Stories by Alexandra Silets

Crain’s Chicago Business senior reporter Steve Daniels takes a closer look at the soaring cost of Peoples Gas' massive gas main replacement program and higher charges coming to Commonwealth Edison customers.

Christian Picciolini was once a neo-Nazi skinhead leader in Chicago. Today he runs an organization called Life After Hate. Jay Shefsky tells the story of Picciolini's remarkable transformation.

Armed with a fake wooden gun, the infamous gangster John Dillinger made a daring escape from the Crown Point County Jail in Northwest Indiana in 1934. More than 80 years later, Dillinger has returned to Crown Point. Joining us to discuss the new John Dillinger Museum is Speros Batistatos, president and CEO of the South Shore Convention and Visitors Authority.

There was heated debate at a City Council committee meeting Monday on whether or not to strip Illinois Film tax credits from Spike Lee's forthcoming film Chi-Raq. Some say the title validates gang culture while others fumed that aldermen have far better things to do with their time. Is the title Chi-Raq here to stay? 

A Cook County judge ruled Friday that Chicago's plan to change city workers’ pensions was unconstitutional. The city vows to appeal the decision. We look at the ruling, whether any pension reform can be constitutional, what the consequences are to the city's plummeting bond rating, and whether the city will have to raise taxes to cover the pension liability. 

Sunday marked the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Here to discuss the landmark legislation is Karen Tamley, commissioner of the Chicago Mayor's Office for Persons with Disabilities.

The American-born artist James McNeil Whistler had a profound impact on his 19th century European contemporaries. An exhibition at the Art Institute of Chicago looks at Whistler's artistic vision – and his influence on a little-known French artist held in high regard by curators and collectors.

National Medal of Science recipient May Berenbaum is an expert in the interaction of insects with plants, the founder of an annual insect-themed film festival, and the namesake of an X-Files character and new species of cockroach. She joins us on Chicago Tonight.

We share what you had to say about the continued debate over the title of Spike Lee’s new film Chi-Raq and the ongoing budget stalemate in Springfield.

When Layne Mosler hails a cab, she doesn't have a destination in mind. What her driver doesn't know is that Mosler's next stop will be his (or her) favorite restaurant. This strategy has led her to discover some of the best eats in cities across the globe, which she details on her blog Taxi Gourmet. Now, Mosler shares her adventures in her new book, Driving Hungry.

Mayor Emanuel and the city of Chicago are back to square one in efforts to resolve the funding crisis for two of the city's four pension funds, likely exacerbating the city's ongoing fiscal problems. 

Joel Weisman and his panel of journalists discuss this week’s top stores in politics, business, and sports.

Joel Weisman and his panel of journalists further discuss the Sandra Bland case, why some police officers treat African-American citizens different than whites, and the effectiveness of video surveillance devices.

Stock up on caffeine at CoffeeCon to keep you fueled for a weekend agenda that includes animal adoptions, cocktail celebrations, book browsing and commemoration of a defining moment in Chicago history. 

This month Mayor Rahm Emanuel says he plans to wind down seven Tax Increment Financing Districts located near downtown. Critics of the move say he’s hanging downtown out to dry, but others say this is a first step toward taxing transparency. We’ll hear from Crain’s Chicago Business columnist Greg Hinz and Tom Tresser of the TIF Illumination Project.

He famously called television a “vast wasteland," but Newton Minow's influence goes far beyond that iconic phrase. Geoffrey Baer sat down with Minow to talk about some current political issues.

Fifty years ago, a number of white suburban residents started a fair-housing movement called the North Shore Summer Project, and their work caught the attention of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Chicago Tonight’s Brandis Friedman takes a closer look at the movement – then and now – to diversify the area.

Is food printing tipped to become the killer app that puts 3-D printers in every kitchen? Rabiah Mayas is back to discuss printed pizza and other developments in the world of science.

Ant expert Sean Menke reviews Marvel Studios’ new superhero movie Ant-Man, which follows ex-con Scott Lang (played by Paul Rudd) as he saves the day by harnessing a super-secret particle that allows him to shrink. Menke joins us to talk about Ant-Man, the science behind the movie, and his extensive studies on the small insects.

Renée Fleming, creative consultant for the Lyric Opera of Chicago, discusses the upcoming season at the opera house which will feature an opera curated by her.

The summer of 2015 has been rife with financial complications for Chicago Public Schools. The district has long been in a billion dollar budget hole, and school board members today voted to approve taking on just over a billion dollars in additional debt. Chicago Tonight's Brandis Friedman joins us Wednesday with details.

Filming for Spike Lee’s new film Chi-Raq has wrapped up, but the debate over the film’s working title rages on. Next week, the City Council is expected to hold hearings on the film's controversial moniker.

Illinois Senate President John Cullerton is a key player in the state budget standoff. Yesterday, Gov. Rauner told reporters that the state would have a budget if it was up to him, Sen. Cullerton, and Mayor Rahm Emanuel. Today, what remained of the goodwill between Rauner and Democratic leaders seems to have evaporated. Paris Schutz has more.