Depending on the analyst and the statistic, the economy is on the mend or still in trouble or somewhere in between. “Getting By,” the year-end special from our Changing Gears series, goes beyond the experts and numbers.  Senior editor Micki Maynard and WBEZ’s Steve Edwards gather around a table with eight Illinois residents from different demographic groups and across the state to discuss the economy’s real world impact on their lives. 

Changing Gears is a public media collaboration between WBEZ, Michigan Radio and ideastream in Cleveland. The series explores the economic transformation of the industrial Midwest through the stories of people driving and experiencing this change.