Stories by Marc Vitali

Born in Italy, Virginio Ferrari came to Chicago in the 1960s, and he blossomed into an internationally sought-after sculptor. We visit the 80-year-old in his Bridgeport studio.

They are the oldest forms of life on Earth and without them humans would not exist. How microbes shape the planet and its people.

Will the attorney general’s reversal of an Obama-era policy give prosecutors free rein to aggressively enforce pot prohibition?

State regulators are set to approve a pipe modernization project that could double your natural gas bill over the next 20 years.

If scuba diving with whale sharks or kayaking past glaciers sounds like you’re kind of thing, Shedd Aquarium has a trip for you this year.

Thomas Sierra, 41, spent more than half his life in prison, convicted of a murder he has claimed from the beginning he didn’t commit. On Tuesday, the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office dropped the charges. “It’s a bittersweet situation,” Sierra said.

The Obama Foundation has given in to criticism, making a change to its plans. The decision comes as the Obama Presidential Center gained new critics: more than 100 University of Chicago faculty members.

Watch the Jan. 8, 2018 full episode of "Chicago Tonight."

Chicago’s largest police union is fighting the use of body cameras. Fraternal Order of Police President Kevin Graham explains why.

A conversation with Chicago Tribune columnist Eric Zorn, who muses on how to be “a good old man” as he celebrates a milestone birthday.

The Dow Jones crossing 25,000 is the latest milestone in a long-running bull market. What’s driving it, and when it could end.

How some of Chicago’s weakest schools have turned around to become some of the strongest.

As CPS presses ahead with plans to open a new, state-of-the-art high school in Englewood, the Chicago Teachers Union is stepping up its campaign against the most controversial part of that plan.

Just who is Matt Nagy, why did the Bears act so swiftly, and what is the future of their lauded defensive coordinator Vic Fangio? We have the latest.

In 2015, Noah Strycker became a birding legend after a yearlong journey across seven continents to see more than half the world’s 10,000-plus bird species. He speaks this month in Chicago about the adventure and his new book “Birding Without Borders.”

Chicago Public Schools is moving ahead with its plan to shutter four Englewood-area high schools in favor of what it says will be a new “state-of-the-art” neighborhood option with an $85 million price tag.

Democratic candidate for governor Chris Kennedy slams Mayor Rahm Emanuel for overseeing a “strategic gentrification plan” designed to “push people of color out of the city.” This story and more with Eddie Arruza and guests.

Get updated details for the Jan. 20 event from the organizers of last year’s Women’s March on Chicago, including rally information and the planned route through the Loop. 

Labritney Austin, of University Park, is facing a felony charge after she allegedly shot a woman in the shoulder in an incident that was recorded by the victim.

Watch the Jan. 4, 2018 full episode of "Chicago Tonight."

Contributors have pledged $38.5 million so far in 2018 to the state’s new and program, celebrated by advocates of school choice but derided by teachers unions and other critics as a subversion of the public education system.

An explosive new book pits President Donald Trump against former adviser Steve Bannon. Local Republicans assess the turmoil in Washington.

Republicans and Democrats investigating possible Russian interference in the last presidential election are reportedly at odds. U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley joins us with the latest on the the House Russia investigation.

Opioid overdoses in Illinois claim more lives than homicides and car accidents. State health officials tell us what’s behind the crisis.  

“It’s a struggle every day,” a current Ford employee says. As Chicago Ford plants once again grapple with accusations of sexual harassment, we speak with two women about what it’s like to work there.

When Helen Lambin got a small tattoo for her 75th birthday, she had no intention of ever getting another. But the experience “made me feel sort of adventurous and wild,” she remembers.