Author: WBEZ Chicago

From the deep-dish-versus-tavern-style debate to the fierceness of defending ketchup-less hot dogs, Chicagoans have feelings about food. Is it giardiniera that unites us? Reset hears the case for why the spicy pickled condiment is one thing Chicagoans can agree on. For a full archive of Reset interviews, head over to wbez.org/reset.

In 1971, a group of friends crowded around a dining room table in Chicago’s Kenwood neighborhood. They were putting together the first issue of the Chicago Reader, one of the first free alternative weekly newspapers in the country. With its origins beginning more than 50 years ago it would go on to become a model for alt-weeklies nationwide. Now, an effort is underway to create a coffee-table book showcasing this history. We sat down with Chris Haas, editor and designer of the upcoming book Free Chicago; Amber Nettles, associate publisher for the Chicago Reader; Kerry Reid, theatre editor for the Chicago Reader. For a full archive of Reset interviews, head over to wbez.org/reset.

The busy summer travel season coincides with hurricane season, so travelers and airlines should brace for storm-related flight delays and cancellations. But that’s just one part of an almost never-ending chain reaction: more air travel (and its carbon emissions) contributes to severe weather, severe weather wreaks havoc on air travel, and so on and so on. Reset learns about this cycle, and what is being done to break it. For a full archive of Reset interviews, head over to wbez.org/reset.

The CDC tracker shows coronavirus levels are much higher nationwide than they were this time last year. With infection levels on the rise, should folks get another COVID booster? Are tests effectively catching the latest strains? How long are we supposed to isolate again? To learn more, Reset checks in with UChicago Medicine’s infectious disease specialist Dr. Emily Landon. For a full archive of Reset interviews, head over to wbez.org/reset.

More than half of the average American adult’s diet consists of ultra processed foods. Foods like the frozen meal you grabbed for lunch, or your go-to morning granola bar or even your plant-based chicken nuggets. All of these foods can be ultra-processed. And eating these foods has been linked to overeating and higher risks of all kinds of diseases, from diabetes to cancer. Reset checks in with health coach Rochelle Trotter about how we got here, and how we get out. For a full archive of Reset interviews, head over to wbez.org/reset.

A Chicago hotline that normally serves as a simple way for people to join a waitlist for subsidized housing has been disconnected for more than a month, with no clear return date. Now, people in need of housing are redirected to call 211 and find their closest in-person office – there’s seven in the city. Advocates say that puts a burden on people who are already struggling. Reset sits down with Chicago Sun-Times reporter and assistant editor Brett Chase who looked into this issue. For a full archive of Reset interviews, head over to wbez.org/reset.

The language that gave Chicago its name had not been spoken in more than 50 years – until recently. Chicagoans of Myaamia (or Miami) heritage have been reviving their native language, Myaamiaataweenki – and even creating new words for modern times. Reset speaks with Chicago Reader journalist Paul Dailing as well as George Strack and Brad Kasberg, two descendants of the Myaamiaki, about what it takes to revive a language no one spoke, and what this work means to them. For a full archive of Reset interviews, head over to wbez.org/reset.

Summer is the most delicious time in the Midwest. So what techniques can we use to ensure that we have bites of delicious tomatoes, stone fruit, melons, sweet corn and summer squash all year long? Reset checks in with a chef and preservation expert. For a full archive of Reset interviews, head over to wbez.org/reset.

A panel of movie fans join Reset to talk about movies and their iconic scores and soundtracks. Plus, we discuss the new EP I Wake And Remember from local composer Ray Hou. For a full archive of Reset interviews, head over to wbez.org/reset.