Morning Shift Podcast

Reset interviews WBEZ's CEO, Matt Moog, about the company's acquisition of the Chicago Sun-Times.

The opioid crisis has gotten less attention during the pandemic, even though deaths have reached record-breaking numbers. What can we do to limit overdoses?

As Omicron cases continue to strain hospitals across the country, the Surgeon General is warning that the worst is yet to come. Here in Cook County, new data shows that Black Chicagoans and suburban residents over 60 are dying at disproportionate rates.

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.

Reset digs into what you need to know before you head out for a COVID-19 test. We check in with Block Club Chicago breaking news editor Kelly Bauer and Steve Bernas with the Better Business Bureau of Chicago and Northern Illinois for the latest.

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.

Over the last year, at least 19 states have passed laws making it harder to vote. Since January 6th, 25 religious leaders from around the country have been on a hunger strike to urge Congress to pass voting rights legislation. Reset talks with Rev. Otis Moss, who is one of the hunger strikers.

It's been one week since Cook County and Chicago rolled out a vaccine mandate for most indoor spaces. The order requires customers five and older to show proof of vaccination at restaurants, bars, gyms and movie theaters. Reset checks in with several business owners and staff for an update on how they're handling the mandate.

Cook County launches vaccine mandate for restaurants, bars and gyms; Chicago cancels school after teachers refuse to teach in-person, and longtime Congressman Bobby Rush announces retirement. Reset goes behind the headlines on the Weekly News Recap with WVON's Kimberly Egonmwan and the Chicago Tribune's Dan Petrella.

Reset brings on a WAMU Reporter, Margaret Barthel, who covered the Jan. 6 insurrection in the U.S. Capitol to reflect, and Chicago Sun-Times Federal Courts reporter, Jon Seidel, discusses the charges and sentences for people from the Chicago region who participated in the insurrection.

As the omicron variant continues to spread the country, Chicago is implementing new vaccine mandates for indoor venues to encourage residents to get their shots. Meanwhile, the Chicago Teachers Union votes to switch to remote learning amid the post-holiday COVID surge. Reset checks in with the city's top doc, Dr. Allison Arwady, for the latest COVID guidelines.

Hospitalizations from COVID-19 are at an all-time high in Illinois, and doctors, nurses and staff are under tremendous pressure.

Reset brings on an infectious disease expert for our weekly check-in to provide clarity and answers to your questions, comments and concerns about COVID-19. For more Reset interviews, subscribe to this podcast. And please give us a rating, it helps other listeners find us. For more about Reset, go to wbez.org and follow us on Twitter @WBEZReset

If you give your parents new tech, chances are you'll have to be their tech support and install it for them. Heather Kelly, technology help desk reporter at The Washington Post helps Reset cover what you need to know when they ask other tech questions so you sound like a pro.

Reset Sustainability Contributor, Karen Weigert, gives a retrospective on the sustainability highs and lows for 2021. She's joined by Naomi Davis of the environmental justice coalition “Blacks In Green” to evaluate the progress in Chicago for the last year in defeating environmental racism and inequity.

City Council holds its last session of 2021, passing the sports betting ordinance and unanimously approving a near 3 million dollar settlement for Anjanette Young, for a wrongful raid Chicago police carried out on her home. Reset goes behind the headlines on the Weekly News Recap.

A new investigation from the Better Government Association lays out the failed promises of jobs and housing made to Cabrini's residents — predominantly Black Chicagoans — and where those promises stand today. Reset gets the details from investigative reporter Alejandra Cancino.

Reset checks in with the Cook County Department of Public Health to discuss how experts are handling the messaging around COVID and its new variants -- and how the county hopes to reach people who are still skeptical about vaccines.

Inflation's at its highest level in 39 years. What's behind the trend and when might it end?

As all Illinois counties enter a “high-transmission” zone and the omicron variant arrives in Chicago, Reset checks back in with Dr. Mia Taormina for the latest public health guidance.

Disagreements about vaccines have highlighted growing divisions in our country— and, for some of us, our homes, too. Reset explores what happens when couples and co parents don't agree on vaccines with Jessica Calarco, associate professor of sociology at Indiana University, and Lyz Lenz, author of the newsletter Men Yell at Me.

Actor Jussie Smollett is found guilty of five charges that he staged and made a false report of a hate crime against himself. City Council struggles to redraw the ward boundaries and the new Omicron variant arrives in Chicago as COVID cases and hospitalizations surge throughout the state.

President Joe Biden on Tuesday warned Russian President Vladimir Putin of consequences if his country invades Ukraine. Illinois Congressman Mike Quigley gives Reset his take on the crisis and other news from Capitol Hill.

The federal infrastructure bill includes a provision that will make transit stations across the country fully accessible. The All Stations Accessibility Program (ASAP) Act sets aside $1.75 billion in grants for upgrades and improvements to meet or exceed the standards of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Reset checks in with U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth for the latest on the ASAP Act, which she helped introduce, and the $2 trillion social spending plan.

An investigation by the Chicago Sun-Times and Better Government Association found tens of thousands of people jailed on low-level drug possession cases had their charges routinely dropped in Cook County, but the consequences are costly. Reset checks in with reporters and local drug policy experts for details and analysis.

For decades, researchers have chased a pharmaceutical cure for memory loss. But despite the fact that no disease-modifying biotech treatments have emerged, new research suggests that dementia rates have actually declined in the United States over the last decade. Why is this happening? And what does it mean for brain health in the future? Reset talks with the co-authors of American Dementia: Brain Health in an Unhealthy Society. For more Reset interviews, subscribe to this podcast. And please give us a rating, it helps other listeners find us. For more about Reset, go to wbez.org and follow us on Twitter @WBEZReset

Illinois is in the midst of a COVID surge, surpassing 11,000 new cases for the first time this year, while newly released standardized test scores show the impact the pandemic had on learning. Plus, the latest on the criminal trial of actor Jussie Smollet. Reset goes behind the headlines on the Weekly News Recap.

Spotify Wrapped lists are out. What songs did you listen to this year? Which did you turn to just get you through it? We break out our playlists and share our favorite tracks, ear worms and guilty pleasures as the year winds down.

On the heels of the opening oral arguments in the biggest challenge to Roe v. Wade that has come before the Supreme Court, Reset asks local leaders and experts about their reactions.

There's one day left before Chicago City Council members have to pass the final remap of Chicago's 50 wards. A heated battle between the city's Black and Latino caucuses have forced both sides to give ground in time for the final vote. Reset checks in on where things stand.

There's one day left before Chicago City Council members have to pass the final remap of Chicago's 50 wards. A heated battle between the city's Black and Latino caucuses have forced both sides to give ground in time for the final vote. Reset checks in on where things stand.

A new strain of COVID-19 has been detected in at least 15 countries. Reset checks in with a New York Times science reporter for the latest on the Omicron variant and how the U.S. is preparing for its arrival. For more Reset interviews, subscribe to this podcast. And please give us a rating, it helps other listeners find us. For more about Reset, go to wbez.org and follow us on Twitter @WBEZReset

When we see relatives and friends at the Thanksgiving table this year, the conversation may turn to politics, the pandemic, social and racial justice, and other topics where people don't always agree. Reset talks to a conflict resolution specialist about setting boundaries with loved ones and strategies to diffuse dinner-table squabbles.

Recent court cases have many thinking about what makes the jury system flourish and fail. Reset hears from an expert on what you should know about the jury selection process.

Kyle Rittenhouse took an AR-15 assault-style rifle across state lines and shot and killed two people, but a jury ruled that he was acting in self-defense and the verdict was “not guilty” on all charges. Reset talks with a Second Amendment expert about what this says about gun rights in America and learns how right-wing extremist, vigilante and militia groups are responding to the verdict.

Despite the Nordic country's utopian reputation, Finns of African descent often face racial profiling and discrimination. WBEZ's Natalie Moore talked with Finns of African descent about their experiences living in the social welfare state.

Today Kyle Rittenhouse was found not guilty on all charges. Reset talks to an array of journalists and experts about the verdict. Reset goes behind those headlines and more in the Weekly News Recap.

Cooler weather means more time indoors, and that can often mean more screen time. So, how do we set boundaries that work? Listeners call in with their life hacks.

Most Chicago journalists spend a lot of time pointing out what's wrong with our city. Jon Hansen's doing something different. He hosts Block Club Chicago's podcast It's All Good, which celebrates Chicagoans who are doing something good for their neighborhood.

The American Trucking Associations says the industry faces a shortage of 80,000 drivers. That's up 30% from the estimated shortage before the pandemic. Reset explores why Illinois trucking companies are concerned about this issue and what the shortage means for the supply chain crisis.

Most NPR listeners recognize David Sedaris from what's become a holiday tradition: the re-airing of his 1992 account of spending two Christmas seasons working as an elf at Macy's in New York. Since “Santaland Diaries,” Sedaris has penned numerous books, become a regular contributor to The New Yorker and been inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

President Joe Biden pledged to replace every lead pipe in the U.S. Illinois lawmakers estimate the state will receive at least $1.7 billion to improve its drinking and wastewater infrastructure. Biden also expects the bill to help close the digital divide. Reset asks experts what investments may be in store for Illinois.

Chicago cancels school to motivate parents to vaccinate as COVID cases rise. The Chicago Police Department cancels days off in anticipation of a verdict in the Kyle Rittenhouse murder trial. Reset goes behind those headlines and more in the Weekly News Recap.

Some of My Best Friends Are... is hosted by Khalil Gibran Muhammad and Ben Austen, two best friends who grew up together on Chicago's South Side in the 1980s. They invite listeners in with engaging conversations on how race affects their friendships and work, while using pop culture and historical events as a guide. Reset checks in with the duo behind the mic.

A new Amazon Fresh grocery store housed at the former Dominick's grocery in Morton Grove will open Thursday. The store will join others that offer “Just Walk Out” and other new technology that allow customers to skip a checkout line altogether. Reset brings on an expert to discuss how this might change the grocery store landscape.

It's one of the most shameful chapters in Chicago police history. For a decade, a unit led by former police sergeant Ronald Watts terrorized residents of the Ida B. Wells housing project on the city's south side, fabricating charges and planting evidence. Reset has the latest on what's becoming Cook County's largest-ever exoneration.

Reset chats with Sonia Manzano about her new kids TV show highlighting problem-solving strategies for kids and cultural diversity. Manzano is best known for her role as Maria on Sesame Street.

Three top Chicago Park officials are fired over lifeguard sexual assault scandal and the standoff over vaccine mandates between Mayor Lightfoot and the head of the Fraternal Order of Police continues. Reset goes behind the week's headlines on the Weekly news Recap.

After weeks at a shelter where no staff members speak their languages, some Afghan refugee children have hurt themselves and others. After a ProPublica investigation, Illinois lawmakers demanded a probe into conditions. Reset checks in with the ProPublica reporter about her investigation.

Pediatricians and pharmacies are preparing for the newest round of COVID shots, which could start being offered in the next few days. About 15 million doses are already being shipped to vaccination sites throughout the country, but some parents still have concerns when it comes to their kids.

Actor and former White House staffer Kal Penn joins Reset to discuss his new memoir, You Can't Be Serious. The book is a series of funny, awkward and inspiring stories about his life, from his early roles in Hollywood to finding love in Washington D.C. Penn will speak at the Chicago Humanities Fest on Saturday, Nov. 6, 2021 at 7 p.m.