In the Loop

Morning Shift talks to Grant Lee Phillips about his career and even his years as a child magician. And, of course, he plays some recent tunes.

On Tuesday afternoon, Mayor Emanuel offered up an outline of how his proposed Civilian Office of Police Accountability would function and how it differs from the much-disparaged Independent Police Review Authority. Morning Shift talks to WBEZ’s Chip Mitchell about what we know about the new agency.

Hackers recently got into state election databases in Arizona and Illinois and gained access to the personal information of 200,000 voters. It's unclear what they might do with the information, but it got the Morning Shift thinking about worst-case scenarios. Could hackers hack the U.S. election? And, what other potential hacks pose the biggest threats to security and privacy? Morning Shift talks to cybersecurity expert Bruce Schneier about what hackers are currently capable of -- and what's stopping them.

Cheryl Pearson-McNeil puts her communications skills to the test every minute of every day. She's the Vice President of Strategic Community Alliances and Customer Engagement for the Nielsen company. So what does a late-80’s thriller about a weekend affair gone horribly wrong have to do with communicating? We’re talking Fatal Attraction in the latest edition to our series The Movie That Made Me.

Comedic icon Gene Wilder passed away Monday at his home in Stamford, Connecticut. And while he was best known for films like Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein, Wilder will not only be remembered for his classics.  Morning Shift talks with Matt Hartman, a video store clerk at Odd Obsession in Bucktown and a fan of the late actor to hear about his favorite, and lesser known, Gene Wilder films and why they were so significant for him.

Virtually every giant from the world of jazz recorded in the home studio of Rudy Van Gelder. Considered the greatest recording engineer in the history of jazz, Van Gelder passed away last week at the age of 91. But his influence was so great, it spread beyond the jazz world, and this edition of Reclaimed Soul pays tribute to the man behind the Blue Note sound.

Morning Shift talks to two people from the university community with differing takes on what’s become known as the “Chicago letter.” Rising junior Matt Foldi is president of the University of Chicago College Republicans and a staunch supporter of what’s laid out in the letter. Tyler Kissinger is not a fan. He’s a recent U of C alumnus who served as the school’s student government president for the past two years. We also open the phones.

Comedian Hari Kondabolu says that “being obsessed with race in America is like being obsessed with swimming when you’re drowning.”  The former immigrants’ rights organizer tries to turn pain into laughter as he tackles politics, gender issues, economic inequality and, of course, race in his own unique way.  Morning Shift talks to Kondabolu about his newly released stand-up comedy album “Mainstream American Comic.”

There’s alt-rock, alt-country…but alt-right? The political term, short for Alternative Right, has blown up so much in the past few days that even Hillary Clinton used it during her speech last Thursday to criticize opponent Donald Trump.  But what is the alternative right, and how is it different from everyday conservatism? Morning Shift talks with Buzzfeed News reporter Rosie Gray about the alt-right movement and its growing influence in the 2016 presidential race. 

Harvard professor Richard Light released his book Making The Most of College in 2001 after years of interviews with students. His goal was not to offer up advice on how they could achieve a 4.0 GPA or get a high-paying job right after graduation. Instead, he wanted to figure out how students could have the most meaningful and fulfilling four years in college as possible. Fifteen years later, the book is still as relevant as ever. Morning Shift talks to professor Richard Light about getting the most out of college and more broadly, about how to live wisely.