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We spent our entire show talking about (not only) what happened on January 6, 2021, but also what’s happened in the year since and what the future holds for American democracy. We began with Illinois’ other U-S Senator, Tammy Duckworth. She was in the Capitol complex during the siege last year.
One year ago today, our country was forever changed. A pro-Trump mob stormed the United States Capitol as a joint Congress session had assembled to count elector votes and formalize Joe Biden’s legitimate election as the next President. Last year, on January 7th, we had political analyst, historian, and author Jonathan Alter on the show, and he joined us again.
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign journalism professor Nikki Usher talked about their book, News for the Rich, White and Blue, How Place And Power Distort American Journalism, which argues that news is increasingly geared toward people who are rich, white, and lean Democratic. This segment originally aired October 27, 2021.
As we asked "Who is in charge of the news?" we looked at the new Local Journalism Task Force, signed into law by Governor JB Pritzker. To find out who’s on the task force, their goals, and whether it will save local, independent journalism, we were joined by the bill’s creator, the bill's co-sponsor, the news director at Northern Public Radio, and a journalism professor. This segment originally aired October 27, 2021.
As we ask "Who’s in charge of news?" we explored non-profit news organizations focused on hard-hitting investigations and statehouse reporting. We were joined by representatives from Pro-Publica, the Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting, and Capitol News Illinois. This segment originally aired October 26, 2021.
