Longtime TV news anchor for Chicago’s WGN, Allison Payne, has died aged 57, WGN-TV broke the news on the company’s website.
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Allison Payne died on September 1, 2021, but her cause of death is currently not known.
Allison Payne, a nine-time Emmy Award winner, joined WGN in 1990 at the age of 25 and worked with the organization for 21 years.
Allison Payne was a veteran international journalist, a popular public speaker, and an actively involved community builder. She was a longtime anchor and reporter at CW affiliate and cable superstation WGN-TV in Chicago, Illinois.
According to The Wrap, Allison Payne also suffered a series of health issues over the years, taking a medical leave of absence in 2008 after a series of mini-strokes as well as bouts of depression. “It was brutal getting out of the house, I couldn’t get out of bed,” Payne told the Chicago Tribune.
Tributes have started pouring in for the veteran journalist. Some of them are below:
Damn. Just got the news that longtime @WGNTV anchor Allison Payne has died. She was 57. Allison was a sweet, kind woman; a great anchor, who had an adorable smile. She suffered a lot of health issues the last several years. Gone so soon. pic.twitter.com/h7VoAB2KHq
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— rolandsmartin (@rolandsmartin) September 11, 2021
I’m heartbroken. Allison Payne was my TV godmother, my mentor, my beloved friend. I wish I could’ve saved her like she protected me when I first started this crazy career. She was fiercely smart, beautiful, generous. I can’t believe she’s gone. 😩 pic.twitter.com/5WOjw76fMf
— Vicky Baftiri (@VickyBaftiri) September 11, 2021
A decade+ later, I started working at WGN. @allisonsnews took me under her wing. She was kind, gracious and an incredibly talented journalist. Allison Payne understood the importance of lifting others up so they too could have an opportunity to shine. (2/3) pic.twitter.com/TgTIZceUgc
— Afua S. Owusu (@afuasowusu) September 11, 2021
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