Stories by Paul Caine

On Friday, all salons and barbershops in the state — except those in Chicago — will be allowed to reopen as part of phase three of Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s reopening plan. What will the new salon experience be like?

Lawmakers will not get a pay raise as part of the newly approved state budget — even though state law requires that members of the Illinois House and Senate get an annual boost, Comptroller Susana Mendoza said Wednesday.

How do you design a pandemic-era theater season? The Glencoe-based theater has devised a multifaceted plan that combines a degree of certainty with the option of built-in flexibility, with the ultimate goal of keeping live theater alive.

With city officials preparing to cautiously reopen Chicago’s economy as the peak of the coronavirus pandemic appears to have passed in Illinois, one-third of the city’s workforce could head back to their jobs early next month.

The percentage of Chicago Public Schools students accessing materials and getting grades has steadily risen during the remote learning period, but new data shows some high-need populations have fallen behind.

It’s a big day for NASA and Elon Musk’s SpaceX as they send humans into space Wednesday, the first crewed launch from American soil since 2011 and the first by a private firm.

As of Wednesday afternoon, the coronavirus death toll in Illinois stood at 5,038 people. “These are real people whose lives came to an end because of this pandemic,” Gov. J.B. Pritzker said, speaking from East St. Louis.

More than 1.2 million unemployment claims have been processed in Illinois since March, and many people are filing for unemployment insurance for the first time. Here are some tips to help you navigate the process.

Watch the May 27, 2020 full episode of “Chicago Tonight.”

After hearing oral arguments last week, appeals court judges are questioning whether a lawsuit against the construction of the Obama Presidential Center has any standing in federal court.

A new virtual art gallery is starting a conversation on why the current stay-at-home order isn’t ideal for everyone, as it explores race and social class issues.

When legislators returned to Springfield last week after more than two months away because of the coronavirus pandemic, Sen. Robert Martwick was not among them – at least at first. 

With 49 shot and 10 killed over Memorial Day weekend, Mayor Lori Lightfoot is ripping her new police superintendent’s strategies. “This was a fail and whatever the strategy is, it didn’t work,” Lightfoot said.

Ald. Anthony Napolitano says he respects Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s responsibility to see the coronavirus pandemic from a bigger perspective when it comes to allowing businesses to reopen, but hopes she’ll act soon to loosen some restrictions. 

Illinois legislators wrapped up a whirlwind special session that stretched to the wee hours of Sunday morning. A look at what they accomplished. 

The city appears poised to follow the lead of cities like New York City, Oakland and Seattle by designating miles of Chicago roadways as “shared streets for physical distancing.”

Documentary filmmaker Gordon Quinn was diagnosed with COVID-19 and spent a month in the hospital, where he was placed on a ventilator multiple times. He shares his story.

The far northwest side neighborhood is home to city workers, like first responders, teachers and trades workers. We visit Edison Park to see how residents, businesses and others are coping with the pandemic.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Tuesday he would extend the ban on evictions in Illinois past Friday, when the latest version of his stay-at-home order is scheduled to expire.

Watch the May 26, 2020 full episode of “Chicago Tonight.”

Illinois appears to have passed the peak of the coronavirus pandemic, with the rate of confirmed cases of the coronavirus dropping significantly, Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Tuesday.

Southeast Side residents have created guidelines for the types of development they want to see in their neighborhoods, outlining their priorities in a blueprint for developers. 

Contact tracing is “one of the most important weapons that we have in this fight” against the coronavirus, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said Tuesday.

Chicago fishermen are adjusting to COVID-19 regulations keeping them off Chicago's lakefront, a popular fishing spot.

Chicago saw its most violent Memorial Day weekend in five years, despite a stay-at-home order meant to keep people inside during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

There are roughly 175,000 immigrants in U.S. meatpacking jobs. The industry has historically relied on foreign-born workers, but now that reliance and uncertainty about a virus that's killed at least 20 workers and temporarily shuttered several plants fuels concerns about possible labor shortages to meet demand for beef, pork and chicken.