Indiana Broadcast History Archive

Reid Duffy spent his entire professional career in Indiana, primarily in Indianapolis. He began at WRTV, ABC Channel 6, in 1971 as a political and government reporter, while also anchoring the weekend news. His natural humor and storytelling ability helped him stand out, and eventually he worked on two popular on-air segments: Duffy’s World and Duffy’s Diner. He later joined WNDY-TV, where he continued his signature feature storytelling style through a segment called The Reid Duffy Chronicles.

In 2012, he was inducted into the Indiana Broadcast Pioneers Hall of Fame, an honor recognizing his decades-long impact on Indiana broadcasting. 

Early Life 

Reid Duffy was born on March 1, 1945, in Chicago, Illinois. As a child, he was an avid Cubs fan and often listened to their games on the radio. By age ten, he would turn down the volume and pretend to be a play-by-play announcer, narrating each play to himself. 

His father, an engineer, encouraged him to consider a more practical profession, like law, but Duffy wasn’t interested. He said he struggled with math and always felt more drawn to subjects that emphasized communication, creativity, and storytelling. 

Education 

Duffy attended Notre Dame University, where he studied broadcasting. While the academic program focused on theory, he gained hands-on experience at the student radio station, WSND. There, he hosted a sports show and called games for baseball, basketball, and football. 

He continued his education at the University of Illinois, where he worked for WILL radio, the state’s first broadcast station. He covered both news and sports there, which became his first paid broadcasting job. 

Broadcasting Career 

After completing graduate school, Duffy joined WFBM, later WRTV, in Indianapolis in 1971. He started as a Statehouse reporter, covering government and elections, but began incorporating humor into his reports. The station recognized his unique style and assigned him to lighter feature stories. 

In 1984, Duffy gave the viewers a unique perspective on the Indy 500.

His style of reporting and storytelling led to the launch of Duffy’s World, which focused on humorous, human-interest reporting. In 1978, he debuted Duffy’s Diner, a restaurant review segment that quickly became a local favorite and ran for nearly two decades. 

WNDY-TV

At WNDY-TV, he continued to produce feature segments, including profiles of unusual people and places. His pieces ranged from a deep dive into PEZ candy dispensers to a look at the world’s largest hog at the Indiana State Fair. 

Throughout his career, Duffy received two “Best Feature” awards from the Associated Press for his storytelling. He also wrote three books on his own and contributed regularly to several Indianapolis-area print publications. 

Community Impact 

Duffy often said that one of the most rewarding parts of being a journalist was meeting new people every day and learning how the city worked behind the scenes. He believed that telling local stories was just as important as informing the public. 

He also volunteered for 25 years with Indiana Reading and Information Services (IRIS), a program that offers audio news services for people with visual impairments. Every Tuesday from 1995 to 2020, he read local, national, and international news live on air. 

Nicole Blevins interviewed Reid Duffy for the IBHA Oral History Collection in 2024.

---

Written by Nicole Blevins, edited by Katherine Maners

April 2026

Bibliography

Blevins, Nicole, and Reid Duffy. “Reid Duffy Oral History | Indiana Broadcast History Archive.” Indiana.edu, 2024. https://ibha.indiana.edu/item/m326n0870/. 

Boyd, Barbara. “Reid Duffy’s Hall of Fame Video Bio | Indiana Broadcast History Archive.” Indiana.edu, 2024. https://ibha.indiana.edu/item/jh344d75p/. 

Hartz, Michael. “WRTV Celebrates 75 Years of Sharing Your Stories.” WRTV Indianapolis, May 30, 2024. https://www.wrtv.com/lifestyle/history/wrtv-celebrates-75-years-of-sharing-your-stories. 

Indianabroadcastpioneers.org. “Reid Duffy – Indiana Broadcast Pioneers,” 2024. https://indianabroadcastpioneers.org/reid-duffy/. 

Jamookie. “Reid Duffy Chronicles - Ivanhoes.” YouTube, October 3, 2008. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cmUBhgsaprg. 

TheClassicSports. “October 17, 1988 - Reid Duffy Takes Viewers on an Unusual Tour.” YouTube, July 28, 2017. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hhb0FlFXlvc. 

WFYI Public Media. “IRIS Reading Services,” 2024. https://www.wfyi.org/iris-reading-services. 

WRTV Indianapolis. “70 Years Together: Reid Duffy’s Beat Was All about Fun.” YouTube, May 23, 2019. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9tz5wpV4Mbw.