The 217 Today Podcast | Illinois Public Media

Keep up with news in Central Illinois every weekday with 217 Today. Hear the day's headlines, along with one deeper dive, in just ten minutes. Learn about the people and places that make Central Illinois unique with 217 Today.

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Chestnut Health Systems in Bloomington. — WGLT file photo

January 11, 2022

217 Today: Tuesday, Jan. 11, 2022

In today's deep dive, we’ll learn how to fight the “post-holiday blues,” which could be worse than usual because of the ongoing pandemic.

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The main studio of WRM Radio (soon to be renamed WILL) on the University of Illinois campus, circa 1927. A piano was a common feature in an era when most music on the radio was live. The spring microphones of the time were designed to prevent undesired vibrations or feedback. Draperies lined the walls to improve acoustics. — Illinois Public Media

January 10, 2022

217 Today: Monday, Jan. 10, 2022

In today's deep dive, a look back at the early days of WILL-AM, which turns 100 years old this year.

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Amber Shelhorn drives students to Riverdahl Elementary in Rockford. She's normally a supervisor in the transportation department, but is driving a bus because of a driver shortage in the district. — Peter Medlin/WNIJ

January 07, 2022

217 Today: Friday, Jan. 7, 2022

In today's deep dive, we’ll ride along on a Rockford school bus where they’ve been dealing with a shortage of bus drivers all year.

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The Illinois State Capitol building in Springfield. — Reginald Hardwick/Illinois Newsroom

January 06, 2022

217 Today: Thursday, Jan. 6, 2022

In today's deep dive, we'll take a look at the political polarization throughout the state of Illinois -- which has created "two Illinoises."

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Storm Lake is home to a population where more than a third identify as Latino or Hispanic and nearly one in five identify as Asian. — Natalie Krebs/Side Effects Public Media

January 05, 2022

217 Today: Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022

In today's deep dive, we'll hear the third and final story in a series from Side Effects Public Media on how the pandemic continues to affect rural towns with meatpacking plants

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Amner Martinez runs a staffing agency in Des Moines. His family, who are originally from Guatemala, moved from California to Iowa in the 1990s. Most of his family has worked at the Tyson plant in Perry. — Natalie Krebs/Side Effects Public Media

January 04, 2022

217 Today: Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2022

In today's deep dive, we’ll hear the second story in a three-part series on COVID outbreaks at meatpacking plants.

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The Storm Lake Tyson pork plant was the site of a COVID-19 outbreak in May 2020 that affected a quarter of its workforce. — Natalie Krebs/Side Effects Public Media

January 03, 2022

217 Today: Monday, Jan. 3, 2022

In today's deep dive, we’ll hear the first story in a three-part series about how COVID-19 swept through the nation’s meat processing facilities.

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December 23, 2021

217 Today: Thursday, Dec. 23, 2021

In today's deep dive, we’ll get tips for upcoming holiday gatherings from an infectious disease specialist.

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Illinois Environmental Protection Agency

December 22, 2021

217 Today: Wednesday, Dec. 22, 2021

In today's deep dive, we'll hear a a conversation with one of the developers of a new curriculum that teaches Illinois middle school students about electricity.

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The Vermilion County Health Department hosts a COVID-19 vaccine clinic outside the Danville Dans baseball game in Danville in summer of 2021. With a vaccination rate of almost 40 percent against COVID-19, the county has been struggling with climbing cases of the virus. — Farrah Anderson/Illinois Newsroom

December 21, 2021

217 Today: Tuesday, Dec. 21, 2021

In today's deep dive, we'll hear a conversation with the director of the Vermilion County Health Department about the county's struggles to keep up with contact tracing as cases rise over the holiday season.

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