Eric Von

Eric Von was the host of Precious Lives, a series that was created in partnership with 371 Productions, WUWM 89.7 FM - Milwaukee Public Radio, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, WNOV and the Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism.

Von was also the lead producer of WUWM's Precious Lives: Before the Gunshots, an expansion of the Precious Lives project on that focuses on the root causes of gun violence. Precious Lives: Before the Gunshots is part of Finding America, a national initiative produced by AIR.

A veteran journalist, Von had more than 25 years in the broadcast industry, starting his career as a disc jockey, then, moving into news where he was a reporter and anchor. He served as the Business Manager for Radio One in Washington, D.C., and Director of Operations and radio talk show host for 1290 WMCS, Milwaukee, WI. Von also had his own morning show on 860 WNOV.

Proving that he didn’t just possess “a face for radio,” for seven years Von was a regular panelist on Wisconsin Public Television’s, “Interchange,” a groundbreaking public affairs program. He was also co-host of “Black Nouveau” which airs on the same network.

From 1998 through 2000, Von was a special assignment reporter and a co-host of “It’s Your Vote,” a weekly political affairs show which featured candidate forums, debates and voter education information on Milwaukee’s ABC affiliate, WISN Channel 12.

For two years, he penned a column for the Shepherd Express, Milwaukee’s independent, progressive newspaper.

Von received many awards and commendations for his on-air and community service work. Von founded, along with his wife Faithe Colas, Brain Brawn & Body, a health and wellness website for men. He was also the managing partner of VonCommunications, a firm that offers public relations counsel and strategic communications.

Von passed away in September of 2016.

A special fellowship has been established in his honor.