Stories by Heather Cherone

The warning about the increase in confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Indiana is designed to give Chicagoans who routinely cross the border time to prepare for the state to join the other 22 states now on the quarantine order, officials said.

Matthew Beaudet would become the first Native American commissioner in the city’s history. “I’m humbled by it,” Beaudet told WTTW News before his confirmation hearing.

In an op-ed, DePaul University history professor Tom Mockaitis says the president’s failure last week to recognize and condemn violent, far-right groups like the Proud Boys could encourage clashes on Nov. 3.

Efforts to transform a Northwest Side tax program created in the 1980s amid the racist panic that greeted the election of Chicago’s first Black mayor are stalled — nearly two years after new leadership promised a fresh start.

A plan to transform a long-vacant lot in Jefferson Park into an apartment complex that reignited the furious debate surrounding Chicago’s massive affordable housing shortfall faces a key vote Tuesday.

President Donald Trump staged a dramatic return to the White House Monday night after leaving the military hospital where he has been receiving an unprecedented level of care for COVID-19.

Nearly a dozen of President Trump’s allies and team members have tested positive for the coronavirus just four weeks ahead of the election. We discuss the potential political fallout of the president’s diagnosis.

Jimmy Carter, who served just a single term in the White House, is widely seen as a model ex-president but largely unsuccessful president. Now, the 96-year-old is the subject of a full-length, independent biography.

The possibility for high school students to play all fall sports is again at a standstill. We discuss the situation with a student, a lawyer and a doctor.

After a developer purchased a neighborhood plaza earlier this year, some residents and business owners are concerned the fabric of the community — known as the epicenter of Mexican culture and commerce for the entire Midwest — could be at risk.

The head of the board handling the Chicago Teachers Union’s pension fund disclosed a toxic culture among trustees and claimed some union members had been pushing to hire former staffers of Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan.

There’s still a lot that scientists don’t understand about what makes trees tick, especially when it comes to fall color. A team at the Morton Arboretum is working to unlock those secrets.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot said the plan she sends to the Chicago City Council will not count on the federal government sending additional relief funds to the city. 

Here’s a rarity in the downtown office market amid the pandemic: a company secures a sublease for its office space. Crain’s Chicago Business Editor Ann Dwyer joins us with that story and more.

Watch the Oct. 5, 2020 full episode of “Chicago Tonight.”

President Donald Trump said Monday he’s leaving the military hospital where he has been treated for COVID-19 and will continue his recovery at the White House. He said he’s feeling good and the nation should not be afraid of the virus.

Local leaders say formally acknowledging the role racism plays not just in health care but in housing, the environment, policing and food access is a bold step. But what the declarations do to address systemic inequalities vary widely.

“While we’re very, very conscious that people want to get their kids back in schools, we want to be back in school too,” CTU President Jesse Sharkey said Monday. “It’s also critical that people be safe. You can’t learn if you’re dead.”

Infected and contagious, President Donald Trump briefly ventured out in a motorcade on Sunday to salute cheering supporters, a move that disregarded precautions meant to contain the deadly virus that has forced his hospitalization.

It looked a little different this year due to the coronavirus, but an independent zine fest brought a steady stream of customers, vendors and artists together Sunday to experience art in person, some for the first time since March. 

Why some Black voters say more Black Americans should support President Trump. Colon cancer screenings in the Black community. And the special way South Shore neighbors are making their voices heard.

About 10%-15% of Chicago voters cast their ballots for the GOP. Republicans are even harder to find in the Black community, but they do exist — and they say they’d like to see more Black support for President Donald Trump.

Early voting is underway at the city’s downtown “super site” and another 50 neighborhood locations. Here’s everything you need to know.

State health officials reported 1,453 new cases of the coronavirus Sunday and 17 additional deaths, bringing statewide totals to 301,541 cases and 8,791 deaths since the first infection was reported in Illinois in late January.

Two Republican members of the Senate Judiciary Committee have tested positive for the coronavirus, raising questions about the timing of Supreme Court confirmation hearings for Judge Amy Coney Barrett.

Chicago-based artist Raychel Steinbach has designed a series of prints that celebrate individual Illinois state parks. Now she’s using the same imagery, inspired by places like Starved Rock and Moraine Hills, in a line of handmade masks.