Stories by WTTW News

Outcry over CPS budget cuts. A new documentary about the toll of war on a South Side neighborhood. An effort to improve health outcomes. And bringing the color of Mexico to the Mag Mile.

What’s behind delays in your property tax bill. Grading the state’s infrastructure. A proposed ban on menthol cigarettes. A live report from Englewood. And last call at a beloved bakery. 

The fate of the mayor’s gas giveaway. Will Com Ed customers see big rebates? A local author calls for more community support for parents. And the Joffrey Ballet takes on a classic piece of literature.

Is a gubernatorial candidate conflicted on COVID-19 masking? City Council members weigh in on casino proposals. Antisemitism on the rise. And an update on the city’s water meter installations.

The mayor’s controversial gang profits ordinance stalls, what Twitter could look like under Elon Musk and avian flu is on the rise in Illinois. Plus, inside the turmoil at the Chicago Reader and the city’s role in inventing the pizza puff.

Crain’s Chicago Business Editor Ann Dwyer joins us to go behind the headlines.

Neutralizing environmental racism in a crossover edition of Voices, on this Earth Day weekend. Diagnosing autism. A story of freedom told through opera. And the city’s oldest Black camera club.

A special Voices crossover: we look at the fight against environmental racism in Chicago and the suburbs. Plus, a labor update at a local tortilla factory. And an event by teens, for teens. 

New questions about Ken Griffin’s connections to Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin. The latest on refugee resettlement from Ukraine. And Geoffrey Baer previews the new season of The Great Chicago Quiz Show.

Mask confusion over new public transit guidelines. Plus, the mayor’s gas giveaway plan moves forward, why youth mental illness is soaring, and a battle of three billionaires in the governor’s race.

Changes to state mask guidelines. Gov. Pritzker signs the state budget into law. Alderpeople on the ward remap process and the city’s casino plans. Starbucks workers unionize. And Winnie the Pooh.

WTTW News is partnering with 22 other newsrooms in the Chicago area to find out how our communities are living through the long-term effects of COVID through a survey and community conversations.

Down to the wire on a new city ward map, and some alderpeople are starting to speak out against casino locations. Plus, fallout from the RNC’s decision to avoid presidential debates, and the city’s top cop on ghost guns.

An alderperson comes out against one of the three Chicago Casino finalists; developers plan new apartments for the Magnificent Mile; and a series of ads hopes to showcase Illinois as “the middle of everything.”

Police Superintendent David Brown on ghost guns and police reform. Plus, teaching kids to fight for racial equity in this week’s book club. And remembering Harold Washington on his 100th birthday.

What an end to pandemic border rules could mean for asylum seekers. A new approach to organ donation from Latinos. Previewing the Chicago Latino Film Festival. And mariachi and improv come together.

Some lesser-known bills passed in Springfield. The city’s three casino finalists for this week’s In Your Neighborhood series. Revisiting mandatory masking. And three major religious holidays at once.

How changes in ethanol policy might affect your wallet. City Council’s newest history-making member. STDs are on the increase. And the fight for the Bell Bowl Prairie.

State lawmakers on the newly passed budget featuring direct tax relief. Willie Wilson enters the race for mayor. New inflation numbers are out. And a Lakeview staple prepares to bake its last pastry.

A breakdown of laws recently passed in Springfield. Plus, the outlook for the pandemic with the CEO of Rush Hospital. Chicago has a new top tourism ambassador, and the latest business headlines from Crain’s.

A New York firm adds a former Office Max Headquarters to its buying spree in Chicago; what’s next for the vacant office campus of a former publishing company; and inflation forces a Chicago-based food giant to get meaty.

Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson’s historic confirmation to the Supreme Court and what it means for the American legal system. A one-on-one interview with civil rights attorney Ben Crump and his fight for Black lives. And a visual artist and teacher with an exhibit at the Museum of Science and Industry gives us the Last Word on Black creativity. 

Efforts in Springfield to combat retail thefts have some community groups concerned. A culinary school teaching entrepreneurship. And an iconic structure in Humboldt Park is up for landmark status.

One-on-one with the newest candidate for mayor of Chicago: Ald. Ray Lopez. Plus, two local doctors return from helping Ukrainian refugees in Europe. And Amanda Vinicky has the latest from Springfield.

WTTW’s latest investigation finds a company getting tax incentives from Aurora hired Mayor Irvin’s ex wife. A local take on Ken Burns’ new Ben Franklin doc. And the latest on three casino finalists.

From filling your trunk with groceries to filling your car with gas, the price is going up. A new report on climate change was released — and it’s not pretty. And what genealogists can learn from just-released U.S. census records from 1950.