Anthony Ponce
Anthony Ponce is a veteran Chicago journalist who grew up in the northern suburbs.
In July 2016, he gained national attention when he left his job in TV news to become a full-time Lyft driver, launching the podcast Backseat Rider. As a Lyft-driving storyteller, Anthony brings audiences the wide-ranging, hilarious, touching, sometimes bizarre, and always real conversations he has with his passengers.
“Listening is a lost art form,” he told CNN. “What I think is missing right now in our national dialogue is aggressive listening.”
Anthony joined FOX 32 in 2018 to co-anchor Good Day Chicago and launch Backseat Rider as a news segment.
In returning to television, Anthony’s goal is to remind Chicagoans that while specific issues can be divisive, we have a lot more in common than is often depicted on the news.
Before joining FOX 32, Anthony spent nearly a decade as a reporter/anchor at NBC Chicago, and spent years as a reporter in Indiana.
He has a Master’s degree in journalism from Northwestern University and did his undergrad at Indiana University.
Anthony — a Sox fan — lives on the North Side with his wife, Maggie, and son, Theo.
The latest from Anthony Ponce
New research revealed about 'long-haul' Covid-19
More than 50 patients reported still experiencing brain fog, numbness/tingling, headache, dizziness, blurred vision and fatigue — even 15 months after their Covid-19 diagnoses.
'Chicago at the Crossroad' documentary explores root causes of violence, poverty
With the summer upon us, Father Michael Pfleger said understanding the history of violence and poverty in Chicago is essential to figuring out how to improve.
Chicago pastor Father Tom Hurley bringing block party to South Side Marist campus
Chicago pastor Father Tom Hurley announced exclusively to FOX 32 that he's bringing a block party to Marist High School on the South Side, where he graduated from and now works.
Markham police detail how they found missing 84-year-old woman with Alzheimer's
After nearly three days missing and a frantic, all-hands-on-deck search, police have found 84-year-old Markham resident Olga Gutierrez.
Chicago area's corporate office parks dwindling in age of work-from-home
They span dozens of acres — some are as big as college campuses. There's just one problem with Chicagoland's many corporate office parks.
Local comedians react to Dave Chappelle attack
Tuesday night at the Hollywood Bowl, a man rushed the stage, tackling Dave Chappelle near the end of his set.
Chicago's top doctor expects city to move to 'Medium' level of Covid-19 transmission
With Chicago's rolling weekly average number of COVID-19 cases jumping by just over 100 since last week, the city's top doctor says she expects Chicago to be upgraded to "Medium" level of community risk either later this week or early next week.
Month of April tied for 2nd cloudiest in recorded Chicago history — what this means for your health
"You see higher rates of depression with prolonged dreariness. April's been a very dreary month," said Dr. Robert Shulman. And May isn't off to a great start either.
Man will spend life in prison for Winnetka murders despite request for new sentence
A decision has just come down in one of the Chicago area's most notorious murder cases. The killer will spend the rest of his life in prison.
Violent crimes targeting transgender people on the rise in Chicago
They're crimes you may not always hear about, and they're happening at a rate some say is at an epidemic level: fatal attacks against transgender individuals.