byWendi Kromash
Longtime Evanstonian Jill Wine-Banks is in the midst of an exciting new chapter in her storied career: podcast co-host for her participation in the Webby Award– winning #SistersInLaw. She, along with Joyce Vance,Kimberly Atkins Stohr and Barb McQuade “pull back the curtain on how our government actually works, take on the corrupt, share their wisdom and give us their rulings on the latest in politics, law, and culture,” according to Politicon, the show’s producer. The show launched in December 2021.
Like a pep rally combined with a rock concert
The “sisters” tape their shows every Friday for a Saturday “drop” (when the podcast is available for downloading). Last year, Politicon suggested they do some live shows. The reception has been overwhelmingly positive. This year they will visit Chicago, followed by Detroit and Boston. Chicago’s show is at the Athenaeum Center, 2936 N. Southport Ave., on Thursday May 2. Of the 1,220 seats available for sale, fewer than 50 were available as of Thursday morning.
Listening to podcasts of the live shows, the energy and enthusiasm from the crowd is palpable. Think of a pep rally combined with a rock concert. When asked why she thought their fans’ reactions were so effusive, Wine-Banks said, “We are in an extraordinary time in history, and it’s gotten only more extraordinary since last year. Last year was bad, but this year, it’s a whole different quantity and quality of bad. Our fans write regularly to us with questions and say that we keep them sane and that they appreciate our giving them analysis and facts to help them understand the issues. They also enjoy the #SistersInLaw’s camaraderie.”
Started at Justice Department
She’s not sure where her drive comes from, but said, “My father was a problem solver. He saw problems and he would take action. And that definitely was something that I picked up on. … After law school, I wanted to be a trial lawyer. I moved to Washington. I got a job at the Department of Justice, which is a great place for trial experience. And then one thing led to another and I was a Watergate prosecutor and then the world really opened up for me. I had a lot of opportunities because of that experience. … My parents raised me to think I could do anything I wanted to do.”
Several years later she transitioned her legal expertise over to corporate experience when she joined Motorola. There she managed international business development and primarily worked abroad.
“I love learning new cultures … and taking on new challenges. In deciding on a new position, I try to figure out, when you get to the office, what will your job really be? What will you be doing? I’ve been offered some jobs that have great titles, but when you probe what would I actually be doing when I sit at my desk, I go, ‘Oh, no, I don’t want to do that.’ And I’m brave enough to take a risk on trying new things where I think I can learn on the job what I don’t know if I think the issues are interesting enough to spend the time learning.”
The media landscape
Wine-Banks has a huge social media following: more than 31,000 followers on Facebook, nearly 613,000 followers on X, thousands more on LinkedIn and Instagram. She wrote a best-selling memoir, The Watergate Girl, and is working on a children’s book. The Watergate Girl was optioned by Katie Holmes and may be made into a movie. Wine-Banks analyzes legal issues on MSNBC, writes regular op-eds for major newspapers across the country and shares her thoughts as a keynote speaker for many public and private organizations. She is an active board memberfor severalnonprofit organizationsand private companies.
Fans of her podcast know she has annual trips with girlfriends, regularly visits her goddaughter and grand-goddaughter, and takes exotic vacations with her husband, Michael, an antiques dealer.
She is also about to celebrate her 81st birthday on May 5. How does she keep up with all of her commitments?
“You know, one of the reasons I have stayed on for so long is because I get to hang out with younger people. And they keep me going and they keep me smart and lively. … my best friends are a minimum of 10 years younger than I am. And I keep up with them physically and mentally and learn a lot from them. I think it keeps me young so I’m never going to stop. You know, I do sometimes think about maybe it’s time to slow down and I’m like, why? We’re having fun. So I’m not planning to,” Wine-Banks said.
Wendi Kromash
Wendi Kromash is curious about everything and will write about anything. She tends to focus on one-on-one interviews with community leaders, recaps and reviews of cultural events, feature stories about...More by Wendi Kromash
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