WBEZ News

Officer Carlos Baker - the Chicago police officer who fatally shot his tactical team partner during a foot chase last year - was initially blocked from joining the team due to his disciplinary history. That's according to new records obtained by the Illinois Answers Project and the Chicago Sun-Times. The records show the decision to keep Baker off the tactical team was reversed less than a year la...

Chicago is BUZZING with Bears pride. And one of the tell-tale signs of a fan is the jersey … HOST: LANE

The holidays may be over, but coquito, the traditional Puerto Rican holiday drink, is keeping the festive spirit going well into January. For the third year, nonprofit Tales of the Cocktail has partnered with Bacardí to run a contest seeking the best coquito in Chicago. HOST: LANE

The Trump Administration is using a legal shortcut to make it easier to cut down trees in national forests. Illinois’ Shawnee National Forest, the state’s only national forest, is an early battleground against the increasingly popular tactic to fast track timber sales across the country. HOST: LANE

2026 will bring several big names to Chicago stages. And while Chicago always has a constant hum of performances, there are some big tickets on the horizon. HOST: LANE

The Chicago Bears are heading into the playoffs tonight with a game against their arch nemesis Green Bay Packers at Soldier Field. Before the big game, we caught up with a Bears superfan, also known as Bear Man. HOST: PUENTE

If you heard a thunderous roar in Chicago Saturday night – it wasn’t an earthquake. It was Bears fans – overcome with excitement over a historic come-from-behind victory in the Wild Card playoff game against the Green Bay Packers. The final score: 31-27 - and the Bears first playoff win in 15 years. HOST: LABUZ

After winning the N-F-C North for the first time since 20-18, the Chicago Bears have the city buzzing, as they’ll open the playoffs at Soldier Field tomorrow (SAT) night. As if that’s not enough, they’re going up against their most heated rival – the Green Bay Packers. Here to break down the matchup is WBEZ sports contributor Cheryl Raye-Stout. HOST: LARA

Yesterday’s (WED) shooting of an unarmed Minneapolis woman by an immigration enforcement agent is reverberating across the country. The shooting resembles two shootings during the Chicago area’s deportation campaign this past fall. And the response from the Department of Homeland Security yesterday (WED) follows the same playbook used here. WBEZ reporter Chip Mitchell has been reviewing hundreds o...

The Carl Sandburg poem “Chicago” has been a beloved local anthem for more than a century. But the poem is making the rounds again. That’s because a federal judge read it aloud … in its entirety … in a court ruling amid the Trump administration’s deportation campaign in the city. As a new year begins, WBEZ’s arts desk asked some well-known Chicagoans to recite it. You may hear a famous author, a ma...

New Year's resolutions are in full swing, and many people have committed to Dry January or year-round sobriety. A Gallup survey from 20-24 shows alcohol consumption is at its lowest point in almost 90 years in the U.S. That’s leading to a boom in the non-alcoholic drink industry. HOST: LANE

Pape, an international security affairs and political violence expert, shared four key takeaways in conversation with WBEZ's Sasha-Ann Simons on 'In the Loop' Monday.

When Russia’s invasion of Ukraine forced millions from their homes, many people were given temporary refuge in the U.S. But as the war in Ukraine drags on, some people are now caught up in the Trump administration’s deportation blitz. That includes one Illinois resident who is awaiting his final removal hearing. WBEZ’s Anna Savchenko tells the story of how he and his family fled Ukraine, only to f...

A good holiday party needs a solid soundtrack. Looking to refresh yours? WBEZ sister station Vocalo has added 20 new songs to its popular annual holiday playlist. It spans pop to jazz to hip-hop. Find the playlist — called “Holiday, the Vocalo Way” — on Vocalo.org or on Spotify. HOST: GÓMEZ-ALDANA

This holiday season, the Evanston Symphony Orchestra hosted a new kind of concert. The so-called “barrier-free” performance was designed for people with disabilities and their loved ones. HOST: LANE

In Chicago, where you live can dictate when you die. The biggest life expectancy gap between neighborhoods is 20 years, from West Garfield Park to the Loop. One of the solutions to closing this gap is playing out in Garfield Park. A son’s mission to turn around his mom’s health has become a community wide effort to help everyone live longer. WBEZ’s Kristen Schorsch takes us on a walk with the Peac...

Some cities are known for country music. Others for rap or rock. But Chicago has always been an eclectic music town. Artists here borrow from the city’s traditions of blues, jazz and soul. This year’s best local albums also blend genres and some transcend them. Here are some staff picks from WBEZ’s list of Best Chicago Albums of 2025. HOST: LANE

The holiday season is in full swing, which means there’s no time like the present to relax with a warm beverage and a good book. For a few recommendations, WBEZ’s arts and culture desk asked staff for their favorite books of 20-25. HOST: LANE

A state panel documenting alleged abuses by federal immigration agents held its first meeting yesterday (THURS). The Illinois Accountability Commission plans to interview witnesses and review bystander videos on social media. But those aren’t the only videos that exist. Last month a judge ordered the release of more than 40 hours of body camera footage the agents themselves recorded. HOST: LANE

In the U.S., Black men who start college are up against a huge deficit of resources when it comes to finishing, and getting their degree. You can see that play out in the majority-Black Austin neighborhood on Chicago’s West Side, where just one in four who make it to campus graduate within six years. That rate is much lower than it is for white college students from across the city. WBEZ’s Lisa Ku...

It is a truth universally acknowledged… that a single fan of the novelist Jane Austen… must be in want of a way to celebrate her 250th birthday. Well, WBEZ producer Lauren Frost is one of those fans. She found events celebrating the British author all over the Chicago region this week… But perhaps the most grand was a Regency ball – complete with a string quartet, historical snacks, and dancers in...

If you've been shopping recently, you may have noticed signs posted at registers explaining that stores may no longer provide pennies when giving change. That's because the U.S. Mint made its final circulating penny last month- marking the end of a 232-year production run of the coin. HOST: LANE

A southwest side high school has long had a club to support students without legal status and to raise money to help them go to college. But this year with immigration enforcement tearing families apart, the club has changed course. HOST: LANE

The “Real Housewives” franchise has been in the ethos of pop culture for nearly two decades. The lives of wealthy divas from Atlanta to Dubai, have been on display in this reality tv juggernaut. This winter, a Chicago theater company created its own holiday-inspired version. The Real Housewives of the North Pole. HOST: LANE

We’ll bring you the sounds from a program at Logan Correctional Center, a women's prison in Lincoln, Illinois, where incarcerated people there train service dogs that will one day assist their new owners with mobility or work in therapy settings.