Stories by Matt Masterson

Northwestern officials say the university intends to fund at-risk research, days after the Trump administration announced plans to freeze nearly $800 million in federal funding.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker, Mayor Brandon Johnson and other public officials lauded the program after a Northwestern University study found that specific “hotspots” where peacekeepers have been deployed have seen drops of more than 40% in gun violence.

After nearly a year of bargaining, the Chicago Teachers Union is one step closer to finalizing a deal with Chicago Public Schools. The contract now needs approval from the Chicago Board of Education.

An effort to ban Jan. 6 participants from city jobs. What’s behind disparities in pregnancy-related deaths. And Stacy Davis Gates on the new CTU contract.

New research shows the rate of women dying from pregnancy-related medical conditions has worsened in recent years. And Black women are three times as likely to die of such an illness as White women.

Kat Abughazaleh’s campaign reported just $3,250 in contributions of more than $200 from people who live in the 9th Congressional District, less than 1% of the total amount raised by the campaign, federal records show.

Between Easter, Passover and 4/20, there will be a lot of foodstuffs consumed this weekend. But bread alone won’t sustain you, so make a meal for your mind in Chicago’s cultural kitchen.

Analog communication is having a moment, ironically thanks to digital platforms where people share product info and connect over their shared love of stationery.

The Illinois House gave its approval to legislation that would give high school athletes a limited right to compete in non-school events or on non-school teams during the same season in which they play for their school.

Many public defender offices in Illinois, especially in rural areas, are in desperate need of resources to provide adequate defense services.

President Donald Trump in January pardoned more than 1,500 people who were convicted of attacking the Capitol as part of an effort to overturn the 2020 election, including a former Chicago police officer.

Uptown People’s Law Center and Equip for Equality filed a class action lawsuit against IDOC Director Latoya Hughes on behalf of the nearly 13,000 people with mental illness in the state’s prisons — approximately 44% of the population.

Speaking at an Economic Club of Chicago luncheon Wednesday, Powell said that despite the instability, the nation’s economy is still in a “solid position,” in particular its labor market. But he acknowledged that while the rate of inflation is slowing, the sharp price increases consumers have faced over the last several years are still hitting Americans in their pocketbooks.

Health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s efforts to contain an epidemic in a tight-knit, religious community in West Texas have run counter to established public health strategies deployed to end past epidemics.

From a mother who lost her first-born baby, a son who never got to know his father, and a young man so badly injured that he still struggles to breathe, three decades have not healed the wounds from the Oklahoma City bombing on April 19, 1995.

Each Wednesday, WTTW News producer Josh Terry presents must-see live music shows from indie rock to jazz, country, hip-hop and more.

A war of words between Chicago’s mayor and the White House. And the Trump administration is targeting major law firms — we explore the constitutional questions it raises.

Some of the nation’s largest law firms have recently been faced with a stark choice — cooperate with the Trump administration or face punitive executive orders.

The 82-year-old Democrat has largely avoided speaking publicly since leaving the White House in January, which is typically the tradition for immediate past presidents.

Mayor Brandon Johnson said Tuesday that President Donald Trump’s efforts to strip federal funding from cities like Chicago with laws on the books designed to protect undocumented immigrants amount to “terrorism” and vowed again to fight the federal government.

President Donald Trump is forging ahead with his aggressive tariff campaign, moving on from “reciprocal” tariffs to the sector-specific tariffs he promised.

House Bill 2627, sponsored by state Rep. Joyce Mason, D-Gurnee, would regulate the mink industry at the state level, creating mink farm licensing and requirements. But proponents and opponents have two vastly different opinions on what the bill really aims to do.

ER boarding is a symptom of the U.S. health care system’s struggles, including shrinking points of entry for patients seeking care outside of ERs and hospitals prioritizing beds for procedures insurance companies often pay more for.

“Look, we have inherited quite the mess,” Mayor Brandon Johnson said, emphasizing that many of the lawsuits allege misconduct that occurred decades ago.

A new 4K restoration of Filipino director Lino Brocka’s film “Bona” will make its Chicago premiere at the Gene Siskel Film Center on April 21. The screening will be introduced by University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign professor José Capino, whose research contributions led to the film’s restoration.

While the IRS has already received a majority of the 2024 federal income tax returns typically filed by Tax Day — 101.422 million as of April 4, to be precise — U.S. tax filers are expected to send in tens of millions more by today.