Stories by Alexandra Silets

Gun violence in Chicago is on the decline, but the number of homicides in the city is still staggering. What can federal prosecutors do to reduce shooting incidents? U.S. Attorney John Lausch Jr. joins us in discussion.

Wednesday’s start of public impeachment hearings in Congress marked the first time that the American public could watch and listen to the witnesses whose testimony is at the core of the Democrats’ investigation.

From a Chicago blues club to South Africa, a new show at Steppenwolf Theatre explores music and love across cultures. We get a behind-the-scenes look at “Lindiwe.”

During his more than 20 years at the helm of Abbott Laboratories, Miles White transformed the North Chicago-based health-care products maker with a series of acquisitions and spinoffs.

An open-air holiday market, musical performances, art books and screen printing usher in the weekend. Here are 10 things to do in and around Chicago.

The Chicago Teachers Union’s 11-day strike is suspended, but it’s not officially over until rank-and-file members vote to ratify a five-year tentative contract agreement reached with the city. That vote begins Thursday.

Watch the Nov. 13, 2019 full episode of “Chicago Tonight.”

Attorney General William Barr announced a new initiative Wednesday that would better enforce the U.S. gun background check system, coordinate state and federal gun cases and ensure prosecutors quickly update databases to show when a defendant can’t possess a firearm because of mental health issues.

Chicago Public Schools said heating issues at the school had been fixed Tuesday. But on Wednesday the district said several classrooms were suffering from insufficient heat circulation as temperatures across the city remained below freezing.

Nine privacy, social justice and consumer groups are calling for the U.S. government to block Google’s $2.1 billion acquisition of fitness-gadget maker Fitbit, citing antitrust and privacy concerns.

When the gavel strikes at the start of the House hearing on Wednesday morning, America and the rest of the world will have the chance to see and hear for themselves for the first time about President Donald Trump’s actions toward Ukraine and consider whether they are, in fact, impeachable offenses. Watch live.

Illinois has one of the best lung cancer survival rates in the country, yet it also has one of the highest incidence rates of lung cancer, according to a new report from the American Lung Association.

Watch the Nov. 12, 2019 full episode of “Chicago Tonight.”

Student editors at the newspaper covering Northwestern University have faced two waves of criticism over their coverage of protests in response to an event featuring former Attorney General Jeff Sessions.

Northwestern sociology professor Andrew Papachristos has a striking idea when it comes to thinking about shootings in Chicago. He and local advocate Franklin Cosey-Gay tell us about their work with data and research.

As part of our special episode on gun violence, we discuss the policies being proposed at the state and federal level with U.S. Reps. Robin Kelly and Jesus “Chuy” Garcia and state Rep. La Shawn Ford.

As part of WTTW’s new documentary series “Firsthand: Gun Violence,” five experts offer big ideas in “Firsthand Talks” sessions for addressing gun violence in Chicago. Four of those experts join us in discussion.

The Reserve Roastery will span five floors and 35,000 square feet on Michigan Avenue, taking up residence in what was for decades Crate & Barrel’s flagship store. We get a preview.

A broken heater inside a South Side high school left students in classrooms without normal heat circulation on a day with record cold temperatures.

WTTW’s new digital documentary series “Firsthand: Gun Violence” follows the stories of five Chicagoans whose lives have been touched by shootings. Three of them join us in discussion.

Even if the two most recent impeachment proceedings – against Presidents Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton – offer instructive clues about the path ahead, there are notable differences in the case surrounding Donald Trump. A look at then and now.

Hospital officials say Tavares Taylor, who’s known as Lil Reese, is in critical condition after being shot at a suburban Chicago intersection Monday afternoon.

At least 50 workers have filed sexual harassment charges against the company with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission or in state courts over the past three years.

Trump’s promise to release an account of his first conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy comes a day before House impeachment investigators begin public hearings.

An arctic air mass that brought snow and ice to an area stretching from the Rocky Mountains to northern New England on Monday was poised to give way to record-breaking cold temperatures.

Blistery winds and falling snow Monday didn’t prevent members of the George L. Giles American Legion Post 87 from the journey they’ve made every Veterans Day for the past 93 years along Martin Luther King Drive to the Victory Monument.