{"podcast":{"title":"Chicago News Today | 2 Min News | The Daily News Now!","slug":"chicago-news-today-2-min-news-the-daily-news-now-7463314","podcast_index_feed_id":7463314,"rss_url":"https://feeds.fastcast.ai/chicago-today-the-daily-news-now.xml","website_url":"https://thednn.ai/","image_url":"https://image.fastcast.ai/podcasts/chicago-today-the-daily-news-now.jpg","author":"The Daily News Now!","episode_count":2000,"summary":"Hosted by Corey with the Story, Chicago News Today delivers fast, focused daily updates on the stories shaping Chicago—from local news and business to culture, sports, and community developments. Designed for quick, on-the-go listening, each episode brings you up to speed in minutes. Produced by AI for speed, consistency, and global scale, the show is part of The Daily News Now network—bringing local news to every city in the world and keeping communities connected. Chicago News Today is your daily snapshot of what’s happening across the city. Advertise on DNN: advertise@thednn.ai","last_synced_at":"2026-09-14T06:17:53.052055+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/chicago-news-today-2-min-news-the-daily-news-now-7463314"},"episode":{"title":"Benton Scandal and Welch's Cover-Up | Chicago News","slug":"benton-scandal-and-welch-s-cover-up-chicago-news","published_at":"2026-07-25T00:31:06+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/chicago-news-today-2-min-news-the-daily-news-now-7463314/benton-scandal-and-welch-s-cover-up-chicago-news","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/chicago-news-today-2-min-news-the-daily-news-now-7463314","url":"https://sources.thednn.ai/88a2190809311f2a","audio_url":"https://api.fastcast.ai/audio/291ee3e7-338a-4e26-bfb5-9f272e02401d.mp3","summary":"A state rep allegedly harassed a staffer in 2023, and despite Speaker Welch’s team knowing, they nudged her to file a complaint—she didn’t. Then Welch’s campaign funneled $1.4M into his reelection. After quietly sidelining him, stripping his roles, and later demanding his resignation following an IG report, Benton stepped down. He also made inappropriate remarks to a lobbyist. The accuser later said Welch advised her to meet him at a bar for career help—raising eyebrows. Democrats are split, questioning Welch’s credibility, especially since regular staff are told to handle complaints with their own reps, not the Speaker. The deeper issue? District staff have no protections when their own rep is the offender. Listen in comfort: Get a discount on a Soli Pillow: http://solipillow.com/discount/dnn. Advertise on DNN: advertise@thednn.ai This is an automated, high-level news summary based on public reporting. Report issues to feedback@thednn.ai. View sources & latest updates: https://sources.thednn.ai/88a2190809311f2a","meta_description":"A state rep allegedly harassed a staffer in 2023, and despite Speaker Welch’s team knowing, they nudged her to file a complaint—she didn’t. Then Welch’s c…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":91,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/chicago-news-today-2-min-news-the-daily-news-now-7463314/episodes/benton-scandal-and-welch-s-cover-up-chicago-news/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/chicago-news-today-2-min-news-the-daily-news-now-7463314/benton-scandal-and-welch-s-cover-up-chicago-news.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}