Illinois Public Media News

Located in the southeast region of Chicago and flowing through the suburbs, the Little Calumet River once played an important role as part of the Underground Railroad. Recently, conservation efforts have worked to establish a new, seven-mile African American Heritage Water trail where canoers and kayakers can learn about the history of the river.

After an Adams County judge overturned a conviction for a sexual assault case of a 16-year-old girl, he’s been accused of making comments many classify as victim-blaming. Today, we were joined by a journalist covering the story, the executive director of an anti-domestic abuse organization, and an associate professor of law to unpack the details of the case.

Today on The 21st, we began with a conversation about Illinois state government. The president of the Illinois state Senate, Don Harmon, joined us to talk about criminal justice, education, taxes, spending, and so much more that affects all of our lives.

Many are asking when this pandemic will really end, when we'll get back to normal, and what would “normal” even look like in a post-pandemic world. No one has answers to those questions, and for many, that uncertainty can take a toll on our mental health, which has already taken hits from the onset of the pandemic. The 21st was joined by a psychiatric professor to talk about ways the pandemic has been affecting our mental health and what we can do about it. 

In order to curb carbon emissions, some are proposing that we capture carbon from ethanol plants in the Midwest and ship the gas via pipelines into the sandstone in Illinois, but not everyone is on board. The 21st was joined by a reporter covering this issue and a geologist to talk about how these pipelines would work and the possible concerns.

For longtime fans and friends of public broadcasting, Rick Steves needs very little introduction. Brian Mackey recently talked with Steves about traveling in the pandemic, where in Europe to go with children, and much more.

The Illinois governor’s race is heating up.  We’re now five months away from the primaries which take place June 28th, and 10 months until the election on November 8th, and over the past week, money has begun to pour in. Today, The 21st was joined by two statehouse reporters from central Illinois to bring us up to speed on the latest developments.

The Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games are two weeks and a day away, and there are several olympians from Illinois who will be competing in the games, including ski jumper Kevin Bickner from Wauconda, Illinois.  He joined The 21st to talk about preparing for the games, how he got his start, and more.

Now until July, the Spurlock Museum in Urbana is exhibiting of local AIDS quilt panels made during the midst of the AIDS pandemic. University of Illinois journalism students teamed up with Illinois Public Media to create short videos about the panels and the men the memorialize.

Generation X sometimes known as the "Forgotten Generation," but the Illinois State Musuem is planning to give Gen X their day in the sun with an exhibit that opens this fall. The 21st was joined by the museum's curator of history to talk about growing up in the '70s, '80s and '90s, designing the exhibit, and more.