The Future of the Chicago Reader

Hi, it’s Sol at the Reader again. Since I started as CEO in February 2023, folks have offered me a lot of opinions about our newspaper—some kind and supportive, some… not. Here’s a sample from my notes:

1. The Reader is too young, too woke
2. The Reader is too old, too white
3. The Reader is too niche
4. The Reader isn’t niche enough 
5. The Reader advocates too much
6. The Reader doesn’t advocate enough
7. The Reader does too much hard news
8. The Reader doesn’t do enough hard news
9. The Reader should be 100% online
10. The Reader newspaper is essential
11. The Reader isn’t relevant 
12. The Reader is critical, irreplaceable 

Thank you for your feedback. It confirms what I know in my gut: At its core the Reader is a mirror. If you look at it regularly you will see that the 12-point list of opinions above is the truest representation of Chicago we have, because:

1. Yes, Chicago is too much.
2. And yes, Chicago is also too little.

It’s a paradox we embrace. But not everyone does.

In six weeks, a new administration will take control of our country. Not long after that, they will take aim at Chicago and all of our passionate, teeming multiplicity. With retribution on their lips and retrograde populism in their hearts, they will tell us what a family is supposed to look like, limit our rights and stymie our conversations, roll back our progress, and defund our loving pursuits. These are the aims of their project.

But diverse democracy is the great experiment of the modern world, and strangling it dishonors our country’s progress. Proving pluralism viable requires easy access to safe spaces: for conversation and expression, for difference and demonstration, for the bridge-building power of the arts and the power-checking ferocity of a free press. So in 2025, the Reader resolves to:

1. Define our families for ourselves—and shine a light on anybody who tries to define them for us
2. Make and celebrate art from as many perspectives and cultures as humanly possible 
3. Write new guides for recognizing our allies and rebuilding community not merely to oppose, but to unite
4. Tell the truth, over and over and over again, no matter what 

It’s a good time for Chicago to be “too much.” It’s a good time to be in love with Chicago. Please make a donation to the Reader today so we can keep loving you right back.  

Onward,

Sol