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Larry Potash (American Journalist)
Larry Potash, born on May 2, 1967, in Lynn, Massachusetts, is 58 years old and is one of the most recognized morning news anchors in American television. A broadcast journalist with more than three decades of experience, Potash joined WGN-TV in Chicago in August 1994 and became the anchor of WGN Morning News in 1995 — just one year after the show’s inception. In the years since, he has rarely left that chair, building a tenure that makes him one of the longest-serving morning anchors in Chicago television history.
Potash grew up in the Greater Boston area and earned his Bachelor of Science in Mass Communications and Broadcast Journalism from Emerson College in Boston in 1989. After graduating, he worked his way through the classic small-market pipeline of American broadcast journalism, anchoring and reporting at stations in Longview, Texas; Evansville, Indiana; and Tulsa, Oklahoma before WGN-TV brought him to Chicago. Within a year of his arrival, he was named anchor of the newly launched WGN Morning News — a show that has consistently ranked first in Chicago morning ratings for well over a decade.
Over the course of his career, Potash has earned 21 Emmy Awards, including multiple wins for Best Anchor and a 2023 win for Outstanding Achievement in Investigative Series. The Illinois Broadcasters Association has honored him with 14 Silver Dome Awards, and in 2023 he received the Regional Edward R. Murrow Award for News Documentary — one of the most prestigious recognitions in American broadcast journalism. In October 2018, WGN-TV launched “Backstory with Larry Potash,” a documentary-style special series in which Potash investigates compelling stories rooted in history, culture, religion, and science from Chicago and beyond. The series airs as specials throughout the year and is available on the WGN+ streaming app.
Beyond his anchor role, Potash has long been known for his intellectual curiosity and his signature recurring feature, “Larry’s World,” which explores offbeat and lesser-known facts behind pop culture and television news. In August 2024, he marked 30 years at WGN-TV — a milestone his wife Lisa and their two daughters, Kaylin and Mallory, celebrated by surprising him live on the WGN Morning News set.
| Full Name | Lawrence “Larry” Potash |
| Date of Birth | May 2, 1967 |
| Age | 58 years old |
| Place of Birth | Lynn, Massachusetts, United States |
| Nationality | American |
| Ethnicity | White |
| Religion | Not publicly confirmed |
| Zodiac Sign | Taurus |
| Profession | Journalist, News Anchor, Television Host |
| Employer | WGN-TV (Nexstar Media Group), Chicago, Illinois |
| Education | Bachelor of Science in Mass Communications and Broadcast Journalism, Emerson College, Boston — 1989 |
| Career Start | KLMG-TV, Longview, Texas (Reporter and Anchor) |
| Previous Stations | KLMG-TV (Longview, TX) → WFIE-TV (Evansville, IN) → KOTV-TV (Tulsa, OK) |
| Joined WGN-TV | August 1994 |
| Current Role | Co-Anchor, WGN Morning News (6–10 a.m.); Host, Backstory with Larry Potash |
| Years at WGN | 30+ years (1994–present) |
| Marital Status | Married |
| Spouse | Lisa Potash (licensed Clinical Psychologist, Psy.D.) |
| Marriage Year | Approximately 2000 (not officially confirmed) |
| Children | Kaylin Potash (daughter), Mallory Potash (daughter) |
| Residence | Chicago North Shore area, Illinois, United States |
| Height | 5 feet 11 inches (1.80 m / 180 cm) |
| Weight | Not publicly available |
| Emmy Awards | 21 Emmy Awards (per WGN official biography) |
| Silver Dome Awards | 14 Silver Dome Awards — Illinois Broadcasters Association |
| Other Awards | Regional Edward R. Murrow Award — News Documentary (2023) |
| Estimated Salary | $60,000 – $100,000 annually (estimated; not officially confirmed) |
| Estimated Net Worth | Approximately $1 million (estimated; not officially confirmed) |
| Twitter / X | @LarryPotash |
Who is Larry Potash?
Larry Potash is an American television journalist and news anchor, born on May 2, 1967, in Lynn, Massachusetts. He has anchored WGN Morning News on WGN-TV in Chicago since 1995 and is the host of “Backstory with Larry Potash.” A 21-time Emmy Award winner, he is one of Chicago’s most decorated broadcast journalists.
Early Life and Education
Larry Potash was born on May 2, 1967, in Lynn, Massachusetts — a city north of Boston in the Greater Boston area. His birth sign is Taurus. Potash built his entire career from these New England roots, and the values instilled during his Boston-area upbringing have remained visible throughout more than three decades in broadcast journalism.
Childhood and Family Background
Potash grew up in Lynn in a middle-class household alongside one sister. The family maintained the kind of grounded, traditional American lifestyle that is characteristic of working-class New England communities. Details about his parents — their names and professions — have never been disclosed publicly, and Potash has consistently kept that side of his personal history out of the spotlight.
He holds American nationality and belongs to the White ethnic background. On the question of religion, no public statement or confirmed report exists, and it remains undisclosed. There is also no publicly confirmed family connection between Larry Potash and any other public figure sharing the Potash surname.
The Boston-area environment shaped him early. He grew up in a household where straightforward, no-frills American values took precedence — a sensibility that later translated naturally into his measured, trustworthy on-air presence.
Education and Academic Background
After completing his secondary schooling in the Boston area, Potash enrolled at Emerson College in Boston — an institution nationally recognized as one of the premier communications and journalism schools in the United States. His coursework there culminated in a Bachelor of Science degree in Mass Communications and Broadcast Journalism, which he completed in 1989.
Emerson College’s emphasis on hands-on broadcast training and its deep professional network gave Potash the technical foundation and industry connections that would define the early years of his television career. Graduates of Emerson’s journalism program have gone on to anchor positions at major networks across the country, and Potash followed that same upward trajectory — beginning in small regional markets before eventually landing at one of Chicago’s most prominent television stations.
Larry Potash Career at WGN and Beyond
Larry Potash has been a fixture of Chicago morning television since August 1994, when he joined WGN-TV — a tenure that now spans more than 30 years and remains uninterrupted. His path to one of Chicago’s most prominent anchor desks followed the well-worn route of American broadcast journalism: start small, prove yourself, move up.
Early Career — Pre-WGN Stations
After completing his journalism degree at Emerson College in 1989, Potash entered the industry at the ground level. His first on-air role came at KLMG-TV in Longview, Texas, where he worked as a reporter and anchor in one of the country’s smaller media markets. From Texas, he moved north to WFIE-TV in Evansville, Indiana, taking on the morning anchor position — a demanding shift that requires both discipline and on-camera consistency from the earliest hours of the day.
His final stop before Chicago was KOTV-TV in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where he served as a weekend anchor and political reporter. The Tulsa role gave him his first sustained exposure to political coverage — a credential that would prove valuable as his career expanded. This three-station climb through small and mid-sized markets is the classic progression in American television news, and Potash navigated it with enough distinction to attract WGN-TV’s attention.
WGN-TV Career and WGN Morning News
Potash joined WGN-TV News in August 1994. A year later, in 1995, he was named anchor of the newly launched WGN Morning News — stepping into the role just one year after the program’s inception. According to his official WGN biography, the show has consistently ranked first in Chicago morning news ratings across more than a decade of competition.
The morning broadcast runs weekdays beginning at 4:30 a.m., with Potash anchoring the 6 to 10 a.m. block alongside co-anchor Robin Baumgarten, with whom he has shared the desk for many years. The two are colleagues; there is no personal relationship between them beyond their professional on-air partnership.
In 1996, Potash traveled to Asia to produce a multi-part series examining the culture of Hong Kong and its transition to Chinese sovereignty — one of the earliest examples of his appetite for in-depth, internationally focused storytelling. Alongside his anchor duties, he has long produced a recurring feature segment called “Larry’s World,” which takes a lighthearted but substantive look at offbeat facts and lesser-known stories behind pop culture and television news. Earlier in his tenure, he also contributed written columns to the Tribune’s RedEye section, extending his journalism work beyond the broadcast format.
In August 2024, Potash marked 30 years at WGN-TV. His wife Lisa and their daughters Kaylin and Mallory came to the studio to celebrate the milestone with him live on-air — a moment that drew wide attention from Chicago viewers and WGN’s audience. He has not retired and remains an active anchor at WGN-TV.
Backstory with Larry Potash
In October 2018, WGN-TV premiered “Backstory with Larry Potash” — a documentary-style special series that has since become one of the station’s most respected long-form productions. The show airs periodically throughout the year as specials on Saturday and Sunday nights at 7 p.m. and is available in full on the WGN+ streaming app, accessible on Roku, Amazon Fire TV, and Apple TV.
Each episode sees Potash investigating the backstory behind a compelling story rooted in history, culture, religion, or science — drawn primarily from Chicago and the broader Midwest. Topics covered across the series have ranged from the history of cannabis and vintage baseball to notable Chicago crime figures and religious history. The investigative approach Potash brings to the format — combining journalistic rigor with accessible storytelling — earned the program Emmy recognition, including a Best Magazine Show Emmy win in 2020 and additional wins in the News Special category at the 2023 Chicago/Midwest Emmy Awards.
Awards and Recognition
According to his official WGN biography, Larry Potash has accumulated 21 Emmy Awards over the course of his broadcasting career — a total that places him among the most decorated local television journalists in the Chicago market. His recognition spans multiple categories, reflecting both the breadth and consistency of his work across more than three decades at WGN-TV.
The earliest confirmed Emmy win on record came in 1999, when Potash received the award for a conversation series titled “People to People.” In 2019, he earned another Emmy under the category of Outstanding Achievement for News and Specialty Report — Human Interest, for a segment called “Codesmasher.” The following year, in 2020, “Backstory with Larry Potash” was honored with the Emmy for Best Magazine Show — a recognition that validated the documentary series as one of Chicago television’s most substantive long-form productions.
The 2023 Chicago/Midwest Emmy Awards ceremony proved to be among the most significant nights of his career. Potash took home four Emmy Awards that evening, winning in the Outstanding Achievement for News Special category for four separate productions: “Sanctuary of Sin,” “Innocence Lost,” “Backstory,” and “Searching for Justice.” Each of these represented a different dimension of his investigative and documentary work.
Beyond the Emmys, the Illinois Broadcasters Association has honored Potash with 14 Silver Dome Awards — the organization’s highest recognition for excellence in Illinois broadcasting. Those wins include multiple Best Anchor in Chicago awards, with the 2021 edition among the most recent confirmed. “Backstory with Larry Potash” also received the Silver Dome Award for Best Documentary Show in both 2019 and 2020, making it a back-to-back honoree in that category.
In 2023, Potash received the Regional Edward R. Murrow Award for News Documentary — one of the most prestigious honors in American broadcast journalism, presented by the Radio Television Digital News Association. The Murrow Award added a national dimension to a list of recognitions that had largely been rooted in the Chicago and Midwest regional landscape.
On a lighter note, Potash was once ranked 45th on a list of the “50 Hottest Male News Anchors in the World” — a distinction his WGN colleagues have noted with good humor over the years.
Larry Potash Salary and Net Worth
Larry Potash’s earnings as a long-tenured Chicago morning news anchor have made him one of the more financially established figures in the city’s local broadcast landscape. While precise figures have never been made public, third-party estimates based on industry benchmarks and market data provide a reasonable range for both his salary and accumulated wealth.
All salary and net worth figures presented below are estimates based on publicly available information and third-party reporting. Official compensation details have not been disclosed by Larry Potash or WGN-TV.
Larry Potash Salary
Larry Potash’s annual salary is estimated to fall between $60,000 and $100,000. That range reflects the typical compensation band for a morning anchor at a major Chicago market television station — a band shaped by contract value, market size, and seniority within the organization.
His primary income source is his anchor position on WGN Morning News, a role he has held without interruption since 1995. A position of that longevity at a top-rated Chicago station carries significant contractual weight. In 1998, Potash signed a three-year renewal deal to continue as WGN’s morning and noon anchor — an early indicator that his value to the station was already well established within just a few years of joining.
Beyond his anchor duties, Potash has drawn supplementary income from hosting “Backstory with Larry Potash,” the documentary series that launched in October 2018. Earlier in his WGN tenure, he also contributed written columns to the Tribune’s RedEye section, adding a print journalism income stream alongside his broadcast work.
WGN-TV has not released official salary figures for any of its on-air talent, and Potash has not addressed his compensation publicly. The estimates cited here are drawn from publicly reported industry data and should be treated accordingly.
Larry Potash Net Worth
Larry Potash’s net worth is estimated at approximately $1 million. That figure reflects the steady financial accumulation of a broadcast journalism career that began in the early 1990s and has remained anchored — in every sense — to WGN-TV since August 1994.
The primary driver of that wealth is his three-decade run at one of Chicago’s most prominent television stations. Repeated contract renewals, consistent ratings performance, and the expanded income from “Backstory” specials have all contributed to his financial profile over time. His Emmy recognition — 21 awards in total, according to his WGN official biography — would also have strengthened his negotiating position across multiple contract cycles.
On the real estate side, Potash previously owned a home in Chicago, which he sold in 2006. No further significant property holdings have been publicly documented since that transaction.
It is worth noting that some third-party websites have published net worth estimates ranging as high as $4 million to $5 million for Potash. Those figures are not supported by any verified reporting and should be approached with skepticism. The $1 million estimate, cited consistently across multiple independent sources, represents the most defensible publicly available figure.
Larry Potash Personal Life and Family
Larry Potash is married to Lisa Potash and is the father of two daughters. Away from the WGN anchor desk, he leads a deliberately private family life — one that he has kept largely shielded from public attention throughout his broadcasting career.
Wife — Lisa Potash
Larry Potash’s wife is Lisa Potash, a licensed Clinical Psychologist with a specialization in forensic psychology. The two are believed to have married around 2000, though neither Potash nor his wife has publicly confirmed the exact date of their wedding.
Lisa holds a Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D.) with a dual specialization in Neuropsychology and Behavioral Medicine, earned at the Florida Institute of Technology. Her professional profile spans more than 20 years of forensic practice, during which she has worked as both an Expert Witness and a Forensic Evaluator in legal proceedings. Her areas of clinical expertise are wide-ranging — covering post-traumatic stress disorder, Traumatic Brain Injury, chronic pain, Substance Abuse Disorders, Autism Spectrum Disorders, and severe mental illness including Bipolar and psychotic disorders.
Lisa’s professional work places her at the intersection of psychology and the legal system, a career path that stands in notable contrast to her husband’s public media role. Despite Larry Potash’s high visibility as a Chicago television anchor, the couple has maintained a consistently low profile in their shared personal life. No public reports of marital difficulties or separation have emerged across more than two decades of marriage.
Children and Home Life
Larry and Lisa Potash are the parents of two daughters — Kaylin Potash and Mallory Potash. The family is known to attend summer events together, and Potash has spoken warmly about his home life in occasional interview settings over the years.
On August 1, 2024 — the date that marked Potash’s 30th year at WGN-TV — Lisa, Kaylin, and Mallory came to the WGN studio to surprise him live on-air during the morning broadcast. The moment drew an enthusiastic response from Chicago viewers and served as a rare public glimpse into the family that Potash has otherwise kept carefully out of the spotlight.
The family is reported to live in the Chicago North Shore area, with Lake Forest, Illinois cited in connection with Potash’s public appearances and local recommendations over the years. He has highlighted favorite North Shore spots including local theaters, outdoor spaces, and dining establishments in the Highwood and Mettawa areas.
Outside of broadcasting, Potash’s personal interests include reading, cycling, and travel. Colleagues at WGN have long noted a philosophical side to him that rarely surfaces on-air. Weathercaster Paul Konrad once observed that Potash is the person on the WGN Morning News team most likely to strike up a conversation about philosophy — a characterization that speaks to the intellectual depth behind his measured, calm on-screen presence.
One piece of Potash family lore that has made its way into public record is his signature dish: a pasta recipe he calls “Nova Scotia Chop Suey.” The meal — a Boston-bred combination of elbow macaroni, ground beef, and Campbell’s tomato soup — was a staple of his New England upbringing. Potash has noted with humor that his daughters, Kaylin and Mallory, could take or leave the dish, but it remains a fixture of his personal culinary identity.
What Happened to Larry Potash's Arm?
Larry Potash arrived at the WGN Morning News set wearing his arm in a shoulder sling — an unusual sight for one of Chicago’s most familiar morning anchors — and it immediately became the subject of conversation on-air.
When WGN weathercaster Paul Konrad asked him what had happened, Potash lifted his suit jacket sleeve to reveal the injury and explained it as “yet another basketball injury.” He had torn a muscle in his bicep during a basketball game. The tone was self-deprecating and lighthearted — Potash joked that the injury was not exactly his first collision with the sport. Konrad, in a nod to Potash’s documentary series, framed his question as a request for the “backstory” behind the sling — a moment that landed well with WGN’s regular viewers and circulated widely among Chicago television audiences.
The injury itself was not serious. Potash returned to his full anchor duties without any extended absence, and no reports of a lingering condition or ongoing medical issue have surfaced. There is no record of any surgery or significant health complication stemming from the incident. Across his career, Potash has maintained an active physical lifestyle — basketball being a consistent personal interest alongside cycling and travel — which makes the occasional sports-related injury an occupational hazard of that routine rather than any cause for concern.
Larry Potash Height and Physical Appearance
Larry Potash stands at 5 feet 11 inches tall, which converts to approximately 1.80 meters or 180 centimeters.
Height measurements are based on publicly available reporting. Exact weight and other body measurements have not been disclosed.
That figure places him at a height common among American male television anchors, where on-screen proportions and camera presence matter as much as raw measurement. Potash is recognized by WGN viewers for his blue eyes and composed, professionally polished on-screen appearance — qualities that a 2001 profile in a Chicago journalism publication described using the phrase “arresting good looks,” noting him as a telegenic presence well suited to morning television.
His exact weight has never been made public, and Potash has not addressed body measurements in any known interview. What is documented is that he maintains an active lifestyle. Basketball is a sport he plays recreationally — as the arm injury episode confirmed — and cycling and travel feature alongside it as regular personal pursuits. That physical activity pattern is consistent with a career that demands early morning hours, sustained on-camera energy, and the kind of physical discipline that long-tenured broadcast anchors typically maintain.
Potash was once ranked 45th on a list of the “50 Hottest Male News Anchors in the World” — a distinction that his WGN colleagues received with considerable amusement.
Career Timeline
| Period | Station / Role | Location |
| Early 1990s | Reporter and Anchor — KLMG-TV | Longview, Texas |
| Early–Mid 1990s | Morning Anchor — WFIE-TV | Evansville, Indiana |
| Pre-1994 | Weekend Anchor and Political Reporter — KOTV-TV | Tulsa, Oklahoma |
| August 1994 | Joined WGN-TV News | Chicago, Illinois |
| 1995 | Named Anchor — WGN Morning News | Chicago, Illinois |
| 1996 | Multi-part Asia series — Hong Kong sovereignty transition | Hong Kong / Chicago |
| 1999 | Emmy Award — "People to People" conversation series | Chicago, Illinois |
| October 2018 | Launched "Backstory with Larry Potash" on WGN-TV | Chicago, Illinois |
| September 2019 | WGN Morning News 25th Anniversary | Chicago, Illinois |
| 2019 | Emmy Award — "Codesmasher" (News and Specialty Report) | Chicago, Illinois |
| 2019 and 2020 | Silver Dome Award — Best Documentary Show, "Backstory" | Illinois |
| 2020 | Emmy Award — Best Magazine Show, "Backstory" | Chicago, Illinois |
| 2021 | Silver Dome Award — Best Anchor in Chicago | Illinois |
| November 2023 | 4 Emmy Awards — "Sanctuary of Sin," "Innocence Lost," "Backstory," "Searching for Justice" | Chicago, Illinois |
| 2023 | Regional Edward R. Murrow Award — News Documentary | National |
| August 1, 2024 | Celebrated 30th Anniversary at WGN-TV (family on-air surprise) | Chicago, Illinois |
Awards and Recognition
| Year | Award | Category / Project | Awarding Body |
| 1999 | Emmy Award | "People to People" Conversation Series | Chicago/Midwest Emmy Chapter |
| 2019 | Emmy Award | Outstanding Achievement — News and Specialty Report, Human Interest ("Codesmasher") | Chicago/Midwest Emmy Chapter |
| 2019 | Silver Dome Award | Best Documentary Show — "Backstory with Larry Potash" | Illinois Broadcasters Association |
| 2020 | Emmy Award | Best Magazine Show — "Backstory" | Chicago/Midwest Emmy Chapter |
| 2020 | Silver Dome Award | Best Documentary Show — "Backstory with Larry Potash" | Illinois Broadcasters Association |
| 2021 | Silver Dome Award | Best Anchor in Chicago | Illinois Broadcasters Association |
| 2023 | Emmy Award (×4) | Outstanding Achievement — News Special: "Sanctuary of Sin," "Innocence Lost," "Backstory," "Searching for Justice" | Chicago/Midwest Emmy Chapter |
| 2023 | Edward R. Murrow Award | News Documentary | Radio Television Digital News Association (Regional) |
| Career Total | 21 Emmy Awards | Multiple categories (per WGN official biography) | Chicago/Midwest Emmy Chapter |
| Career Total | 14 Silver Dome Awards | Multiple categories including Best Anchor | Illinois Broadcasters Association |
Frequently Asked Questions About Larry Potash
Key questions answered about the WGN Morning News anchor, his career, family, and personal life
How old is Larry Potash?
Potash has anchored WGN Morning News since 1995 and marked his 30th anniversary at WGN-TV in August 2024. He remains one of Chicago's longest-serving and most decorated morning news anchors.
When was Larry Potash born?
He grew up in Lynn in a middle-class household before earning his journalism degree from Emerson College in Boston in 1989 and beginning his broadcast career in small television markets across the country.
Who is Larry Potash married to?
The couple is believed to have married around 2000. Together they have two daughters, Kaylin Potash and Mallory Potash. The family maintains a private, low-profile life away from the public spotlight.
What is Larry Potash's salary?
His primary income source is his anchor role on WGN Morning News, held since 1995. Additional income comes from hosting "Backstory with Larry Potash" specials. All salary figures are third-party estimates only.
What is Larry Potash's net worth?
His financial profile reflects decades of contract renewals, Emmy-winning special programming, and a leading anchor role at one of Chicago's highest-rated morning news broadcasts. This figure is a third-party estimate and has not been officially confirmed.
How tall is Larry Potash?
His exact weight has not been publicly disclosed. Potash maintains an active lifestyle — he plays basketball recreationally, cycles, and travels regularly. A 2001 Chicago journalism profile described him as having a notably telegenic on-screen presence.
What happened to Larry Potash's arm?
Colleague Paul Konrad asked for the "backstory" — a playful nod to Potash's documentary series. The injury was not serious, and Potash returned to his full anchor duties following recovery with no reports of any lasting medical condition.
Is Larry Potash still on WGN Morning News?
Potash anchors the weekday 6 to 10 a.m. broadcast alongside co-anchor Robin Baumgarten. In August 2024, he celebrated 30 consecutive years at the station — one of the longest uninterrupted tenures in Chicago television history.
Where is Larry Potash from?
He completed his education at Emerson College in Boston before beginning his television career in Texas, Indiana, and Oklahoma. He relocated to Chicago in August 1994 when he joined WGN-TV and has been based in the Chicago area ever since.
How many Emmy Awards has Larry Potash won?
His Emmy wins span multiple categories including Best Anchor, Best Magazine Show, Investigative Series, and News Special. In 2023 alone, he received four Emmy Awards at the Chicago/Midwest Emmy ceremony for productions including "Sanctuary of Sin" and "Searching for Justice."
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