WTTW News

As Chicago Tonight prepares to move to 10:00 pm weeknights beginning January 23, we sat down in WTTW’s Crown Studio with news director Jay Smith to talk about the local news business and plans for Chicago Tonight and WTTW News.

Beginning Saturday, September 25, WTTW will have a new weekend news lineup.

Joanna Hernandez spent the past five years as a journalist in New York City, but she has always wanted to return to Chicago to tell the stories of her native city. "I’ve talked about it since day one,” she says. 

To make sense of this remarkable year, WTTW sought to address some of the most important issues of our time with our content, while educating and entertaining children and families. Our Vice President of Community Engagement shares some of his favorites.

2020 has been a year unlike any other in memory, with a worldwide pandemic, a recession, racial reckoning, and a presidential election. As COVID-19 turned life upside down, Chicagoans were left with more questions than answers, and WTTW News had to innovate as they tried to provide them.

"I've never covered a more important story in my career," says the producer of the new Frontline: Coronavirus Pandemic. But how are journalists and broadcasters working now, when most people are confined at home? Frontline, WTTW News, and WTTW's FIRSTHAND discuss.

Heather Cherone first appeared on WTTW as a high school senior and editor of her school newspaper. Now the veteran of The Daily Line and DNAinfo Chicago is joining WTTW News as a digital reporter covering City Hall.

Window To The World Communications, Inc. (WWCI), parent of WTTW and WFMT, announced today that Hugo Balta has joined the organization as News Director for WTTW News effective February 3, 2020.