Stories by WTTW News

Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced on Tuesday a plan to improve the service of two of the city's busiest bus routes. The three-part plan calls for improved speed and overall performance of Chicago Transit Authority buses along Western Avenue (No. 49) and Ashland Avenue (No. 9). Get details of the plan and read the mayor's announcement.

A plan to provide nearly $500 million in relief to the cash-starved CPS is locked up in an ideological battle over collective bargaining. Paris Schutz joins us with more on the story.

The National Labor Relations Board on Monday announced that Northwestern University’s scholarship football athletes would not be allowed to form a union, despite a 2014 NLRB ruling that states the players are university employees. Joining us to discuss the details of the NLRB decision is Eldon Ham, a Chicago-Kent College of Law professor and sports legal analyst for WSCR 670 The Score.

A new proposal before the City Council aims to prevent another controversial privatization deal like the infamous parking meter lease of 2008, but some critics say the plan doesn’t go far enough. Joining Chicago Tonight to discuss the proposed ordinance is Judy Stevens, policy coordinator at the Better Government Association, which consulted the Emanuel administration when crafting the ordinance. 

He's only 25 years old, but composer, poet and conductor Matthew Aucoin is already a major sensation in the classical music world. And now, Lyric Opera of Chicago has commissioned the young composer to write an opera. Second Nature receives its world premiere this week at Lincoln Park Zoo. We speak with this classical phenom on Chicago Tonight.

Nathan Morin says he stopped wearing deodorant because he was "lazy and cheap." But when he moved to Chicago and became a bicycle commuter, he rediscovered the need for some type of odor protection. That's when his search for a certified organic deodorant led him to an unlikely place: the kitchen, where he began concocting his own recipe.

The National Labor Relations Board has overturned its historic March 2014 decision to treat Northwestern University scholarship football student-athletes as employees, and ruled on Monday that the players will not be allowed to form a union.

Julian Bond, the civil rights activist, professor, and politician, died Saturday in Fort Walton Beach, Fla. He was 75 years old. In 1976, Bond and journalist John Callaway sat down for an interview at WTTW. We remember Bond's legacy, and revisit his discussion with Callaway on national politics.

Two leaders in the Illinois House of Representatives join Phil Ponce on Chicago Tonight to discuss the budget stalemate in Springfield and a possible property tax freeze.

Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, a Democratic candidate for president, brings his campaign to Chicago Monday evening. The senator and self-avowed socialist has attracted huge crowds and national attention, with polls that show he is gaining on Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton. What is behind the buzz, and who in Chicago is behind him? Paris Schutz joins us with that story.

We share what you had to say about some of our recent stories when we read viewer feedback from the Chicago Tonight website, and our Facebook and Twitter pages.

From NBA legend Michael Jordan’s lawsuit against Dominick’s to the end of CPS’ pension pickup for non-union workers, Joel Weisman and his panel have your week in review.

Were you watching this week? Test your knowledge with these six questions.

Should downstate and suburban school districts pay the hundreds of millions in costs to fund their teacher pensions? A group of Chicago area state lawmakers say yes. They say it’s a better way to level the playing field between Chicago and other school districts. But not everyone is on board.

For the third day in a row, China devalued its currency. That devaluation led to jitters in financial markets around the globe. Since Monday, the Dow Jones alone has fallen 500 points. Join us for a panel discussion on the economy with Michael Miller, associate professor at the Driehaus College of Buisiness at DePaul University; and Edward Stuart, professor emeritus of economics at Northeastern Illinois University.

Recent reports in science journals point to a mass extinction currently underway. Field Museum senior conservation ecologist Doug Stotz joins us to discuss the phenomenon and his work in South America with the museum's Science Action Center. He'll also share specimens of extinct birds from the Field collection, including the passenger pigeon and the Carolina parakeet.

Next month, Chicago will host the 11th annual Great Lakes Restoration Conference. The gathering is expected to attract some 700 government, industry, and environmental activists. Among the topics on the agenda: Toxic algae blooms, an issue that could impact drinking water and the multimillion dollar economies dependent on the Great Lakes. Christy McDonald of our sister station, Detroit Public TV, reports.

We discuss the touring production “Crime Scene: Breathe Life” with Collaboraction artistic director Anthony Moseley and performer Sir Taylor.

Geoffrey Baer visits an artist under glass, gets that sinking feeling at a Jackson Park garden, and reveals the hej hej history of the Andersonville neighborhood's name.

We share what you had to say about some of our recent stories when we read viewer feedback from the Chicago Tonight website, and our Facebook and Twitter pages.

From a free outdoor horror show to '80s fashion finds to aerial feats along the lakefront, we've got your weekend picks.