Chicago Now's Tracy Swartz reports that the CTA is set to launch a a beta test dedicated website for tracking arrival times of trains next month, similar to it Bus Tracker site. more ›

Are you that person who thinks of ketchup on a hot dog and says, "Eww!! Cooties!" Do you get a smug look on your face when someone says they're from Chicago, only so that you can throw it in their face that the suburbs don't count (some of you readers definitely do this). more ›

Everyone loves the nightlife in these parts---there was even conjecture it would be enough to bring LeBron (sigh, no need to rehash that mess). But what does the scene look like in Chicago? Ask ten people to describe it and you will get ten different answers. We are decidedly in the beer and shots crowd, but when we want to get a peek at what some of the more socially-motivated folks in town are up to, we head online where two sites offer very different looks at the city’s nightlife: ChicagoNow’s Shots in the Dark blog and GlitterGuts. more ›

• A former O'Hare security chief is speaking out about how unsecure the airport is.
• Note to Blago: they're laughing AT you, not with you.
• The Reader's Whet Moser nails the Chicago Now vs Mike Doyle feud.

• Iraq war vet Joseph Jesk has been ordered held on $1 million bail in connection with the weekend shooting death of his wife, Heather Jesk.
• The battle over red light cameras continues tomorrow in Springfield.
• Fellow blogger (and our occasional sparring partner) Mike Doyle of Chicago Carless posted on his experiences blogging for the Trib's Chicago Now network and a huge discussion over what Chicago Now has allegedly done wrong and right has commenced over at the Windy Citizen.

Almost three months since its official launch, we're still reserving judgment on the Tribune's Chicago Now blog network. There's no denying there are quality reads on the site: the Parking Ticket Geek has become particularly notable in the wake of the parking meter privatization, the CTA Tattler is still a go-to for us, our pals at Gapers Block have a page, and there's some good sports coverage. But at 126 blogs and counting, the site still feels unwieldy, making it more difficult to find other potential quality reads. So we were a bit puzzled at the recent announcement that Chicago Now would be starting up it's own radio show on WGN. As it turns out, we're not the only ones. more ›

• At today's hearing, prosecutors alleged that an investigator working with students of the Medill Innocence Project on the Anthony McKinney case paid a witness, undermining his credibility.
• President Obama traveled to Fort Hood to take part in the memorial service for the soldiers killed in last week's shooting rampage. Video of the President's remarks is available here.
• The early release for state prisoners to save money has begun.

Jay Mariotti still scares us, so we've tried our best to avoid him since he departed our local rag's pages. Which explains why we missed his latest WTF moment until the boys at NQTC pointed it out. That we knew what was coming didn't dull the mystification of reading Mariotti's words. He really does just jump right from Cubs spending money now that they've been sold to the fact that Joe Ricketts' daughter is a lesbian. more ›

Earlier today, when asked about those "Jay Mariotti to the Trib on September 1" rumors, one Trib employee told us, "I haven't heard anything about it, sorry. And I would have heard something." We also posed the question to the Tribune's Gary Weitman, Senior Vice President, Corporate Relations, who told us, "This rumor is not true." Seems pretty succinct to us. Mr. Weitman forwarded our inquiry to Kate Mersman, communication manager for the Tribune, who we're still awaiting word from also told us, "I have no additional comment. The rumor is not true." Whether or not Mariotti ultimately ends at Tribune Tower in one form or another, at least it gives the Trib a little press on the day its Chicago Now blog network - Mariotti's originally rumored destination - moves out of beta and into "officially open for business" territory. Even their Breaking Tweets Chicago blog addresses the rumor but seems to ultimately wind up in pseudo-denial mode. more ›

It looks like all those rumors about Jay Mariotti returning to Chicago media are circulating again. Back in July, rumors swirled that the Trib's upstart blog network Chicago Now was trying to land Jay but now sports blog SportsByBrooks reports that once Mariotti's non-compete clause concludes at the end of this month, he'll join the Tribune as a weekly columnist. We've reached out to a few folks we know at the Tribune but the only response we got from one worker there was, "I haven't heard anything about it, sorry." We'll update if we hear any addition info from the Trib. more ›

• A UPS driver is in critical condition after being shot while making a delivery in the Englewood neighborhood.
• The U.S. Department of Education has ruled that the City College's debit card system is illegal.
• On the chopping block from the state Board of Education: after-school and gifted students programs.

• R.I.P. acting legend (and Chicago native) Karl Malden.
• Bail was denied for Harold Turner, the blogger from New Jersey currently in jail for threatening several Chicago-area judges over their upholding of Chicago's handgun ban.
• Layoffs began today at the Chicago Public Schools.

ChicagoNow's Megan Cottrell wrote an excellent piece about the Chicago Avenue garden at Cabrini Green's southern tip that's run by Fourth Presbyterian Church's "Chicago Lights" outreach program. Cottrell reports on some of the relationships developing in the garden between Old Town and Cabrini Green residents, as well as the struggles faced in getting Cabrini residents to take part in the project. (via Windy Citizen) more ›

The Tribune's new blog network, ChicagoNow, has launched in Beta form. So far, there are over 30 blogs on the site with many more to come. We're reserving judgment on the self-described "Huffington Post meets Facebook" until it's up and running at full speed. Besides hosting the RedEye and several offshoots of that publication (Show Patrol and The Kyles Files), they've also incorporated other blogs such as Metromix and the already-Trib-owned Len and Bob blog to cover the Cubs TV booth team. Most notable of the pre-existing non-Trib blogs that have so far been added are CTA Tattler and Mike Doyle, of Chicago Carless, who is heading up Chicagosphere, a look at the Chicago blog scene. more ›

We looked out the window Saturday morning and thought to ourselves, "Where, where ever shall we spend this glorious spring day?" The answer, naturally, was in a windowless, florescent-lit conference room in Trib Tower. Why? Because the Society for News Design was having a regional meetup to examine the state of our industry - and explore cool stuff going on in and around the Windy City's journalism scene. The best part: intros to a variety of new and growing news projects around the city. Oh, and that keg on the 22nd floor balcony... more ›