak Show on Sunday mornings at 9am...I've pretty much taken over your weekends. It's all in the name of greening the planet. If you want to thank me--or complain--write to me at mi...@mikenowak.net. Go green or go home.      Sincerely, Mike Nowak    Sign up HERE for Mike's Newsletter (I promise I won't clutter your inbox)