Chicago Tonight

Illinois' Biofuels Future

Josh Kalven — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 11:36:13 -0800

On WTTW's Chicago Tonight yesterday, Rich Samuels filed an excellent report on the efforts in Illinois to develop "cellulosic" sources for biofuel, which are more efficient and environmentally-friendly than corn. Here's an excerpt in which Samuels talks to the scientists and farmers pushing "Miscanthus giganteus" as an alternative :

John Caveny, the farmer featured at the end of the clip, gives several reasons why cellulosic sources are advantageous over corn. But there a few additional details that deserve mention. For instance, Miscanthus' considerable height is an important asset. The plant requires a smaller footprint and therefore puts less constraints on conventional agricultural production. Theoretically, this would result in a lesser impact on food prices. From a Science Daily article on the University of Illinois research:

Using corn or switchgrass to produce enough ethanol to offset 20 percent of gasoline use – a current White House goal – would take 25 percent of current U.S. cropland out of food production, the researchers report. Getting the same amount of ethanol from Miscanthus would require only 9.3 percent of current agricultural acreage.

Furthermore, Miscanthus could be grown on land where corn isn't an option:

Field trials also showed that Miscanthus is tolerant of poor soil quality, Long said.

“Our highest productivity is actually occurring in the south, on the poorest soils in the state,” he said. “So that also shows us that this type of crop may be very good for marginal land or land that is not even being used for crop production.”

Also, the relative absence of fertilizer in the cultivation process is important from an environmental perspective. As corn production has ramped up in Illinois to meet the demand for ethanol, the amount of fertilizer seeping into our waterways has increased significantly. As these chemicals travel down the Mississippi River, they're creating an "ecological disaster" in the Gulf of Mexico.

But Miscanthus isn't the only exciting prospect in Illinois. Some U of I scientists are also pushing tropical maize, a corn-like plant that grows tall, requires little fertilizer, and doesn't produce any ears. The crop's greatest asset is the amount of simple sugars stored in its stalks. Whereas the grain from corn and the cellulose from Miscanthus must be converted into sugar before being turned into alcohol, tropical maize takes that step out of the process and saves valuable energy as a result. Read more about the "Sugarcane of the Midwest" here.

Obama Flashback: His First Appearance On WTTW

Josh Kalven — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 13:35:57 -0800

Not suprisingly, yesterday's edition of WTTW's Chicago Tonight featured a host of Obama-related segments. At one point, they aired some highlights from his first appearance on the program, during his unsuccessful bid to unseat Rep. Bobby Rush in 2000. Watch it:

I'd love to be able to watch the full debate. A recent Frontline documentary on the presidential race included some brief clips of Obama and Rush on the same program going back and forth over whether the then-two-term state senator was experienced enough. "What has he done?" Rush is seen asking at one point.

Also, be sure to head over to WTTW's site and check out the separate discussion last night between Will Burns, Judson Miner, and Paula Wolf about their impressions of Barack in his earlier days.

Shaw On The Myth Of Daley As A "Wonderful Manager"

Josh Kalven — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 15:26:51 -0700

While the Chicago Tonight panel's discussion of the ACORN issue left me wanting last Friday, when the conversation turned to the City of Chicago's budgetary problems, ABC 7's Andy Shaw made an interesting point -- one I haven't heard from the lips of any other mainstream reporter. He said that, in terms of the public interest, this is "a very good budget year." Why? Because Mayor Richard Daley's wasteful spending and questionable funding schemes are finally being scrutinized. "I think a lot of these problems that Daley was able to sweep under the rug for years are finally coming home to roost and being exposed to the public," Shaw said. "And I think that this myth of this wonderful manager has been ... punctured in some ways." Watch it:

Bruce Dold Accuses ACORN Of Becoming "Partisan" In Response To Attacks

Josh Kalven — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 11:01:37 -0700

On Friday's week-in-review edition of WTTW's Chicago Tonight, the panel discussion at one point turned to the controversy surrounding ACORN's voter registration drives in certain swing states. When asked by host Joel Weisman to lay out the "vote fraud charges," Tribune editorial page editor Bruce Dold gave an insufficient explanation -- one that left out crucial facts and left Weisman looking pretty confused. Specifically, Dold never mentioned that there's no evidence the faulty voter registrations turned in by ACORN will actually lead to fraud at the polls. ABC 7's Andy Shaw then pivoted to the connections between ACORN and Barack Obama, saying: "This is the same sort of taint he's faced in other ways. It's a little bit of guilt-by-association, but nothing direct." Business writer Bob Reed went on to refer to the group's history of mismanagement. Dold finally added that ACORN is "running a very aggressive defense of these charges. I mean, they've become partisan in their handling of this issue." Watch it:

Of course, Dold's claim that ACORN has "become partisan" completely overlooks the fact that it was the Republican Party and the McCain campaign that manufactured the uproar in the first place. ACORN's "aggressive" defense did not come from any political motivation, but rather from the need to rebut the GOP's scurrilous suggestion that they're attempting to steal the election.

Mike Flannery: McCain's Sex-Ed Ad "Disgraceful"

Josh Kalven — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 10:44:04 -0700

On WTTW's Chicago Tonight last Friday, CBS2 political reporter Mike Flannery laid into John McCain's recent ad suggesting that Barack Obama supports kindergarteners "learning about sex before learning to read." Flannery called the ad "disgraceful" and one of several "atrociously, grotesquely misrepresentative ads that the McCain camp has been running." Flannery added that the sex-ed spot "takes some of the sheen of the McCain 'man of honor' thing" and said it's an example of "overreaching on the part of the Republicans that they're going to regret." Watch it:

The Tribune's Eric Zorn has a good rundown of the "brazen inaccuracies" in McCain's sex-ed ad, as well as a compendium of other commentary on the topic.

Georgia10 On WTTW: "Sarah Palin Is A Liar. Period."

Josh Kalven — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 09:25:42 -0700

Yesterday, WTTW's Chicago Tonight hosted a discussion on how the blogosphere is affecting the presidential race with two prominent local bloggers: DailyKos contributing editor Georgia Logothetis (aka "Georgia10") and Townhall.com's Guy Benson. Interestingly enough, when asked whether liberal and conservative blogs were simply extensions of the two presidential campaigns, Benson disagreed and took the opportunity to disavow the McCain campaign's suggestion that Obama "called Sarah Palin a 'pig.' "

Then, at the very end of the segment, Marin asked both bloggers to quickly explain the next "hot issue" on their respective sites. Logothekis responded: "The hot issue is the fact that Sarah Palin is a liar. Period. She keeps repeating the Bridge to Nowhere lie and the traditional media finally picked up with it." Watch it:

It's too bad Georgia didn't get more time to speak her mind on Palin. Nonetheless, it was refreshing to hear someone on the mainstream local airwaves call a spade a spade.

Martire: "For Decades We Haven't Given Our Children An Adequate Education"

Josh Kalven — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 09:06:10 -0700

On WTTW's Chicago Tonight yesterday, Center for Tax and Budget Accountability executive director Ralph Martire discussed the school funding crisis in Illinois and expressed his support for State Sen. James Meeks' effort to highlight the issue. "We've got to get people as outraged about the fact that for decades we haven't given children an adequate education in our state," he said. "And when they get the same fervor and outrage over that that they have over this silly day of missed school, maybe we'll make a change."

Talking about the tax code's effect on the state's fiscal situation, Martire also pointed out that "Illinois has got a $600 billion economy -- $600 billion. The cost of the tax increase needed to fix our problems would be about $6 billion. That's one percent of our economy." Watch it:

For more on the education funding issue, check out Will Burns' column from last week.

Trice: Daley's Targeting Of Media Coverage "Shameful"

Josh Kalven — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 14:27:54 -0700

Yesterday's "Tuesday Commentary" on WTTW's Chicago Tonight went toTribune columnist Dawn Turner Trice, who voiced her hope that Chicago police will "step up" in the face of the city's rising violence without resorting to brutality. She also took aim at Mayor Richard Daley's ridiculous statement last week that fear of unfair media coverage has made officers timid, calling this suggestion "nothing short of shameful." Watch it:

Also of note, in a Sun-Times op-ed last Sunday, Chicago activist and journalist Jamie Kalven (full disclosure: he's my father) responded to Daley's remarks:

It is a first principle of our democracy that public officials in whom we vest substantial power must be subject to public scrutiny. This principle applies every bit as much to the police officer on the street as to the high government official.

We give the police great powers -- to arrest and detain, to use force, and, under certain circumstances, to kill -- and we allow them considerable discretion in performing their duties. Public scrutiny is the necessary antidote to abuses of those powers.

For Daley to suggest that officers must be sheltered from core democratic principles in order to show up for work is a diservice to both the police and the communities they serve.

Obama's Personal Responsibility Message Isn't Just For Black Folks

Josh Kalven — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 15:50:59 -0700

In the wake of the Jesse Jackson "incident," there's been a lot of talk about what the reverend meant when he said Barack Obama has been "talking down to black people." Both in private conversations I've had and in discussions I've observed on the airwaves, there seems to be an assumption that Obama has only stressed personal responsibility and good parenting when speaking to black audiences. For instance, check out Sun-Times columnist Mary Mitchell's claim on WTTW's Chicago Tonight last Friday that this is "not a conversation he has with white America":

But while it's true that Obama tends to linger on these issues a bit longer in front of predominantly black audiences and that he tends to employ a slightly different vernacular in those settings, Mitchell's assertion that he's not telling white audiences to turn off the TV and encourage their kids to study is false.

For instance, here's what he told an audience in Spirit Lake, Iowa, on December 16 of last year:

Parents, you’ve got to turn off the tvs and shut down the video games. [And] our students have to understand that education is not a passive activity. You don’t just tip your head over and have it pour in....You’re gonna hear me as President not just talking about programs--I’m going to be talking about our obligations to our kids.

And here's what the audience looked like:

In Youngstown, Ohio, on February 18, Obama hit on a similar theme. Indeed, theYoungstown Vindicator reported that he had "admonished parents to do their part by turning off the television, putting away the video games, and instilling in their children a desire to get a good education." As this image from the rally shows, there were plenty of white folks in attendance:

During a speech in Des Moines, Iowa, on May 20, Barack said this:

Change is giving every child a world-class education by recruiting an army of new teachers with better pay and more support; by promising four years of tuition to any American willing to serve their community and their country; by realizing that the best education starts with parents who turn off the TV, and take away the video games, and read to our children once in awhile.

There sure were a lot of white people there:

In the wake of the Rev. Jackson controversy, I urge folks to go back and read Obama's Father's Day speech in full. An impression seems to have formed that because he was speaking at a black church, this was an instance of Barack going out of his way to "talk down" to African-American parents. Lost in that characterization is that the entire speech centered around what "we" need to do -- not "you" or "they." Also forgotten is that he didn't put all the responsiblity on the individual's shoulders, talking at length about the ways in which the government needs to meet struggling parents "half way."

Read the speech and judge for yourself.

Andy Shaw: Mike Madigan's Obstructionism Hurts Lisa

Josh Kalven — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 11:48:54 -0700

On WTTW's Chicago Tonight last week, the Friday panel discussed the possibility of gubernatorial bids by both Bill Daley and Lisa Madigan. During the conversation, ABC 7's Andy Shaw asserted that "Mike Madigan has done great damage to Lisa's chances with his obstructionism in Springfield."

Host Joel Weisman and the Tribune's David Greisling both pushed back against the notion that Lisa would be held accountable for her father's record as House Speaker. Watch it:

I'd have to agree with Shaw and, frankly, it was refreshing to hear a journalist even refer to Mike Madigan's "obstructionism."

As I tried to articulate during my own Chicago Tonight appearance a month ago, I think that the speaker is a serious liability for Lisa if she decides to run. Griesling is probably right that most Illinois residents don't associate Mike Madigan with the stalemate in Springfield. But that might change if Lisa threw her hat in the ring, as it would result in some serious scrutiny of her father and how he operates.