Ben Joravsky Interviews: Inside Chicago Government

What Mick Dumke brought to the Reader and Joravsky's articles; the future of government reporting at the Reader post-Dumke; and a look at the Chicago News Cooperative's reporting. Length 7.9 minutes.

Why the inspector general audited tax-increment financing; the fact of Millennium Park's non-budget development; and why aldermen think the IG shouldn't investigate TIF. Length 8.5 minutes.

Whether teachers and students should sacrifice for administrative largesse; how Mayor Daley helps private firms compete with public schools for public dollars; and what it takes to get the public's attention. Length 8.1 minutes.

Ben Joravsky reflects on the tenure and departure of Alison True, the recently-fired editor of the Chicago Reader. Length 8.7 minutes.

The father of tax-increment financing activism; the myth of TIF complexity; and the financial penalty for a school system that doesn't divert money to TIF districts. Length 7.1 minutes.

Whether unions should focus on company policy, worker benefits, or both; the Chicago Teachers Union's ignorance of how the city raises and spends public dollars; and a fledgling movement to get the Chicago Public Schools to withdraw from tax-increment financing. Length 8.4 minutes.

When schools lower property values; the capitalization of new schools--then vs. now; and why schools have ended up in parks. Length 6.7 minutes.

How to get the city to publish public information; the myth of the super-hero teacher; and teachers as whistleblowers. Length 6.9 minutes.

Tax-increment financing's fundamental flaw, and how to fix it; Block 37--the poster child for the original TIF model; and the Board of Ed's legacy of stealing from schoolchildren. Length 8.5 minutes.

The typical Chicagoan's phases of TIF understanding; Ben outlines an unlikely TIF debate; and city officials who believe that Chicagoans don't want to know the true cost of government. Length 8.6 minutes.

Whether candidates who don't run in a primary should have a harder time running in the general election; the limited focus of the liberal wing of Mayor Daley's party; and whether Forrest Claypool and his ilk really intend reform. Length 7.5 minutes.

The tenuous connection between Chicago Public School positions, titles, and business cards; putting words into the CPS spokeperson's mouth; and how the CPS budget resembles the city's reporting on TIF districts. Length 8.3 minutes.

Whether Chicago Public Schools staff cuts appear in its budget; the importance of honesty in budget-making; and what Chicago leaders respond to. Length 6.7 minutes.

How state Rep. Debra Mell resembles former Pres. Reagan; how the Incumbent Alderman Protection Act could lock up all the nominators in a district; and why the state eliminated Chicago mayoral primaries. Length 6.9 minutes.

Willfull ignorance of entrenched poverty--worse than misleading; corruption without salvation; and other mayors' Daley-envy. Length 6.4 minutes.

How the University of Chicago inadvertently created smart political tacticians; Loyola's preposterous development proposals; and the natural relationship between developers and universities. Length 7.8 minutes.

The Board of Education's tradition of getting back to reporters; where to bury patronage workers at Chicago Public Schools; and the need for a central-office administration. Length 6.7 minutes.

How much tax revenue the city expects the Galewood/Armitage TIF District to take in; the future solvency of the city's entire TIF program; and Ald. Carothers: just one more rubber stamp? Length 7.1 minutes.

The fears whites had about Harold Washington's mayoralty; the recent primary's county-board candidates "unthinkable" in the '80s and '90s; and Quinn the maverick versus Hynes the mob-runner. Length 9.6 minutes.

When office-holders become reformers; how reading about government operations resembles eating your veggies; and the kind of outsider that can take on Daley and Madigan. Length 7.3 minutes.