Currently in Chicago — August 21, 2024: Mild temps continue

The weather, currently.

Tonight and tomorrow night should bring pleasantly cool lows around 57, and a comfortable high in the low 70s with a few clouds passing through. The pollen count is still high, which my bees are happy about, and most beaches are still closed for swimming. Speaking of swimming, the Chicago River Swim got moved to Lake Michigan this year.

Up to 50,000 visitors have arrived for the DNC, and Chicago has donned her best finery; flowers and absolutely gorgeous weather. The convention wraps up on Thursday, and the sunny skies should continue through then and beyond.

— Katje Sabin

What you can do, currently.

A Media Matters analysis found that last year — the hottest calendar year on record — network coverage of climate actually declined in the US. What’s worse, just 12% of reports about climate change mentioned fossil fuels as the driving cause. The media still reported on extreme weather, but stopped short of making the climate connection.

Independent climate journalism like Currently is needed more than ever. And this year, with all of these weather warnings already underway, we’ll unfortunately have plenty of opportunities to do better.