After nearly three decades at “Chicago Tonight,” Phil Ponce ends his regular appearances on the program. We reflect on his career in journalism and his leadership role in the WTTW newsroom.

Congressional leaders and a media advocacy group are urging the Federal Communications Commission to examine how policy decisions and programs have disparately harmed Black Americans and other communities of color.

Dozens of talented journalists are leaving the Chicago Tribune after its new owner, Alden Global Capital, offered employees voluntary buyouts. Among those who have announced their departure are some of the newspaper’s most notable columnists. 

A trove of leaked IRS tax returns analyzed by ProPublica reveals America’s richest billionaires — including Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos — often pay little to no income tax.

The Justice Department said Saturday that it no longer will secretly obtain reporters’ records during leak investigations, a policy shift that abandons a practice decried by news organizations and press freedom groups.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot kicked off a firestorm of criticism when she announced that interviews about her second anniversary as mayor would only be given to reporters of color. We speak with leaders of local journalist associations on the role of diversity in newsrooms.

Karine Jean-Pierre on Wednesday became the first openly gay woman to deliver the White House press briefing and only the second Black woman in history to take on the role.

Shareholders of Tribune Publishing, one of the country’s largest newspaper chains, approved a $630 million takeover bid by hedge fund Alden Global Capital on Friday, the company said in a brief statement.

Journalist and activist Ida B. Wells took great risks to expose the horrors of racism and fight injustice through her investigative writings. Wells’ life and groundbreaking work are the subject of a new WTTW Chicago Stories documentary airing Friday.

Israel slammed the Gaza Strip with airstrikes on Saturday, in a dramatic escalation that included bombing the home of a senior Hamas leader, killing a family of 10 in a refugee camp — most of them children — and pulverizing a high-rise that housed The Associated Press and other media.

A new WBEZ series examines how Chicago’s institutions interact with its residents. Sasha-Ann Simons, the station’s new host of “Reset,” joins us.

Newton Minow, a former chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, played a key role in public media. Here’s what he thinks about television today — six decades after his famous “vast wasteland” speech.

Chicago is again facing the stark reality of a fatal police shooting of a young person. Every news organization must decide how to best handle such sensitive material as it reports a story. Here’s how we’ve handled in on “Chicago Tonight” and online.

Over the past year, news coverage about traumatic topics like the pandemic and fatal police shootings have caused many to feel burnt out. Is there a balance between staying informed and not feeling overwhelmed by distressing stories?

The clock is nearing midnight for the Chicago Tribune and efforts to prevent a takeover from controversial hedge fund Alden Global Capital. WTTW News has learned there are still active talks behind the scenes to come up with a bid that could derail Alden’s plan.

After a three-week trial, former Minneapolis police Officer Derek Chauvin was found guilty of murdering George Floyd, a conviction President Joe Biden called “a giant step forward in the march toward justice in America.” We discuss the verdict, the reaction and what comes next with local journalists.