In 2022, the General Assembly created a task force to research the state of journalism in Illinois. Data from Northwestern University showed one-third of local outlets have closed since 2005, creating an 86% decline in newspaper jobs over that span.

In 2024, Illinois can’t be beat for periodical cicadas. Here’s everything you need to know about these fascinating creatures, and what to expect between now and July.

Larissa FastHorse is the first Native American woman to have a play produced on Broadway. “The Thanksgiving Play” is now onstage at Steppenwolf Theatre. It’s a satire about earnest theater folks who attempt to stage a historically accurate Thanksgiving play.

Another mild winter and other favorable factors likely means the 2024 tick population will be equal to last year or larger, some researchers say.

And for the third consecutive year at Grant Park’s Hutchinson Field, the Sueños Music Festival is set to celebrate reggaeton and Latin music artists during the Memorial Day holiday weekend.

The journalists filed a class-action lawsuit against the Chicago Tribune, the Tribune Publishing Company and Alden Global Capital, alleging they’ve faced pay discrimination based on gender, race and ethnicity as a result of the defendants’ “centralized policies and practices.”

What’s behind the city’s joblessness rates among Black and Latino youth. Meet the powerful women of an ancient Mexican civilization. And Sueños Music Festival returns.

Mighty men and well-toned women paraded through the lobby of the Copernicus Center in Jefferson Park last Saturday, crossing paths with fans, supporters and vendors. The muscled masses were competitors in the Illinois State Championship of the National Physique Committee.