Chicago Radio: The Controversies Set Eddie & JoBo Apart

Joseph “JoBo” Colborn, the high-energy co-host of Chicago’s legendary “Eddie & JoBo” morning show that dominated ratings and courted controversy for more than 20 years on B96 and later Oldies 104.3, died Monday at age 70.

A spokeswoman for the Stephenson County Coroner’s office confirmed the death but did not release a cause. Colborn had lived in Freeport, Illinois, in recent years.

Together with partner Ed Volkman, Colborn turned WBBM-FM (B96) into a Top 40 powerhouse in the 1990s and early 2000s with outrageous bits like “No Panties Thursday” and “Confession Wednesday,” while also raising large sums for charity, including a 76-hour radiothon in 1992 and a 1993 gun-buyback program that traded firearms for concert tickets and station merchandise.

The duo climbed from 10th place in morning ratings when they teamed up in 1988 to consistently finishing in the top five, often battling icons like Jonathon Brandmeier and Bob Collins.

Former B96 program director Todd Cavanah called the pair “cutting edge,” adding that “JoBo in particular is a huge reason why radio is so popular in Chicago.” Ex-morning news anchor Karen Hand described Colborn as “the most talented person I ever worked with,” praising his versatility as an announcer, music director, and play-by-play voice.

Born in 1955 in Ottawa, Illinois, Colborn began his career as “Joe James” in Rockford, worked under the name “Joe Bohannon” in Cleveland, and joined B96 in 1984 before being paired with Volkman four years later. The team later moved to WJMK-FM until they were let go in 2008.Colborn is survived by generations of Chicago listeners who grew up with the signature “Eddie and JoBo!” morning scream that once defined the city’s drive to work or school.

Here are the major controversies that followed the Eddie & JoBo show during their long run in Chicago (roughly 1988–2008), ranked roughly in order of public impact:

🠞The 1997 “Baby Richard” custody prank (biggest scandal)

In April 1995, the show repeatedly aired a fake phone call from a man claiming to be the adoptive father in the high-profile “Baby Richard” custody case, threatening to flee the country with the child. The bit exploited a real, emotionally charged Illinois Supreme Court case that had torn apart two families and dominated local headlines. Listeners flooded courts and child-welfare agencies with panicked calls. The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services condemned the stunt, and the station was forced to issue a public apology. Many consider this the most irresponsible moment in Chicago radio history.
“No Panties Thursday” (ongoing FCC and advertiser complaints)

🠞Every Thursday for years, the duo urged female listeners to go without underwear and call in to confirm. The bit drew repeated FCC complaints for indecency and led several major advertisers (notably McDonald’s) to pull spots from the show in the late 1990s.

🠞The 1999 “Sex for Tickets” stunt
During a live remote, a female listener was encouraged to flash the crowd in exchange for Backstreet Boys co🠞ncert tickets. The incident made local TV news and prompted another round of advertiser pressure and internal reprimands.

🠞“Confession Wednesday” backlash
Callers were encouraged to confess infidelity, crimes, or other shocking secrets live on the air. Some confessions were later revealed to be hoaxes, but several real ones (including admissions of spousal abuse and statutory relationships) led to complaints that the show was glorifying harmful behavior.

🠞The 2005 Luau remote fight and arrest
At the annual “Eddie & JoBo Luau” concert on the lakefront, a drunken brawl broke out between off-duty Chicago police officers working security and some attendees. JoBo was briefly detained (though never charged) after he allegedly interfered with officers. The incident made front pages and embarrassed sponsor Miller Brewing.

🠞Recurring charges of sexism and crude humor
Throughout the 1990s and 2000s, women’s groups and media watchdogs regularly accused the show of misogyny, citing bits such as rating female callers’ breast sizes, “lesbian dial-a-date” segments, and on-air comments about women’s weight and appearance.

Despite the controversies—or in some cases because of them—Eddie & JoBo routinely posted double-digit ratings shares with 18–34-year-olds and remained Chicago’s top-billing morning show for much of the 1990s. Management at CBS Radio (which owned B96) repeatedly defended them as “edgy but not malicious” until the cultural shift of the late 2000s finally made the shock-jock format untenable with advertisers. They were let go from WJMK (“Jack FM”) in November 2008.