In the Loop

Earlier this month tech giant Amazon announced it would open a second headquarters with tens of thousands of jobs in the near future somewhere in the United States, setting off a bidding war between states and cities across the country. But at a time when the state of Illinois and the City of Chicago are struggling financially, can our area compete for the Amazon prize? Morning Shift talks to WBEZ state politics reporter Dave McKinney. He’s been crunching the numbers on what we’d need to provide, whether it’s feasible and how other big deals with corporations have worked out in the past in Illinois and neighboring Wisconsin.

Earlier this month tech giant Amazon announced it would open a second headquarters with tens of thousands of jobs in the near future somewhere in the United States, setting off a bidding war between states and cities across the country. But at a time when the state of Illinois and the City of Chicago are struggling financially, can our area compete for the Amazon prize? Morning Shift talks to WBEZ state politics reporter Dave McKinney. He’s been crunching the numbers on what we’d need to provide, whether it’s feasible and how other big deals with corporations have worked out in the past in Illinois and neighboring Wisconsin.

Morning Shift talks to sports legal analyst Exavier Pope and WBEZ sports contributor Cheryl Raye Stout about a weekend where sports, politics and social justice issues collided.

Morning Shift talks to sports legal analyst Exavier Pope and WBEZ sports contributor Cheryl Raye Stout about a weekend where sports, politics and social justice issues collided.

Looking at a building’s architecture offers a glimpse into a different time. The style, purpose, and location can show how a neighborhood has changed over the years. The 2017 Chicago Architecture Biennial aims to bring together that rich history with insights and ideas for the future with this year’s theme: “Make New History.” An element of this year’s Biennial is extending exhibitions, performances, and discussions past the Loop with six anchor museums around the city. One of those is the DuSable Museum of African American art where Chicago: A Southern Exposure opens Friday. It highlights the architecture south of Roosevelt Road through the photos of Lee Bey. Lee details the project for us and talks about his new role at the Museum.

Looking at a building’s architecture offers a glimpse into a different time. The style, purpose, and location can show how a neighborhood has changed over the years. The 2017 Chicago Architecture Biennial aims to bring together that rich history with insights and ideas for the future with this year’s theme: “Make New History.” An element of this year’s Biennial is extending exhibitions, performances, and discussions past the Loop with six anchor museums around the city. One of those is the DuSable Museum of African American art where Chicago: A Southern Exposure opens Friday. It highlights the architecture south of Roosevelt Road through the photos of Lee Bey. Lee details the project for us and talks about his new role at the Museum.

When movies from Marvel or DC are released, they get the full studio treatment, complete with press junkets and marketing. Nonaction films from Asia don’t quite experience the same roll-out. Many skip the theater release but find a following online. Sophia Wong Boccio wants to ensure those films don’t get overlooked. She’s the founder and executive director of Asian Pop-up Cinema, which starts weekly screenings on Wednesday at venues around the city. We talk to Wong Boccio about her push to highlight these films and drive interest in Asian movie-making.

When movies from Marvel or DC are released, they get the full studio treatment, complete with press junkets and marketing. Nonaction films from Asia don’t quite experience the same roll-out. Many skip the theater release but find a following online. Sophia Wong Boccio wants to ensure those films don’t get overlooked. She’s the founder and executive director of Asian Pop-up Cinema, which starts weekly screenings on Wednesday at venues around the city. We talk to Wong Boccio about her push to highlight these films and drive interest in Asian movie-making.

Religion shouldn’t reinforce all of your ideas about the world. It should challenge you and push you to recognize uncomfortable truths about yourself and the world and spur you to transform both. So says Rabbi Shai Held, the co-founder of the Hadar Institute and a man who’s been named to the Newsweek/Daily Beast list of "Top 50 Most influential American Rabbis" numerous times. He was in town recently to talk about his new book, The Heart of Torah: Essays on the Weekly Torah Portion. With the upcoming Jewish High Holy Days in mind, Held talked about a range of ideas, including how he grapples with the awesome power of religion, and how it’s used.

Religion shouldn’t reinforce all of your ideas about the world. It should challenge you and push you to recognize uncomfortable truths about yourself and the world and spur you to transform both. So says Rabbi Shai Held, the co-founder of the Hadar Institute and a man who’s been named to the Newsweek/Daily Beast list of "Top 50 Most influential American Rabbis" numerous times. He was in town recently to talk about his new book, The Heart of Torah: Essays on the Weekly Torah Portion. With the upcoming Jewish High Holy Days in mind, Held talked about a range of ideas, including how he grapples with the awesome power of religion, and how it’s used.