Stories by Matt Masterson

It’s not yet clear when military troops could be deployed into Illinois, but Gov. JB Pritzker expects President Donald Trump to “keep the militarization going” even after the federal government shut down overnight.

U.S. District Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer said officers who have an alternative service weapon that “meets appropriate standards should be required immediately to use that alternative weapon.”

Chicago is famous for its skyscrapers, but landscape architects have played an equal role in shaping the city. Experts will lead tours of dozens of open spaces Saturday and Sunday.

Jane Goodall, the conservationist renowned for her groundbreaking chimpanzee field research and globe-spanning environmental advocacy, has died. She was 91.

“Someone who says ‘I’m against abortion but says I am in favor of the death penalty’ is not really pro-life,” Pope Leo XIV said. “Someone who says that ‘I’m against abortion, but I’m in agreement with the inhuman treatment of immigrants in the United States,’ I don’t know if that’s pro-life.”

Washington is bracing for what could be a prolonged federal shutdown after lawmakers deadlocked and missed the deadline for funding the government. Neither side shows any signs of budging.

The Supreme Court on Wednesday allowed Lisa Cook to remain as a Federal Reserve governor for now, declining to act on the Trump administration’s effort to immediately remove her from the central bank.

Each Wednesday, WTTW News producer Josh Terry presents must-see live music shows from indie rock to jazz, country, hip-hop and more.

Officials in Broadview are calling out ICE agents, saying they’re putting residents in harm’s way. And a potential government shutdown is just hours away.

“America’s Test Kitchen” has been at it for 25 years — with hosts trying out different cooking techniques, reviewing kitchen gadgets and perfecting recipes.

Mayor Katrina Thompson on Tuesday accused Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials of waging a “disinformation campaign” amid their continued use of chemical and less-lethal munitions directed at crowds outside the agency’s Broadview processing center.

The last shutdown was in President Donald Trump’s first term when he demanded that Congress give him money for his U.S.-Mexico border wall. Trump retreated after 35 days — the longest shutdown ever — amid intensifying airport delays and missed paydays for federal workers.

Ground was ceremonially broken Tuesday on the Illinois Quantum and Microelectronics Park, a development officials say will bring an economic boom to South Chicago. Neighbors would like to get those benefits in writing.

This fall, free take-home meals at Malcolm X College, Kennedy-King College and Olive-Harvey College will be available for students and their family members.

Seiya Suzuki and Carson Kelly hit back-to-back homers, helping the Chicago Cubs beat the San Diego Padres 3-1 on Tuesday in Game 1 of their NL Wild Card Series.

Illinois cannot yet file suit against the federal government for an apparent plan to send federal troops to Chicago, Attorney General Kwame Raoul said, but if boots hit the ground, President Donald Trump “should expect a legal challenge.”

Harrison Ford is one of the most famous people on the planet. David Willard has spent a career and his retirement cataloguing dead birds. Both will be recognized as conservation superstars during October’s Half-Earth Day event at the Field Museum.

Nearly 400,000 Social Security and SSI recipients receive their benefits through paper checks.

President Donald Trump revealed that he wants to use American cities as training grounds for the armed forces and joined Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Tuesday in declaring an end to “woke” culture before an unusual gathering of hundreds of top U.S. military officials.

An exclusive vinyl edition of Taylor Swift's new album, "The Life of a Showgirl," will be available at a handful of Illinois' Target stores during a midnight release Friday, including one location in Chicago.

DePaul, a Catholic school in Chicago, prohibits distribution of any kind of birth control on its campus. To get around that, a student group runs a covert contraceptive delivery network.

Earlier this month, the U.S. Supreme Court made a move that makes it easier for federal immigration agents to use ethnicity as a factor in deportations.

Are military troops bound for Illinois? And how a court ruling on racial profiling could impact local policing.

Chicago taxpayers paid $295 million between 2019 and 2024 to resolve lawsuits naming officers whose alleged misconduct led more than once to payouts, according to an analysis of city data by WTTW News. In all, the city spent $491.7 million to resolve lawsuits alleging 1,643 Chicago police officers committed a wide range of misconduct.

“CPD has failed to rein in its culture of brutality and abuse,” according to the coalition of police reform groups that forced the city to agree to federal court oversight. “The department is moving in the wrong direction.”

The invasive spotted lanternfly appears to be making inroads in Chicago. So far, there have been more reports of the bug in September 2025 alone than there were in all of 2024.