Illinois Public Media News

Today on The 21st: we talk to a scholar about the long history of violent protest in America, we ask if it's safe to go to the dentist, and we dry out from another month of record rainfall.

Chicago-based astronomer Lucianne Walkowicz has filed a trademark lawsuit against toy-maker Mattel and American Girl, alleging that the company stole Walkowicz's likeness for their 2018 girl of the year doll, Luciana Vega.

Newsrooms around the country are closing up shop. In many places, it started with temporary pay cuts or furloughs to weather the economic impact of the pandemic, but now, many communities are facing a permanent void when it comes to local news coverage. 

This weekend saw continued demonstrations over the killing of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and other acts of police violence. We talk to reporters across Illinois about what they saw.

Today on The 21st: we talk to reporters covering demonstrations over the killings of George Floyd, Breonna Tayloer and others; furloughs and layoffs have come to many newsrooms; and an astronomer filed a trademark lawsuit against American Girl over a doll that looked a little too familiar.