Stories by Blair Paddock

Thursday marks the 55th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act. Where the fight for ballot access goes next.

Ridership across CTA trains and buses, Metra commuter trains and Pace buses are down about 70% compared to this time last year. With that dramatic decline in ridership comes lower revenue and strains on operational funding.

The Trump administration on Thursday rescinded its warnings to Americans against all international travel because of the coronavirus pandemic, saying conditions no longer warrant a blanket worldwide alert. 

The pandemic is forcing Special Olympics Illinois to conduct their annual Duck Derby a little bit differently this year. But there is one tradition that remains the same.  

So far this year, 21 pedestrians have been killed by drivers, according to city data and media reports. That puts Chicago on pace to match last year’s 40 pedestrian deaths

Geoffrey Baer shares the history of Chicago’s original tiny houses – coach houses – in this installment of Ask Geoffrey. 

The Cook County College Teachers Union Local 1600, which represents nearly 2,000 CCC staffers, has an emergency meeting Friday to discuss a no-confidence vote, which could lead to a safety strike later this month.

Watch the Aug. 6, 2020 full episode of “Chicago Tonight.”

It is the 20th straight week that at least 1 million people have sought jobless aid. Before the pandemic hit hard in March, the number of Americans seeking unemployment checks had never surpassed 700,000 in a week.

Shedd Aquarium volunteer Betty Goldberg took citizen science to the next level, contributing a massive number of hours to a global survey of reef sharks. 

A major clean energy package had been one of Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s goals for 2020, but that got pushed aside because of the pandemic, and waylaid after a bribery scheme involving Commonwealth Edison came to light.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced Wednesday that Chicago Public Schools is moving to a fully remote schedule this fall. Our politics team of Amanda Vinicky, Paris Schutz and Heather Cherone digs into that story and more in this week’s roundtable.

A central Illinois congressman who’d planned to spend all week touring communities across his district will instead finish it in self-isolation after testing positive Wednesday for COVID-19.

Is it time to abolish, or radically alter the way history is taught in Illinois schools? A debate over how the subject is taught.

More African Americans in Cook County have died by suicide this year than during all of 2019, with a notable increase among young people, according to county officials. “This is horrifying,” Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle said.

Advocates hosted a virtual candlelight vigil Wednesday morning to honor Aaron Curry, who was killed last month while living in Grant Park, and to call on the city of Chicago to dedicate an additional $100 million annually to housing resources. 

Chicago officials have begun using the state’s method to calculate the single most important benchmark for tracking the spread of the coronavirus — positivity rates — as confirmed cases of the virus continue to rise statewide.

With coronavirus cases rising, Gov. J.B. Pritzker implored local officials to take action to stop the spread of the virus and warned if they don’t, more stringent regulations could be on the way, including another stay-at-home order. 

Joe Biden will not travel to Milwaukee to accept the Democratic presidential nomination because of concerns over the coronavirus, party officials said Wednesday, signaling a move to a convention that essentially has become entirely virtual.

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

Chicago Public Schools will start the school year on Sept. 8 the same way they ended the last academic year — with all students taking classes remotely, officials announced Wednesday.

A massive explosion rocked Beirut on Tuesday, flattening much of the city’s port, damaging buildings across the capital and sending a giant mushroom cloud into the sky. 

Voting by mail in Illinois isn’t new, but amid the pandemic, the state is encouraging voters to cast their ballots by mail rather than in person. But how do you go about that — and is it safe? Here’s what you need to know.

When a local real estate agent decided to commission a mural, he chose to include a prominent figure who has made history as the first black woman to become mayor of Chicago. We visit South Shore for a look.

Sources tell WTTW News that CPS will announce an all-remote learning plan for the fall as soon as Wednesday, reversing plans for a hybrid model of at-home and in-person learning. Two Chicago aldermen weigh in on this and more.

What will life, concerts, the workplace and education look like in a post-COVID-19 world? A futurist and a University of Chicago epidemiologist weigh in.