WBEZ 91.5 Chicago

Protesters want the nation’s largest retailer to offer more dependable schedules, better health care and higher wages to employees.

IBM Benchmark is reporting Cyber Monday sales are up Monday afternoon by 20 percent compared to a year ago. Department store online sales have gone up 39 percent compared to last Cyber Monday.Andrew Lipsman is the vice president of marketing at the online research firm ComScore."

Chicago's Magnificent Mile shopping strip is teeming with Black Friday shoppers Friday. But if Chicagoans were shopping downtown, they were certainly hard to find.The majority of people polled were from not just out of state, but from overseas - here to take advantage of a recession and good deals.

Retailers opened their doors early this morning to Black Friday shoppers, and some economists say after a year of economic turbulence, this might be the busiest one in years."

 Shannon Cason is a real live Macy's employee (he sells women's shoes).So the Former Moth GrandSLAM champion is more than equipped to give you his thoughts on Black Friday's move to Thursday, in his Paper Machete Consumer Reports Report.Below, the beginning of his diatribe.

Chicago mayoral candidate Carol Moseley Braun is spending Black Friday touring a commercial corridor on 87th Street. November 27th is nationally dubbed Small Business Saturday.  Organ

Some economists expect retailers to be pleased with the amount of shoppers out Friday. That's after a few disappointing Black Fridays in recent years.Diane Swonk thinks the term Black Friday is outdated. "I think it should be crowned Red Tag Friday," she said.