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Outside the Loop RADIO

Outside the Loop RADIO is Chicago's Almost Above-Ground Audio Magazine. Founded as a podcast in September 2006 and picked up for broadcast by Chicago Sound Alliance WLUW 88.7-FM in March 2007, "OTL" now airs on Chicago's Very Own 50,000-watt heritage powerhouse station WGN Radio 720-AM. Storyteller and urbanologist Mike Stephen hosts this weekly program featuring fun segments and interviews with local newsmakers, artists, musicians, and others doing cool stuff around the greater Chicago area. The show covers topics stories that don't always get mainstream media attention... and it's all presented with a strong and independent Chicago slant. http://outsidetheloopradio.com

info_outline OTL #1,021: Civic miseducation in CPS, Denying innocence in Cook County 05/09/2026
info_outline OTL #1,020: Inside the shop of MachMachines Musical Instruments, A local hero in the Ukraine war, The Secret History of Vince Black 05/02/2026
info_outline OTL #1,019: Using AI to help local restaurants, Goatstock, New music from Todd Kessler 04/25/2026
info_outline OTL #1,018: The next generation of journalists, The Secret History of Eddie Condon 04/18/2026
info_outline OTL #1,017: Legal aid through our libraries, Debating public money for private schools, Leaders in Transformational Education 04/11/2026
info_outline OTL #1,016: Revisiting Chicago Voyagers, Sam Robinson’s new music, The Secret History of Anne Hills 04/04/2026
info_outline OTL #1,015: New ownership of The Hideout, New Sound Cafe opens in Austin, The Chicago Soul Jazz Collective 03/28/2026
info_outline OTL #1,014: Peer support in prisons, New music from The Meadowlark Lemons, EdiblEats 03/21/2026
info_outline OTL #1,013: The next generation of engineers, Revisiting The Levee, The Secret History of Ed Wilkerson 03/14/2026
info_outline OTL #1,012: Illinois’ population struggles, Project I Am, Rap J’s story 03/07/2026
info_outline OTL #1,011: Civics and a new Bears stadium, A veena virtuoso, The Secret History of The Dells 02/28/2026
info_outline OTL #1,010: Check your judges in 2026, My Sweet George tribute show 02/21/2026
info_outline OTL #1,009: Intonation Music, A new chapter for the Westside NAACP, The Secret History of Elsa Harris and Duke Tumatoe 02/14/2026
info_outline OTL #1,008: The history of Chicago dining, A new show from the Sideshow Villains, A Boy and His Dream 02/07/2026
info_outline OTL #1,007: Chicago independent music venues are the backbone of creativity, Revisiting the preservation of local signs 01/31/2026
info_outline OTL #1,006: Borderless Magazine tells the story of immigrants in Chicago, The connection between school attendance and successful students 01/24/2026
info_outline OTL #1,005: Funkytown Beer expands, Paying musicians what they’re owed, New music from Gina Marie and The Golden Bucks 01/17/2026
info_outline OTL #1,004: Wage theft in Illinois, A look at the state’s fiscal health 01/10/2026
info_outline OTL #1,003: A look back at 2025 01/03/2026
info_outline OTL #1,002: A college in degree in Illinois can go a long way, The Secret History of Kitty Haywood 12/27/2025
info_outline OTL #1,001: Straight Outta Skokie, Creative Cypher's Chicago entertainment ecosystem 12/20/2025
info_outline OTL #1,000: The 1,000th episode live from Fitzgerald’s! 12/13/2025
info_outline OTL #999: The new editor in chief of the Chicago Reader, How are CPS students doing after they graduate?, New Holiday music from Kevin Brown 12/06/2025
info_outline OTL #998: Rethinking housing in Chicago and beyond, The Robert Townsend Pop-Up Film Fest, Public transit reliability 11/29/2025
info_outline OTL #997: Local journalism ethics in a time of ICE occupation, New music from These Peaches, The Haitian American Museum of Chicago 11/22/2025
info_outline OTL #996: Home for the Holidays helps those in need, Indiscipline: The music of King Crimson, The Secret History of Charles E. Gerber 11/15/2025
info_outline OTL #995: Helping local veterans in need, New music from The Gunshy, Chicago is a little less ratty 11/08/2025
info_outline OTL #994: The state of local news, The Secret History of Aura 11/01/2025
info_outline OTL #993: Curbside compassion with Yo Soy Ella, Takeout 25’s new cookbook, New local music from Terry White 10/25/2025
info_outline OTL #992: Revisiting Media Burn and the Center For Immigrant Progress, The Secret History of Panicsville 10/19/2025
 
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