David Brown: Media Award Recipient

The IL Corn Growers Association’s 2022 Excellence in Media Award was given to David Brown formerly of WAND-TV in Decatur, IL, at the ICGA Annual Meeting today in Bloomington. The award is given each year to an individual who promotes Illinois agriculture and, specifically, Illinois corn and corn farmers, through their coverage in traditional media or through their engagement on social media.

“After 30 years reporting for WAND-TV and helping the public understand more about farming and agriculture, David is extremely deserving of this award,” said Marty Marr, President of the ICGA and a farmer from New Berlin, IL. “It is extremely gratifying to present this award not only to an excellent member of the ag media, but also to a farm boy who has retired to return to his first love – the farm. David Brown is one of our own, and we want to recognize the hard work and dedication to our industry that he has shown with his faithful and accurate reporting of central Illinois agriculture.”

David invested his 30 years in the ag communications industry reporting for WAND-TV on his own segment, Agribusiness Today. The show reaches 32 counties in Illinois with high quality, local ag content that helps non-farmers in central Illinois understand more about the crops and livestock growing all around them.

During his tenure at WAND, David continued to farm with his brother and eventually with his son. Upon his retirement from broadcasting, David returned to the 150-year-old farm full-time.

“I had the best of both worlds: I got to do what I love, and I got to talk about it on TV,” he said.