Stories by WTTW News

We sit down with Chicago native Drew Sidora about her journey to becoming a leading lady and what’s next in her career. 

Meet a Chicago artist on a personal crusade to paint and preserve 200 rare native plants. Jay Shefsky has her story.

We revisit a story about a Chicago artist who has been painting since the 1940s and is just now getting his due.

Gov. Pat Quinn signed the Chicago pension reform bill, but left it up to the city to decide how the deficit will be funded. We talk with city aldermen about their plans to find the funds.

Julia Collins is a 31-year-old business consultant from Wilmette, Ill. and won 20 games straight on the game show Jeopardy. This makes her the top female player in the game's 50-year history. We sit down with Collins to chat about the Jeopardy experience, her winnings, and her example of female achievement.   

Making the American Body author Jonathan Black gives us a look into the fitness industry and its impact on the American body consciousness.

The city's top watchdog has decided to stay in his office for the duration of his appointment by Mayor Emanuel. We'll hear what's changed with his relationship with City Hall.

In 2007, Yoani Sánchez began a political blog that focused on her frustrations with the situation in Cuba. She now travels the world speaking out against the Cuban regime. We talk with her during her first visit to Chicago. 

Michael Waldman says in his new book, “The Second Amendment: A Biography” that for more than two centuries gun rights and gun control went hand in hand. In the 1970s, a change in leadership at the NRA led to a new campaign to expand gun ownership rights. Waldman joins us to tell us that story.

Are Chicago residents getting the short end of the stick when it comes to city developments?

We share what you had to say about our conversation with Mayor Rahm Emanuel when read some of our viewer feedback.

Joel Weisman and his panel of journalists discuss further former mayor Jane Byrne’s impact on Chicago in this web extra exclusive.

Joel Weisman and his panel of journalists discuss this week's headlines. 

The Cubs say they’ve satisfied the mayor’s request and it’s time for the city to sign off on their plans. Meanwhile, the rooftop owners tell us why they believe they’ll win a court case against the team.

Over the past 10 years, monarch butterfly populations have been declining in North America. Learn simple ways to promote the creature’s habitat in your backyard.

The Chicago art scene of the 1960s was wildly imaginative. We talk to the director of a new film that gives the most complete look yet at the many artists who became known as the Imagists.     

Chicago Tonight’s Phil Ponce interviews Mayor Rahm Emanuel. Phil and Rahm look back at his first three years in office and they discuss Chicago’s future.

A credit rating agency warns of trouble ahead for Illinois because of its failure to extend the income tax hike.

Friday marks the 70th anniversary of D-Day, the massive Allied invasion of Nazi occupied Europe that turned the tide of World War II.  Everyday the number of veterans who took part in that historic event are diminishing. But we hear from one Chicago-area veteran who was among the first to storm the beaches of Normandy.

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle went to Springfield to make a personal pitch for Cook County pension reform. The bill passed in the Senate, but hit a road block in the House this session. Preckwinkle joins host Phil Ponce to discuss the next steps, more. 

A panel of lawmakers discuss the latest state budget news and more. State Sen. Heather Steans (D) says, lawmakers are kicking the can down the road. She joins us tonight. 

Joel Weisman and his guests continue the CWIR conversation, discussing Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s plan to require videotaping of all city gun sales and more. 

Joel Weisman and his panel of journalists discuss this week's headlines. 

After decades of scientists basically using male laboratory animals for medical research, the National Institutes of Health is ending the gender bias practice in research. The shift, as published in the journal Nature, should help minimize side effects and dosage miscalculations not discovered until after products hit the market. 

When Deborah Hersman was appointed to chair the National Transportation Safety Board by President Obama she became, at 39, the youngest person to ever fill that position. She recently left her job at the NTSB to head the Chicago-based National Safety Council.