To our readers ...
There are still two newspapers in Chicago. That means two sets of eyes on government. Two points of view on our arts and cultural scenes. And two takes on what the Illinois congressional delegation is up to in Washington, not to mention go- to coverage of the White Sox and Blackhawks.
Pardon us, scratch the latter. Our competitors just laid off their lone reporter in the nation’s capital, as well as their White Sox and Blackhawks beat writers.
Meanwhile, here at the Chicago Sun- Times we keep giving you trusted voices on those beats: Lynn Sweet, Daryl Van Schouwen and Mark Lazerus. What’s more, we’ve vastly expanded our team of journalists to deliver you the news you need whenever you need it.
We work hard every day because we are on a mission: Be brutally honest, unflinchingly brave, 100 percent dependable and the people’s champion.
To better reflect that mission, today we’re debuting a more straightforward and cleaner look both in print and at suntimes. com— and serving up content in a more organized way on both platforms.
Our new logo incorporates a star from the Chicago flag. That’s a nod to the Chicagoans in every neighborhood who’ve helped keep us in business by reading our paper each day and coming to our website; to the Chicago businesses that advertise with us, and to the investors who fund our work— individuals as well as organized labor.
Our redesign goes beyond the look and feel of the paper. We are taking back our editorial voice. Gone are pre- produced pages from USA Today. Instead, our editors, all with deep experience in this city, are in complete charge of our news product, including nation- world and business coverage more relevant to Chicagoans.
In the past few weeks, we’ve brought back our “Weekend Plus” Friday section, giving readers a broad offering of events for weekend fun and providing our city’s best coverage of arts, music, culture, dining, movies and TV. We’ve produced glossy 64- page magazines celebrating the Illinois bicentennial and our city’s love affair with the Cubs and White Sox.
Our transformation isn’t just happening in print. We’re advancing digitally, too. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook. Download our new news app to get alerts on Chicago and national news developments 24- 7. Listen to our podcasts on race relations, sports and more.
We’re also now broadcasting full- scale live video programming at suntimes. com, with our Democratic gubernatorial forum and # suntimeslive election night show drawing more than 120,000 viewers. There’s more where that came from; keep an eye out for a new food series hosted by legendary Chicago broadcaster Linda Yu and neighborhoods coverage anchored by Ji Suk Yi, formerly of ABC7’ s “Windy City Live.”
Yes, there is a lot of change here at the Sun- Times. But you can still expect us to right wrongs with our investigative reporting; to affect positive changes through astute political writing and commentary, and to develop relationships with our diverse readership through our award- winning sports, entertainment and arts reporting.
Consider that since new ownership took over the Sun- Times in July:
◆ Our investigation of alleged sex abuse by a suburban volleyball coach— cited by the New York Times, ESPN and other national media— helped lead to that coach being banned by various sports governing bodies. It also helped prompt a class- action lawsuit filed by the mother of one of his former players.
◆ We’ve shown how President Donald Trump has used the widely maligned Cook County property- tax system to win millions of dollars in property tax breaks on Trump Tower.
◆ A series of Sun- Times reports brought to light what the Chicago Public Schools’ inspector general called a “full- blown cover- up” of a top aide’s ethical violation, which led to the resignation of the school system’s CEO.
And then there are the stories that just have to be told: The teen so moved by his father’s death from multiple sclerosis that he founded a not- for- profit to help others with disabilities; the pair of nuns whose order faces almost certain extinction in Chicago if no one else joins them, and the homeless veteran who had more than $ 3,000 worth of U. S. Savings Bonds returned to him because you, our readers, tracked him down in the wake of our initial story that sought to find him.
Yes, there are still two newspapers in Chicago. But only one works as hard as you do.
Thanks for supporting us— and for encouraging the rest of the city to come home to the Sun- Times.