Stories by Josh Terry

Every Thursday, WTTW News newsletter producer Josh Terry highlights his picks for the week’s must-see cultural events.

Susana Mendoza enters the race for Chicago mayor. And we sit down with House Republican leader Tony McCombie.

“I believe government should answer to the people it serves, not political insiders or special interests,” Mendoza said in a video announcing her campaign. “Because Chicagoans are tired of paying more and getting less, tired of politics that divides people without solving problems.”

State Republican leaders criticized the General Assembly session schedule and new taxes in this year’s budget. But they saw progress in their overall inclusion in budget talks, and also advanced several pieces of bipartisan legislation.

The $56 billion spending plan awaiting Gov. JB Pritzker’s signature explicitly prohibits the City Council from imposing a version of the tax that would send new revenue into the city’s cash-strapped coffers.

A ceremonial groundbreaking was held Wednesday afternoon for a $7 billion project that aims to overhaul the area surrounding the United Center on the Near West Side.

On the standard cover, Williams is depicted in a body position similar to his pivotal, scrambling, fourth-and-8 jump pass to Rome Odunze in a stirring comeback victory over Green Bay in a wild card playoff game on Jan. 10.

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

A sit-down with Illinois’ House speaker. And growing calls for Chicago’s U.S. attorney to step down.

Shantay Bolton was appointed the 11th president and CEO of Columbia College Chicago at what she calls a “pivotal moment” for the school. Bolton, who is the first woman of color to lead the minority-serving institution, inherits a campus that has seen enrollment steadily decline over the last decade.

It was well past 4 a.m. Monday when the Illinois House of Representatives adjourned for the summer. The budget had been balanced, and a flurry of bills were sent to the governor’s desk. But a busy finish to the spring session left some of the biggest decisions until the very end.

Defense attorneys filed a motion through which they will seek to recoup attorneys' fees for the now-former defendants, days after Chicago’s U.S. Attorney Andrew Boutros announced his office had dismissed all charges in the controversial case.

Gov. JB Pritzker says he intends to sign legislation imposing a statewide ban on cellphones and other wireless communication devices during instructional time in public schools and charter schools.

U.S. Attorney Andrew Boutros has acknowledged he did speak to grand jurors the day they returned an indictment in the “Broadview Six” case, but claimed he only did so to provide “general comments” about the need for grand jurors to be fair and impartial.

The pontiff reiterates throughout “Magnifica Humanitas” that it is the church’s responsibility to engage contemporary questions and challenges.

U.S. Sens. Tammy Duckworth and Dick Durbin issued a joint statement on Tuesday morning, joining the growing calls for Boutros — a Trump administration appointee — to step down.

From the budget to the Bears, breaking down the legislative session in Springfield. And the latest in peace talks between the U.S. and Iran as the war continues.

Mayor Brandon Johnson took a victory lap Monday, hours after the General Assembly passed a $56 billion budget that authorizes the Chicago City Council to impose a tax on digital advertisements seen by Chicagoans.

The nominal ceasefire between Iran and the U.S. has been repeatedly tested with such back-and-forth attacks, even as officials from both countries try to negotiate an end to the war.

Hours after Illinois lawmakers failed to approve a stadium incentives structure aimed at keeping the Chicago Bears in Illinois, Gov. JB Pritzker acknowledged that the “pride and joy of Illinois” may take a deal to build a football palace in Indiana.

While a number of high-profile bills failed to garner enough support during the spring session of the Illinois General Assembly, the designation of an official state bee sailed through both the House and Senate.

House Bill 5090 would regulate how rideshare drivers can form a union, elect union representatives and engage in union activities such as collective bargaining.

Admire the creativity of the region's green thumbs and discover inspiration on garden walks, hosted by neighborhood associations and garden clubs across the area.

A man has been arrested in the sexual assault of a 29-year-old woman in LaBagh Woods on May 23.

The budget totals $55.9 billion, supported by a similar amount of revenue. The spending plan included an $830 million supplemental current-year spending plan, meaning the upcoming fiscal year 2027 budget is essentially flat.

Despite a Hail Mary heave from the Illinois Senate in the final hours of the spring legislative session, state lawmakers ultimately failed to reach the end zone on a bill incentivizing the Chicago Bears to build a new stadium in Illinois.