In the Loop (Segments)

In honor of National Black Business Month, Reset puts the spotlight on Mark Walker of Oooh Wee! It Is!, a soul food restaurant with two locations on the Southside. Plus, the president of the Illinois State Black Chamber of Commerce talks about the history of Black business in the state.

More employers are mandating their employees get vaccinated, and with the news of the Pfizer vaccine gaining full FDA approval, some companies may see a new wave of religious exemption claims. Reset explores what this could mean for employers and workers moving forward.

The White Sox continue their rise and race towards the playoffs while the Cubs continue to fall in record-breaking fashion. Plus, Bears rookie quarterback Justin Fields put some of his star potential on display Saturday, while his predecessor and opposing QB Mitch Trubisky had a pro bowl day against his former team. WBEZ sports contributor Cheryl Raye-Stout updates Reset on a busy sports weekend.

A new WBEZ report finds that “wealthier areas show much higher teen vaccination rates. With no immunization mandate, local districts face a season of uncertainty.” WBEZ education reporter Sarah Karp joins Reset to share data and insights from her conversations with parents, students, and school staff.

Starting Sept. 20, booster shots will be available in the U.S. New public guidance on boosters, masks and more comes as students — many unvaccinated — are returning in-person to the classroom, and as the Delta variant continues to spread. Reset turns to Dr. Mia Taormina for the latest public health guidance on boosters, schools and more.

This is the last weekend of the fair, so Reset checks in with the Department of Agriculture about what treats they recommend trying.

Nestor “The Boss” Gomez stuttered as a kid. Today, he’s won more than 60 storytelling championships. Reset talks to Gomez about his favorite story he’s ever told, his series of immigration stories and his new book, Your Driver Has Arrived, about his time working for Uber.

Chicago’s Fraternal Order of Police made it clear last year that any of its officers who participated in taking a knee with the Black Lives Matter Movement would face discipline up to and including expulsion from the union. Yet, news about the union defending a white Chicago officer who participated in the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol raised the question of a double standard. A CPD offi...

WBEZ race, class and communities reporter Natalie Moore is in Finland for a two-and-a-half week reporting trip to explore the country’s open prison system. Reset checks in with Moore to hear how the trip’s going, and what she’s learned so far.

The first of R. Kelly’s two criminal trials gets underway in New York. Charges against the R&B singer include sex trafficking, kidnaping and forced labor. Reset talks to the journalist whose years of in-depth reporting exposed Kelly’s illicit behavior.

While world powers question how to move forward with the Taliban’s rise to power in Afghanistan, social media giants have to decide what they’ll do about the group’s presence online.

Commuters have slowly been returning to public transportation after a year-long pandemic slump. But will Chicago requiring masks again indoors put the brakes on that? Will the Delta variant drive down ridership numbers again? Reset hears from the Chicago Transit Authority about safety protocols, as well as rider and driver anxiety during COVID.

A new report examines how climate change is projected to quadruple the exposure of the roughly 32 million U.S. outdoor workers to hazardous heat conditions, while jeopardizing their health and earnings. Rachel Licker of the Union of Concerned Scientists joins Reset to discuss her new co-authored report, “Too Hot to Work: Assessing the Threats Climate Change Poses to Outdoor Workers.”

Reset checks in with WBEZ sports contributor Cheryl Raye-Stout for an update on our favorite Chicago teams.

A new Illinois law aims to prevent hair discrimination in schools. Starting Jan. 1, schools will not be allowed to have dress code and uniform policies on hairstyles historically associated with race or ethnicity. Reset discusses what this move means for students and families across the state, and why it’s important to teach children to take pride in their hair and culture.

Chicago’s Haitian-American community responds to Saturday’s earthquake, killing more than 1,400 in the southern region of Haiti. Reset finds out how Chicagoans can best help those in Haiti.

Julie Rodgers served as conservative Christian Wheaton College’s first openly gay hire. She had participated in and advocated for gay conversion therapy. Rodgers joins Reset to discuss her mea culpa through her forthcoming memoir and starring role in the new Netflix documentary, Pray Away.

Researchers estimate between 10 and 30% of COVID-19 patients develop long-term symptoms like headaches, muscle pain and brain fog. But there’s still so much we don’t know about the long-term effects of the virus. Reset checks in with two physicians who work with COVID long haulers and a patient with lingering symptoms.

The U.S. birth rate dropped again in 2020 and the pandemic might be speeding up the decline, according to the latest federal data. Last year marked the sixth consecutive year the number of births has fallen in the country. Reset talks to a historian and opens the phones to listeners to discuss why more women in the U.S. are having fewer children, delaying motherhood or deciding not to have childre...

Rick Klein, curator of the Museum of Classic Chicago Television, joins Reset to explain his mission to save vintage local TV shows and commercials before they’re gone forever.

While hot temperatures in Chicago drop ever so slowly, the housing market is cooling off pretty quick. Reset checks in with a residential real estate reporter for the latest developments in Chicago’s housing market.

Chaotic scenes erupted at the airport in Kabul as hundreds of people clung to a U.S. aircraft departing the capital. But as a desperation to flee the country seizes countless Afghans, the question remains: Where will they go? And what role will the U.S. play in aiding refugees? Reset checks in with a refugee resettlement agency that has previously resettled Afghans in the Chicago area.

As the city mourns a slain officer, relations between the Mayor and police worsen. Chicago’s business community calls for mandatory vaccines as the city expands its COVID travel advisory. Reset goes behind the week’s headlines in the Weekly News Recap.

We talked to listeners and Reset’s resident dating coach, Bela Gandhi, to hear how people have changed their approach to dating over the past 18 months.

Food reporter and author Steve Dolinsky is bringing his expertise to NBC-5 and rebranding as “The Food Guy” for a new weekly series that explores restaurants and dining trends across the city and suburbs. Reset checks in with the 13-time James Beard Award to discuss his new role and get recommendations on what to eat this weekend.