In the Loop

Photographing Barack Obama was not Pete Souza’s first job. He worked at the White House during the Reagan administration. After the attacks of September 11, he photographed the American invasion of Kabul in Afghanistan. But Souza will be most remembered for the “close to two million” photographs he took of President Barack Obama in his eight years as official White House photographer. Souza spoke with WBEZ’s Jenn White about the experience.

Will Davis has been the artistic director at American Theater Company for going on a year. In his role, he’s trying to reshape the North Center playhouse into one that puts on theatrical shows full of very physical storytelling. That’s a change for ATC. In the past, it was known for issue-based plays with a lot of talking heads. Davis is transgender and says that his gender identity and its fluidity play a major role in how he directs shows like the current production on stage at ATC called Men In Boats. Morning Shift talks to Will Davis about his career, the current season at ATC and where he wants to take the theater company in the future. 

For the 3rd time in a month, more than a dozen Jewish community centers across the country were the subject of bomb threats. Tuesday marked the first time JCC’s in the Chicago area were affected. 

In the latest installment in our series What’s That Building? Dennis Rodkin of Crain’s Chicago Business tells the story of the Morton Salt building at 110 N. Wacker Drive. Today, the five-story structure is overshadowed by its much taller companions, including several skyscrapers that have gone up in recent years. But in 1958, the structure was the height of architectural design. 

Very little has been written about the life and work of Donny Hathaway. But before the Chicago-born singer, songwriter, producer and arranger took his own life in 1979 at the age of 33, he became a massive influence on some of the biggest stars of the time, and his body of work has served as an inspiration to many who came after him. Now, author Emily Lordi’s new book Donny Hathaway Live shines fresh light on this massive talent. Lordi talks about Donny Hathaway’s genius with Reclaimed Soul’s Ayana Contreras.

'Morning Shift' chats with Dr. Selwyn Rogers, trauma chief, and Debi Albert, chief nursing officer.

The big conversations right now in the Muslim community are the Muslim travel ban as prescribed by President Trump's executive order on immigration, as well as the mosque burned down in Victoria, Texas. There was also the fatal shooting at a mosque in Quebec, that killed six Muslims over the weekend. Morning Shift asks Imam Kifah Mustapha, director of the Prayer Center at Orland Park, what he's feeling -- both as a Muslim and a faith leader of a large Muslim community in Chicago. 

The Department of Justice released a report this month that claimed Chicago police officers are poorly trained, improperly supervised and misconduct investigations are largely biased in favor of cops. Morning Shift’s Tony Sarabia spoke with two men who served in the Chicago Police Department for decades, Joseph Moseley and Richard Wooten. The former officers discussed their reactions to the report and addressed “anti-police” sentiment.

Author and professor Michael Eric Dyson has been named by Essence magazine as one of the 50 most inspiring African Americans in the U.S. The author of nearly 20 books that tackle subjects like race and politics is out with a new novel called Tears We Cannot Stop: A Sermon to White America. Dyson sat down with Tony Sarabia to talk about the themes of the book and the actions he wants to see.

WBEZ's Odette Yousef explains what families are experiencing and how communities are coming together following President Trump's immigration ban.