Incredibly anti-climactic and completely expected after the Tribune's surprise endorsement of Barack Obama for president yesterday, the Bright One's editorial board has officially announced that they, too, are backing our home town Senator for the top spot: more ›

In a Sun-Times exclusive, the Bright One is citing sources that confirm that Barack Obama is the unnamed "political candidate" mentioned in the 78 page document detailing the fraud and corruption case against Tony Rezko. By now we're all aware of the questionable land deal between Obama and Rezko, as well as the $168,000 in campaign donations from Rezko over the years ($44,000 of which have been donated to charity), and their overall longtime friendship. But this latest revelation just gets a "meh" from us, despite the big story the Sun-Times is trying to make it out to be. Why the indifference? Because unlike "Public Official A", the tiny paragraph mentioning the "political candidate" doesn't indicate any wrongdoing. Although any instance of having Obama's name brought up in the same sentence as Rezko at this point can't be a positive for the campaign. In a written response to questions, the Obama camp continued to deny knowledge of any Rezko shenanigans. more ›

Here's what happened while a punk rock choir distracted us from Doomsday: Fall arts season preview season is here. If you didn’t pick up a Reader over the weekend, you can still bookmark their A & E preview online. The Trib’s writers chose their 10 most promising in theater, art, dance, music (rock and otherwise), comedy and architecture. The Bright One previews Broadway in Chicago and upcoming rock concerts and CDs (remember those?). New City... more ›

"One Mint Julep" seems to be a fitting theme for this week, in both photo and song (Last.fm doesn't lie). Let's move on, shall we? Today is "Charlie Trotter Day" in Chicago, in honor of the 20th anniversary of the opening of his eponymous restaurant. The Sun-Times had a couple of nice pieces this week in conjunction. We linked to Janet Fuller's story of Trotter's first two employees, who are still with him today, in... more ›

- BREAKING: The Tribune and Sun-Times agree to a historic distribution deal where the Bright One contracts the Tribune to handle most of its delivery. More on this tomorrow after we've had time to let this one sink in. - A Dallas real estate investment firm is thisclose to signing off on an $850 million deal for four downtown office buildings, including 440 S. LaSalle, aka One Financial Place. - United Airlines files lawsuits... more ›

- The Illinois Appellate Court ruled the city is not liable for negligence in the 2003 Lincoln Park porch collapse. - Hollinger Inc., the majority shareholder in Sun-Times Media Group, has taken control of the board, leading to speculation that it's stepping up efforts to sell the Bright One. - "Someone filmed a documentary about Thax Douglas?" Yup. View the trailer here. - William Heirens, the state's longest-serving prison inmate at over sixty years,... more ›

Southgate Market, the ginormous shopping mall being built in the South Loop, will have a few stores open for shoppers in a few short weeks, just in time for the holidays. However, the mall's centerpiece retailer -- you know which one -- won't be one of them. In today's Bright One, a Whole Foods spokesperson said that the 55,000-square-foot store won't be open until May, as they work out the kinks and figure out... more ›

Look out Metromix, the Sun-Times is getting into the entertainment Web site game. On Wednesday, the Bright One announced its purchase of CenterstageChicago.com for an undisclosed price. Unlike Metromix, which was developed by the Tribune and launched in 1997, CenterstageChicago has operated on its own for a decade. The site was founded by four Northwestern grads and has expanded its features and coverage over the years. Obviously, the Sun-Times wants a piece of the online... more ›

As Chicagoist sits down to enjoy our second cup of coffee for the morning, we couldn't help but feel a little sympathetic for the dude who yesterday walked into a Starbucks on North Michigan Avenue and stole one of those fancy-schmancy stainless-steel coffeemakers. After all, we need our coffee too. more ›

From the "we don't get out much and it's a slow news day" department: According to an article in the Bright One today popular sushi restaurants have taken to topping their nigiri with non-traditional sauces, vegetables, and oils in an effort to stop diners from drowning their fish in soy sauce. Apparently doing so masks the natural rich flavors of the fish being eaten. Maybe some diners weren't schooled in proper nigiri dipping etiquette.... more ›