In the Loop (Segments)

Have you noticed your Gmail account accumulating more junk mail? We have. Reset gets some spam banishing tips from a tech reporter.

Chicago restaurants are now banned from giving customers unsolicited plasticware, napkins and condiment packets under a new law that went into effect Tuesday. Reset checks in with the lead sponsor of the ordinance and a local organization that’s working to reduce our dependency on single-use plastic and promote alternatives that are better for the environment.

If comedians pull from their pain, these past few years have given them a lot of material. Reset checks in with Second City about how they’ve gotten through this pandemic.

Last week, National Nurses United went on strike to protest working conditions that they say omicron has exacerbated. This is part two in our look at how the surge in cases and hospitalizations has been affecting nurses. Reset checks in with a career nurse who works in hospitals in Chicago and Northwest Indiana.

Reset discusses the New York Times declaring a suburban Chicago waterway as one of the “Best Places on Earth,” and its deep roots in African American history.

Chicago’s home for marine life is about to get a major boost. Through a new effort called the Centennial Commitment, the Shedd Aquarium is spending $500 million on a project that will, among other things, modernize and advance animal care. Reset shares what the project will entail and when visitors can expect to see changes.

As omicron cases continue to strain hospitals across the country, the U.S. Surgeon General is warning that the worst is yet to come. Here in Cook County, new data show that Black Chicagoans and suburban residents over 60 are dying at disproportionate rates and that unvaccinated Illinois residents are 22 times more likely to die than unvaccinated residents. Reset checks in with two WBEZ journalists...

The American Red Cross is warning of a national blood crisis. The organization says it’s facing its worst shortage in more than a decade. Reset learns more about what’s causing the shortage, how it’s impacting hospitals and what you can do to help.

Birth rates have dropped over the past few years in the U.S., and new data show the declines have become even sharper during the COVID-19 pandemic. Reset talks with experts on why numbers are dropping and how they might impact the economy and our way of life going forward.

As the omicron wave continues, Mayor Lori Lightfoot tests positive for COVID-19. Students return to classrooms this week after a standoff between the city and the Chicago Teachers Union. Plus, employees at the Art Institute of Chicago vote to form a union.

Newly released data shows that more young adults are taking jobs rather than enrolling in college, and that the pandemic gap year idea was a myth. Reset checks in with a reporter about the reasons for this and what some of the long-term effects of this might be on the economy.

For our latest “Food Friday” segment, Reset talks to Big Drop CEO Rob Fink about Dry January and the company’s non-alcoholic craft brews.

Some Chicago Public School students are planning a districtwide walkout today to protest the return to in-person classes. Reset checks in with WBEZ education reporter Susie An, on the ground at Lane Tech High School.

Pure Oil gas stations and their unique architecture are being repurposed all over the Chicago area.

A new coffee shop in Pilsen is giving students hands-on business experience — and it happens to be inside a church. Reset learns more about Holy Grounds at St. Paul Church and a nonprofit that focuses on youth workforce development in Chicago.

Here are the top things to know about Chicago’s new domestic workers ordinance.

If you’ve been watching HBO’s post-apocalyptic pandemic drama Station Eleven, set and filmed in Chicago, you’ve probably noticed that the line between fact and fiction has gotten really blurry. Reset talks with the former Chicagoan who brought Station Eleven to life.

Last year gave us so many great tunes we still can’t get out of our heads, so what’s next? Reset talks through some of our favorites and which will be the earworms of 2022.

The Omicron variant and the holidays led to high demand for COVID tests that were in limited supply, driving people to their second, or third or fourth choice location for getting tested. Reset checks in with a reporter who has been covering this and digs into what you need to know before you head out for a COVID test.

In Illinois, 1.1 million low-income families do not have access to a computer. Across the country, four in 10 adults with low incomes face the same barrier. PCs for People wants to fix that by offering affordable computers and mobile internet service to low-income individuals and families in Chicago and beyond. For our weekly series “Chicago Innovators,” Reset checks in with the national nonprofit...

Mayor Lori Lightfoot has tapped attorney and longtime police reform advocate Adam Gross to lead the city’s new Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability. Reset checks in with WBEZ’s Patrick Smith to learn more about the new oversight board.

A new report from Propublica Illinois finds that Black and Latinx neighborhoods get hit the hardest by tickets issued through red-light and speed traffic cameras. And the pandemic only widens the gap. Reset talks to the ProPublica Illinois reporters behind the report to break down the data.

The pandemic has created work situations we constantly have to adjust and re-adjust to. Reset talks with a Washington Post reporter on how to build connections at work and what to consider when going back to the office.

School counselors and social workers were among the CPS staff who have been locked out of the google classroom by Mayor Lightfoot in the past week, during the standoff between the Chicago Teachers Union and Chicago Public Schools. Reset checks in with a counselor and social worker from a North Side CPS school about how the lockout has impacted their work.

Reset laughs it up with Chicago comedian Lisa Beasley. Her latest bit pokes fun at Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s response to Chicago Public Schools teachers’ concerns over in-person teaching during the omicron wave.