The Rundown: Would I get the sticker-gate story more if I grew up here? (and other great comments)

The Rundown: Would I get the sticker-gate story more if I grew up here? (and other great comments)

WBEZ brings you fact-based news and information. Sign up for our newsletters to stay up to date on the stories that matter.

I’m going on Eight Forty-Eight today to read some of your comments on how you would have covered sticker-gate. I got some great feedback from yesterday’s post and now I have full control of the airwaves to make you famous. You’re welcome, Chicago.

Here are the ones I pulled out from various platforms. Remember, I asked people to help me out and give me suggestions on how they would put together a conversation based on the city sticker/gang symbol controversy.

Tom: A: non-story … or should have been. B: Politicians responded badly to a foolish observation. C: Public tragedy-mongers want to see kid crying on news. THANK YOU for NOT covering this.

Shelly: This isn’t a non-story. At it’s basic level, it might be. But what happened to this kid is representative of a growing trend in noncritical thinking in our government. Some British kids tweet they’re going to “destroy America” on their vacation — so let’s bar them from entering the country (even though anyone with two brain cells could understand they meant ‘party and have a blast’ (oh, probably can’t say “blast” either.) ) Let’s arrest someone at the airport because he decided not to fly rather than be pat down by someone not a cop. Let’s take away the one positive thing a troubled 15 year old had in his life because someone saw a face in a cloud and has the support of a bunch of anonymous police bullies in a hateful, racist blog.

Megan: Did the people want it? Or did the the media blanket us with it? And blanket to the point that the City had to just frantically make it go away? This is a media conversation.

Eric: So there’s an angle: unsavory new “media” types anonymously running a story around a city without substantiating evidence. Or what happens when there’s a Great White Media Panic based on insinuations and gossip that can only teach [an] at-risk teen one thing: never trust an adult.

MB: I think the interesting angle is that this came out on a police blog that also captured screenshots of the artist’s facebook page essentially confirming the intentions - and the media picked it up from there and went crazy. So there’s your blogs-driving-the-news-and-even-exposing-that-the-salute-to-heroes-was-in-fact-a-big-hidden-insult-to-cops-and-cops-figured-it-out-before-anyone-else angle. Oh and since when is Jody Weis so important and a gang expert? How much is he getting paid for this job? There are flickr pools that probably could educate Clerk Mendoza on these symbols for a lot less dough.

And of course, my favorite one:

Chris: The reason why you don’t get the sticker story is because you did not grow up or go to school in the city of Chicago. You are a tourist.

Here’s what else is on the show today:

I wonder if the Underwater People are underwater? We tried to get Lisa Madigan for this, but she’s in D.C. and super-busy. We’ll get her next week.

On Thursday, federal and state prosecutors reached a $25 billion settlement with banks over foreclosures. Ed Jacob, the executive director of the Neighborhood Housing Services of Chicago (NHS), susses out the details for Illinois.

Where’s Abarbanel???? He’s out today so Kelly “duels” with herself.

One half of the Dueling Critics team, Kelly Kleiman, reviews the Victory Gardens production Ameriville.

Doyle and Debbie are here. It’s a country singing spoof play and the actors are being interviewed in character. When’s the last time you saw that on Chicago Tonight???

Country legends Doyle & Debbie stop by for a live performance on Eight Forty-Eight.

Rape jokes take us to the weekend. This is going to be a good segment, so you should call in. 312-923-9239. For every time you heard a rape joke that was horribly unfunny, this is your chance to weigh in.

Chicago comedian Ever Mainard told a rape joke that lit up the Internet. Vocalo’s Brian Babylon and Molly Adams tackle the question of whether rape can ever be funny.