In the Loop (Segments)

Chicago could benefit greatly from President Joe Biden's $1 trillion infrastructure bill, with money needed to modernize Union Station, replace lead water pipes, extend the Red Line and much more.

A string of losses in June prompted Cubs owners to trade key players of the team that helped win the 2016 World Series for a crop of young, new athletes. Reset digs into what’s next for the Chicago baseball team.

Hundreds of thousands descend on Chicago for Lollapalooza as indoor mask mandates resume. Plus, Chicago Police come to a tentative agreement with the city on a new contract. Reset goes behind the headlines of the week’s news.

Reset brings on University of Illinois Chancellor Robert Jones to discuss his push to achieve greater education access and equity. Jones spoke before a Congressional subcommittee Thursday, arguing that it’s time to double a form of federal aid called the Pell Grant so more low-income students can have a shot at a college education.

Lollapalooza asked fans arriving for the festival to bring a copy of their COVID vaccination card or negative test results. Time Out Chicago editor Zach Long joins Reset to tell us what that looked like, and more about the lineup.

Illinois is now the second state to completely reverse its HIV criminalization law. Gov. JB Pritzker repealed the 32-year-old statute Tuesday, when he signed three other bills into law that aim to advance the rights of the LGBTQ+ community. Reset discusses what this move means for the state and those impacted by HIV criminalization.

Reset brings on co-hosts Sara Faddah and Dario Durham to discuss their new podcast, 77 Flavors of Chicago. Each episode will follow the real-life couple as they explore the city’s neighborhoods through food.

Defending champion Simone Biles withdrew from Olympic competition this week, sending shock waves around the world. Many praised the American gymnastics superstar for prioritizing her mental health and well-being at Tokyo 2020, while others criticized her decision to step down. Reset talks to a licensed clinical psychologist who researches Black women’s mental health about Biles’ radical act of sel...

Chicagoan and blues legend Buddy Guy is turning 85 years old. He’s the subject of a new PBS documentary called “Buddy Guy: The Blues Chase The Blues Away.” Reset meets Chicago blues musicians Joanna Connor and Dave Specter to hear about Guy’s impact and influence on other Chicago artists.

From COVID-19 to the heat to athletes being open about the mental strain of performing at the highest level, the Tokyo olympics have been anything but ordinary. Reset checks in with Stacy St. Clair, reporting live from Japan.

After protests over $1.5 million in proposed budget cuts, the Niles-Maine Library board voted last week to retain current staffing levels and building hours. But a coalition of community members says it’s not enough. Reset discusses what’s next for the Niles Coalition, which organized the #SaveNilesLibrary campaign, and what the future holds for the funding of libraries.

As aspiring weed dispensary owners in Illinois inch closer to obtaining a license to sell, Reset talks to a Chicago Sun-Times reporter about the lottery process, and hears from a local budtender.

It’s been four years since Chicago police officers got a new contract. Former mayoral candidate and Chicago Public Schools CEO Paul Vallas was instrumental in negotiations between the Fraternal Order of Police and the city’s negotiating team. Reset gets details on the new police union contract from negotiator Paul Vallas.

As the CDC cautions against unmasked gatherings indoors within COVID hotspots, Chicago prepares to welcome hundreds of thousands of music fans to Lollapalooza. One of the city’s top doctors weighs in.

Reset checks in with The Washington Post for the latest on what social media giants like Facebook and YouTube are doing to fight the spread of COVID misinformation.

The training ground for everyone from John Belushi to Tina Fey to Stephen Colbert found its own culture taking center stage, but accusations of discrimination were no joke. Second City was facing a racial reckoning, questioning its long revered culture of comedy and creativity. Reset puts the spotlight on improv artist and playwright Jon Carr, executive producer of Second City.

Collective effervescence — the feeling of joy we get from group activities — has been largely missing during the pandemic. Reset asks listeners how they’ve been getting together now that reopening is in full swing.

The pandemic has given us a lot of time to think. So how do we make decisions and what shapes our judgment? A new discovery center in downtown Chicago allows visitors to explore these questions and participate in groundbreaking research. Reset talks to one of the behavioral psychologists behind Mindworks to discuss the interactive space and his ongoing studies on social cognition.

As the Americans With Disabilities Act marks its 31st anniversary this week, Reset takes a closer look at what progress has been made in the advancement of civil rights for people with disabilities — and what work still needs to be done.

District officials want kids back in classrooms on Aug. 30, but some parents aren’t so sure.

Last June, three months into the pandemic, iO Theater’s co-founder Charna Halpern announced that the theater would have to close down permanently. In a recent turn of events, however, iO has found a new set of owners that want to preserve its legacy. Reset talks to Halpern about what the future holds for the Chicago improv mainstay.

Reset checks in with an infectious disease specialist to answer your latest COVID-19 questions as cases continue rising across Chicago and Illinois. GUEST: Dr. Mia Taormina, infectious disease specialist with DuPage Medical Group

Joe Mansueto, the billionaire founder of Morningstar, continues to look for investments in Chicago, its people and its neighborhoods. Reset talks to Mansueto about the many ways he’s working to raise up a city others have given up on.

Stanford political scientist Terry Moe argues that, while urban school systems are in desperate need of innovative reforms, productive change is often blocked by stiff resistance from education's vested interests — notably, teachers unions and school boards. Moe joins Reset for the latest installment of our series “Re-imagine Chicago.”

Chicago’s nearly a year into Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s ambitious plan to combat violence in the city’s highest crime neighborhoods. Yet, so far this year, shootings are up 10% compared with the same period of 2020. Reset looks at whether communities have benefited from the mayor’s “Our City, Our Safety” plan.