All Episodes

1/2/26: "Red Line exceptions, plus: We NITA transit redo"

12/23/24: "Police workforce study: opacity, budget tricks, and clout"

9/11/24: "Cook County Assessor on Loop buildings: TIF tax gift makes a diff"

4/28/24: "Sigcho-Lopez protest invests colleagues' blitzkrieg"

3/1/24: "Chief cop-watcher and top cop spar at Police Board meeting"

2/3/24: "Top cop strongly defends Shotspotter at public meeting"

12/28/23: "Chicago Police sergeant: district station crumbling, flooding, and unhealthy for years"

12/4/23: "November council: sorrow, censure, and referenda"

10/6/23: "Sept. City Council takes shelter, chance on finance"

8/7/23: Police Consent Decree: toeing the line, or dragging their feet?

7/11/23: "Police staffing called out by community commission and mayor's transition report"

6/21/23: "Community stakeholders challenge police use-of-force training"

6/14/23: "May mayoral debut: dodge 'em, and maybe mayhem"

5/12/23: "Former inspector general: the rise and fall of training handbook for aldermen"

4/17/23: "March marvel: unruly council pulls rules"

4/3/23: "March City Council: failure to communicate"

3/2/23: "February council: TIF black box, Comm Ed shocks"

2/1/23: "What newly-elected aldermen need to know, and who might tell them"

1/4/23: "Aldermen spread Red bread at year's end"

12/15/22: "Ex-city budget analyst: real Chicago police cost exceeds 2023 budget by 75 percent"

11/29/22: "Aldermen's pique at Lightfoot's 2023 budget, nominations"

10/8/22: "Sept. council kicks former public-housing land to soccer billionaire"

9/12/22: "Effects of Pat Quinn's state House cut and cumulative voting quash"

8/8/22: "July City Council drags on speed, comment"

7/17/22: "June City Council: appointment, speed cam disappointment"

6/8/22: "Half-dozen May council sessions: contours, quorums, curfew, casino"

5/19/22: "Aldermen, after transit/gas plan blast, pass it"

4/9/22: "March council's safe bets and long shots"

3/12/22: "February City Council: land, honors, and justice"

2/17/22: "First 2022 City Council: unfinished business"

1/7/22: "End of year council: brawlers over dollars, lawyers"

12/28/21: "Council's legal appeal steels Beale"

12/4/21: "November City Council: careers, ward fears, mayor tears"

11/4/21: "October City Council: Inspector, gangs, and rules aplenty"

9/30/21: "September City Council: sins, forks, enforcement"

8/29/21: "New Ill. law means more low (and not so low) income housing"

8/8/21: "July City Council: recondite fight on police oversight"

7/19/21: "Pre-Independence Day, council not docile"

6/21/21: "May Council jostles housing, delays Drive strive"

5/18/21: "Cannabis and LSD trip up April City Council"

4/20/21: "India refuters, industry polluters grip March City Council"

3/19/21: "Ald. Andre Vasquez takes on gerrymandered, back-room ward remapping"

3/11/21: "February City Council: Who CARES about COVID-19 police costs?"

2/16/21: "Ward remap flap: Latino Caucus vs. Lightfoot"

2/9/21: "Crossing Metra on TIF, Council has tiffs on maps and carjacks"

1/9/21: "Aldermen abrade mayor, corrade layers of failed raid"

12/26/20: "Chicago inspector general: police reform hindered by key departures"

12/16/20: "Chicago 2021 budget vote: mayor players and naysayers"

11/17/20: "Paul Vallas on Chicago's 2021 budget--and beyond"

10/17/20: "How to vote for Cook County judges"

10/24/20: "October City Council: aldermen pump brakes on contracting and TIF"

10/6/20: "Aldermen arise and compromise in late summer councils"

9/23/20: "Ald. Anthony Beale: looting, Lightfoot, and attempts to 'silence our voice' "

8/5/20: "July City Council: landlords, landmarks, copwatch, and tribute"

7/4/20: "Aldermen trace race space in June council meeting"

6/6/20: "Slippery slopes and mayoral tropes mark May City Council"

5/6/20: "Lightfoot's council power push: beggars, blank checks, and speed bumps"

3/27/20: "Fire of aldermen's ire distracts from dire times"

3/3/20: "February City Council debate: how to lose a winner"

1/20/20: "City Council wrap-up: Lightfoot scold, aldermen fold"

12/20/19: "Aldermen proclaim principles in budget 'no' votes"

12/11/19: "City budget for dummies with Council Office of Financial Analysis"

10/13/19: "Chicagoans advise and chastise Lightfoot at budget town halls"

8/11/19: "Secrets learned by--and kept from--newbie aldermen: La Spata's gotta grasp"

6/13/19: "Good-bye to Ben Joravsky interviews, but more to come"

8/16/19: "Lightfoot administration defends Lincoln Yards TIF . . . why?"

5/29/19: "Megadevelopments like Lincoln Yards could face light footing"

4/11/19: "Cortland/Chicago River and Lincoln Yards TIF: final rules, duels, and reveals"

2/23/19: "Flipping TIF myths with mayoral candidates"

11/6/18: "Mr Bike: Mayoral candidates transportation challenge"

1/21/19: "Why and how wealthy Dem donor fired Joravsky from WCPT radio"

12/18/18: "A reporter's view of the Cortland TIF and Lincoln Yards"

10/22/18: "Ballot salad: Too many Chicago elections?"

8/28/18: "TIF take: opaque, no brake"

5/9/18: "Ask Mr Bike: Biking while black, traffic law, Supreme Court nominees, and Barack Obama"

7/8/18: "Congress Theater TIF, term limits: sensible schemes?"

6/20/18: "Public input on city budget is no oversight"

5/9/18: "Mr Bike: Trains, planes, and cyclist pains"

5/1/18: "Liberal and progressive: How do they differ?"

3/21/18: "Dave and Ben dissect voting, transit, and development"

3/16/18: "Primary lessons for voters and news media"

2/14/18: "A tweet-level look at Cook County Board meetings"

12/25/17: "Mr Bike's winter tips and mayoral quips"

12/8/17: "Rahm fired up about--but not firing--Forrest Claypool"

11/5/17: "Ben Joravsky's guide to asking tough questions"

10/2/17: "The Reader's new owners: well-heeled, hands-off"

10/2/17: "Tips and politics around Chicago bicycling"

8/13/17: "Mr Bike: Transit assets bring biking boost"

7/11/17: "Strike-primed Reader staff ache over takeover"

7/2/17: "Rauner's reforms: riff on Obama's form?"

5/11/17: "Claypool, Kennedy, Axelrod: Can you believe 'em?"

5/10/17: "Ben's new radio gig on WCPT-AM"

4/11/17: "Do Chicago bike riders blindly support the mayor?"

3/7/17: "School cash crisis tips Rauner's hand, marks Rahm's brand"

1/18/17: "Rich-guy Rahm comm"

11/17/16: "Trump and transit: Rahm railroads Red Line appeal"

10/10/16: "Reader staff goes public on contract talks"

10/4/16: "Aldermen float, sink TIF school funding"

9/16/16: "Divvy and Fleet suck from the TIF teat"

11/17/15: "2016 city budget raises taxes, fees, and questions"

7/27/16: "Building green: who profits from the city's latest development schemes"

5/17/16: "Lucas Museum narrative is a mixed art"

4/1/16: "2016 primary election freaks out voters and pols"

2/10/16: "Many on deck as public school ship sinks"

12/28/15: "Rahm cops to 'owning' McDonald fiasco--or does he?"

11/24/15: "Property taxes: who to blame and why to care"

9/21/15: "School start sees familiar class and cash chaos"

8/14/15: "Council, assembly, and school board: education funding tag team"

7/23/15: "Putting taxes where they belong: traders vs. TIF"

7/1/15: "Chicago's big, bad bonds: revenues or ruse?"

6/19/15: "School choices: myths, charters, dollars, and fear"

6/8/15: "Forecasting the 2015 city council: spines vs. stamps"

5/5/15: "Refuting the rationale for closing schools"

4/26/15: "What the 2015 election tells us about Emanuel and voters"

4/1/15: "Mayoral election endgame: what's on voters' minds"

3/25/15: "How to arrest police secrecy streak"

3/9/15: "What's missing from the mayoral election?"

2/22/15: "Why Obama won't vote for Rahm"

2/19/15: "2015 election: Some council incumbents are flush"

2/12/15: "Mayoral election: Obama anoints, Rahm's on point"

1/15/15: "Investor-funded pre-K based on false premise, excluded kids"

12/18/14: "Does social promotion pass the test?"

11/26/14: "Banksters not risk-adverse with city purse"

11/13/14: "What Rauner's election means for Chicago"

10/30/14: "State/county election brings choice insights"

10/2/14: "Reelection run means selective endowment"

10/2/14: "Emanuel's privatization: a clean sweep?"

9/11/14: "Trumbull emblemizes lack of population planning"

8/18/14: "Mayoral election: What Shaw and Emanuel bring to the table"

7/19/14: "Municipal election preview: a signature event"

7/9/14: "State governor campaign proves taxing"

6/10/14: "A principled stand against the administration"

5/19/14: "The resegregation of Chicago public schools"

5/2/14: "Pension 'crisis' could meet its match in TIFs"

4/8/14: "South Loop deal tells of TIF's twists"

3/24/14: "Digital manufacturing site: Olympics repeat, weapons mill, or both?"

3/6/14: "State rep primaries: who's the real progressive?"

1/27/14: "Council rules favor mayor"

1/17/14: "Charter schools: where does the money go?"

12/12/13: "Democracy elusive in Chicago public schools"

11/21/13: "Aldermen's tiff on TIF"

11/20/13: "The latest reminder of how Mayor Daley did business"

11/6/13: "A look at the mayor's 2014 budget proposal"

10/18/13: "Can anyone defeat Emanuel in 2015?"

9/26/13: "Alderman wants to know who benefited from charter school"

9/12/13: "Rahm with less chess, more Cermak TIFs"

9/5/13: "A tour of the McCormick arena development area"

8/29/13: "Mayor Emanuel: a tough leader for a tough city, or just an a-hole?"

8/15/13: "How I spent my summer break: firing teachers"

8/1/13: "There goes the Englewood neighborhood"

7/25/13: "Tracking TIF's tall tales"

7/11/13: "As schools starve, Mayor Emanuel finds $5 million for hot dogs"

6/27/13: "How Chicago's five-year school plan was dead on arrival"

6/13/13: "The madness behind Mayor Emanuel's methods"

6/6/13: "How Mayor Emanuel locked the parking meter deal in place"

5/30/13: "Rahm's new TIF program looks a lot like the old TIF program"

5/23/13: "Rahm's latest plan: close the schools, build an arena"

5/16/13: "Mayor Emanuel's FOIA policy: don't ask because we won't tell"

5/9/13: "The school model that's good enough for Pres. Obama and Mayor Emanuel"

5/2/13: "In the Chicago public schools, promises are made to be broken"

4/25/13: "Welcome to U.S. Cellular Field, home of the sweetheart deal"

4/11/13: "The lessons of Jane Byrne"

4/4/13: "The crowded classroom approach to fixing schools"

3/28/13: "Before the schools, Mayor Emanuel closed the clinics"

3/21/13: "Chicago Public Schools officials offer a lesson in confiscating books"

3/14/13: "Charities drowning in city water fees"

3/7/13: "Waiting for the day of judgment from Mayor Emanuel"

2/28/13: "Chicago's BFF's a legislator from Waukegan"

2/21/13: "Where good legislation goes to die"

2/14/13: "Good luck finding the documents that explain CPS's longer school day"

1/31/13: "Mayor Emanuel swears he's not interested in running for president"

1/24/13: "The Chicago manual of school closings"

1/17/13: "The last of the independents"

1/10/13: "Keeping up with the Jones High School Plans"

1/3/13: "ICE, CME, and TIFs"

7/21/11: "Public schools, private budgets"

12/13/12: "Taxation by obfuscation"

12/6/12: "A Development in Sheep's Clothing"

11/29/12: "Rahm's Addition by Subtraction Approach to Jobs"

11/22/12: "United Generously Returns Taxpayer Subsidy It Was Required to Return Anyway"

11/8/12: "To Mayor Emanuel, Some Jobs Are Worth More than Others"

11/1/12: "The Public Weighs in While the Mayor Skips Out"

10/25/12: "Whatever Happened to Story Time?"

10/11/12: "How the Democrats Let Derrick Smith Shoot Them in the Foot"

10/4/12: "Today's Lesson: Charters Do Not Outperform Unionized Schools"

9/20/12: "The Last Democracy in Chicago?"

9/13/12: "Why Chicago Teachers Hate Rahm"

9/6/12: "With Democrats Like These, Who Needs Republicans?"

8/30/12: "Akins in Our Midst"

8/16/12: "Prentice Preservationists Put Rahm in a Bind"

8/9/12: "The Grow House Next Door"

8/2/12: "Say It Ain't So, Joe"

7/19/12: "As the Slush Fund Shrinks, the Mayor Dips In Anyway"

7/5/12: "How Chicago Said Yes to Pot"

7/5/12: "The Rahmney Plan for Schools"

6/28/12: "The Mayor's Millionaire Club, Part II"

6/7/12: "It's No Foxie Brown: Mayor Emanuel Makes a TIF Movie"

5/24/12: "Summits Come and Go, but the Mayor's Handouts Never End"

5/10/12: "Mayor Emanuel's Dumping Ground?"

4/26/12: "The Stand-Up Guy"

4/12/12: "The Mayor Has Big Plans for the City's Infrastructure"

3/29/12: "How Rahm Emanuel Can 'Save' the Schools"

3/15/12: "What's Really Going On in the Primary Elections"

3/1/12: "My Property Tax Bill Is Defective--I Want a Refund"

2/23/12: "The Reader Goes to Charter School"

2/16/12: "Your NATO/G8 Primer"

2/2/12: "With Library Cuts, Emanuel Turns the Page Backward"

1/19/12: "State Tax Break for the Merc Is More Laughable with Each Passing Day"

10/27/11: "The Mayor's Millionaire Club"

12/29/11: "And the Reward for Achievement in Local Politics Goes To . . ."

12/15/11: "All I Want for Christmas Is a City Council with a Backbone"

12/8/11: "How Clout Raised an Uptown TIF Deal From the Dead"

12/1/11: "The Politics of Pot"

11/24/11: "As Mayor Emanuel Cuts, His Hometown Shows How to Invest in a Library"

11/17/11: "Senator Kirk Claims That Chicago's Top High Schools Are Charters, but That Doesn't Mean It's True"

11/10/11: "Water + Sewers = Slush Fund"

9/29/11: "Wake Up, Chicago Teachers Union"

10/27/11: "What to Tell an Alderman Who Fibs to You About TIFs"

9/2/11: "Mayor Emanuel's Guide to Union Busting: Just Do it for the Kids"

9/8/11: "Mayor Emanuel May Be Breaking Budget Promises, but at Least He's Not Mayor What's-His-Name"

9/1/11: "Wrigley Funding Scheme Is Another Cub Loser"

8/18/11: "The Teacher Who Was Punished Indefinitely for Being Laid Off Once"

8/4/11: "Mayor Emanuel Does the TIF Reform Dance"

7/28/11: "Blogger Crusades Against Education 'Reformers'"

7/14/11: "Mayoral Progress Report: There's Room for Improvement"

7/7/11: "The Grass Gap"

6/30/11: "How a CPS Teacher Went from 'Excellent' to 'Do-Not-Hire' in One Year"

6/16/11: "Uptown Turns Down a TIF Deal--For the Moment"

6/9/11: "As Daley Cashes In, Ousted Teacher Gets Cut Off"

6/2/11: "Charter School Fights Teacher Organizing-and 'Public School' Label"

5/26/11: "The 20 Months That Made Mayor Emanuel"

5/12/11: "Twilight Zoning in the 43rd Ward"

5/5/11: "An Open Letter to Our Next Schools Chief"

4/28/11: "TIF Gifts Just Keep on Giving"

4/14/11: "Stacking the Odds in Favor of Charter Schools"

4/7/11: "Racial Migration in the Strangest Locations"

3/31/11: "Ben Joravsky's Guide to the Aldermanic Runoffs"

3/17/11: "Getting Along Without Him Now"

3/10/11: "Rickey Hendon: A Loud Act to Follow"

3/3/11: "From the Alley to the Council"

2/24/11: "Carving Time Approaches"

2/17/11: "Aldermania!"

2/3/11: "Sic 'Em"

1/27/11: "Mr. Nice Guy"

1/20/11: "Chico and the Man"

12/16/10: "How Did We Get to 12,500?"

12/2/10: "The Merc's Manual"

11/25/10: "Do the Math"

11/18/10: "The Poor Pay Again"

11/11/10: "Whittier: What Fanned the Flames"

10/28/10: "The Practical Party"

10/21/10: "Post-Stroger Politics"

10/14/10: "No White Knight, No Silver Bullet"

10/7/10: "Mayoral Mayhem"

9/30/10: "The Hot New Issue"

9/23/10: "Filed Away?"

9/16/10: "Me and My Mayor"

9/2/10: "Define 'Redefinition'"

8/19/10: "Go on, Smash It"

8/12/10: "The Vanishing Beat Cop"

7/29/10: "The Picture Police"

7/22/10: "The Head Cheerleaders"

7/15/10: "A TIF Under a Microscope"

7/8/10: "Huberman's Miracle"

7/1/10: "Chicago Reader Fires Long-Time Editor Alison True"

6/17/10: "The Armies Are Gathering"

6/10/10: "The Battle Before the War"

6/3/10: "Less Is More at CPS"

5/27/10: "Less Is More at CPS"

5/20/10: "Who Wins in Daley's TIF Game"

5/6/10: "Check the Thermostat in Hell"

4/29/10: "He Doesn't Have to Outrun the Bear"

4/15/10: "A Raise by Any Other Name"

4/1/10: "Do As We Say, Not As We Do"

3/18/10: "The Untouchables"

3/11/10: "Taking the New Yorker for a Ride"

3/4/10: "An Island in the Swamp"

2/25/10: "Off Track"

2/18/10: "It Pays to Have an Alderman in Your Pocket"

2/4/10: "Harold and the Hyneses"

1/28/10: "Election Follies"

1/21/10: "Cook County Needs Cojones"

1/14/10: "Who'll Keep Your Rent Down Now?"

1/7/10: "Independent of What?"

12/31/09: "Who Deserves to Be Disqualified?"

12/17/09: "It Doesn't Take Much to Be a Maverick"

12/10/09: "Shedding Light on the Shadow Budget"

11/26/09: "The Insider"

11/19/09: "Transparency in Action"

11/5/09: "October Surprise"

10/29/09: "Clout on the Calumet River"

10/22/09: "The Shadow Budget"

10/15/09: "Who'll Decide How Much You'll Pay?"

10/8/09: "Lessons from the Olympic Bid"

10/1/09: "Dear International Olympic Committee"

9/17/09: "Ben Joravsky, Tool of the Man"

9/10/09: "Funds and Games: Chicago 2016's 'Stewardship Report'"

9/3/09: "Ready, Set, Hike"

8/20/09: "The Real Estate King of the City Council"

8/13/09: "Who'll Be the Bad Guy Now?"

8/6/09: "Mr. Big Spender"

7/30/09: "Michael Reese Hospital: The First Sacrificial Lamb"

7/23/09: "Wanna Buy an Olympics?"

7/16/09: "Still No Property Tax Bill for the Park Grill"

7/9/09: "Unsolved Mysteries"

6/25/09: "The Grand Old Party's Last Stand"

7/2/09: "On the Hook"

6/18/09: "The Insiders"

6/4/09: "What TIFs Giveth, the Olympics Taketh Away"

5/28/09: "University Village: The Story's Not Finished"

5/15/09: "Fail Part II"

5/7/09: "Taking Advantage of TIF Ignorance"

4/30/09: "Midterm Examination"

4/16/09: "Ben Javorsky for Mayor!"

4/9/09: "Fail: How Daley and his crew hid their process from the public, ignored their own rules, railroaded the City Council, and screwed the taxpayers on the parking meter lease deal"

4/2/09: "An Open Letter to the IOC"

3/26/09: "Stimulus, Chicago Style"

3/19/09: "Show Me the Money"

3/12/09: "Money for Nothing"

3/5/09: "The Straw Man"

2/26/09: "The $10.5 Million Mascot"

2/19/09: "The Race to Replace Rahm"

2/5/09: "MVP or Mope?"

1/29/09: "The Hack Who Pissed Off Harold"

1/22/09: "City for Sale"

1/15/09: "Taking the Fifth"

1/8/09: "Would You Vote for Roland Burris?"

12/18/08: "Out the Window"

12/11/08: "The Right Fight"

12/4/08: "More Olympic Games"

11/27/08: "Hot Seat"

11/20/08: "The Chickens Outfox the Foxes"

11/13/08: "Yes, He Can"

11/6/08: "When the Slush Dries Up"

10/30/08: "The Back-Door Plan"

10/23/08: "The Mark of Madigan?"

10/16/08: "Easy Money"

10/9/08: "October Surprise"

10/2/08: "Get Off the Pot"

9/25/08: "The Endangered Watchdog"

9/18/08: "Daley Doesn't Need Him"

9/11/08: "It's Not Illegal to Be Obnoxious"

9/4/08: "Here's a Tip for the Defense: TIFs"

8/28/08: "It's the Mayor, Stupid"

8/14/08: "An Artificial Battle"

8/7/08: "Three Million Lawsuits Oughta Do It"

7/31/08: "Endless War"

7/24/08: "Magic Beans"

7/10/08: "Seize the Moment"

7/3/08: "The Dead Zone"

6/19/08: "The Road to 2016"

6/12/08: "Is Obama a Chicago Politician?"

6/5/08: "The TIF That Keeps On Taking"

5/29/08: "The Mystery of the Construction Obstructionist "

5/15/08: "A Commission of Puppets"

4/24/08: "Worse Than We Thought"

4/17/08: "A City Off Track"

4/10/08: "Apparently Money Does Grow on Trees"

4/3/08: "It's All About the Olympics"

3/13/08: "An Independent Streak"

3/6/08: "A New Twist on an Old Trick"

2/28/08: "We Might Take Your House"

2/21/08: "Just Stupid Enough to Be True"

2/14/08: "The Mayor in the Mirror"

2/7/08: "The New School Shuffle"

1/31/08: "The Pot and the Kettle"

1/31/08: "A True Outsider"

1/24/08: "Mell Family Politics"

1/17/08: "A Good Day for the Rainmakers"

1/10/08: "Hear Ye, Hear Ye: King Daley issues his self-serving proclamations for '08"

1/3/08: "A Zell of a Deal"

12/27/07: "Staff Cuts at the Chicago Reader"

12/13/07: "Freshman Follies"

11/29/07: "The Madigan Effect"

11/22/07: "The True TIF Tally"

11/1/07: "TIFs for Dummies"