Section B, story 35 min read
Cutting cable no longer means cutting yourself off from Chicago news. The city’s TV newsrooms broadcast free over the air, and most of them also stream online. The trick is knowing which option gives you what. An antenna gets you everything that is broadcast, live and free. Station apps and websites are handy on a phone, but their live streams do not always carry every show. Paid streaming services fill gaps but cost money. Here is how the pieces fit.
Option 1: An antenna
The most complete and cheapest way to watch local news is the way it has always been delivered: over the air. CBS Chicago on channel 2, NBC 5 on 5, ABC7 on 7, WGN on 9, WTTW on 11, FOX 32 on 32, Telemundo Chicago on 44 and Univision Chicago on 66 all broadcast free signals, according to the FCC’s public files. With a decent antenna you receive the full schedule, morning shows, evening newscasts and breaking coverage, with no subscription and no login.
Most people in the city and inner suburbs need nothing more than an indoor antenna placed high in a window. The important detail is that CBS Chicago transmits on a VHF channel, so the antenna should be rated for VHF as well as UHF. See TV Antennas in Chicago High-Rises: What Works When You Live Above the Street for setting one up in an apartment, and TV Reception in the Chicago Suburbs: Antennas for Houses, Distance and HOA Rules if you live farther out.
Option 2: The stations’ own websites and apps
Each of the main newsrooms runs its own website, and they describe themselves in similar ways. ABC7 Chicago calls its site Chicago’s source for breaking news and live streaming video online, covering news, weather, traffic and sports for the greater Chicago area. FOX 32 Chicago says viewers can watch breaking news live or see the latest videos from its programs, and describes itself as serving the Chicago area and Northwest Indiana. NBC 5 Chicago offers forecasts and breaking news alerts. CBS Chicago is part of the CBS News site and promotes its First Alert Weather coverage. WTTW describes itself as Chicago’s PBS station streaming news, kids, drama and documentaries.
What you get through these sites varies. Live streams tend to cover newscasts and breaking events, while network programs and some local shows may not stream at all. Clips and articles are usually free. If you want a specific newscast every day, check the station’s site to see whether it streams that time slot before relying on it.
Tip: Turn on push alerts in one station app and leave the rest off. One reliable alert source beats four apps buzzing about the same story.
Option 3: Streaming services
Paid live TV streaming services usually include some or all of the local stations in their Chicago packages, along with cable channels. They are the closest thing to cable without a cable box, and they work on smart TVs, streaming sticks and phones. The drawback is cost. If local news is your main reason for subscribing, an antenna does the same job for free.
What about sports?
Local news is easy without cable; local sports are harder. Many team broadcasts are on regional sports channels rather than on the free stations. The White Sox announced for the 2025 season that all their games would air and stream on the Chicago Sports Network, CHSN, which it described as available on cable and satellite through DIRECTV, DIRECTV Stream, Astound Broadband and Fubo, with all live games also streaming on CHSN.com and the CHSN app. The Blackhawks said 67 regular-season games would be on CHSN locally in 2025-26, with the CHSN app offering a free seven-day trial. Bears games are a different case: the team’s 2026 pages list the pregame show on FOX 32 Chicago, an over-the-air station. Radio remains the one free way to follow every game; see Chicago Sports Radio: Where to Hear the Cubs, Sox, Bears, Bulls and Blackhawks.
Comparing the options
| Option | Cost | Full live schedule | Works without internet | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Antenna | One-time purchase | Yes | Yes | Watching newscasts on a TV at home |
| Station sites and apps | Free | Partly | No | Phones, clips, breaking news |
| Paid streaming service | Monthly fee | Usually | No | People who also want cable channels |
Radio still counts
If you want news while driving or cooking, Chicago radio covers it. WBBM Newsradio describes itself as Chicago’s all news station, on 780 AM and also on 105.9 FM. WGN Radio on 720 AM and WBEZ on 91.5 FM, the station of Chicago Public Media, are other long-standing sources of local news on the dial. Chicago Radio Stations by Frequency: FM and AM From Bottom to Top has the full dial.
When the internet goes down
Streams depend on your internet connection and the station’s servers, and both can fail when you need them most, during a storm or a power cut. An antenna-connected TV on a battery backup, or a battery radio, keeps working when the internet does not. That is a good reason to keep at least one over-the-air option even if you watch most things online. During severe weather, the National Weather Service’s own NOAA Weather Radio is another layer; see Chicago Weather on TV and Radio: Lake Effect Snow, Warnings and Weather Radio.
Putting it together
- For the TV in the living room, an antenna gives every local newscast free.
- On your phone, pick one station’s app for alerts and live coverage.
- For sports, check where each team’s games air before you cancel anything.
- Keep a battery radio for outages, tuned to an all-news or news-talk station.
Most households end up with a mix. The antenna handles the daily newscasts, a phone app covers breaking news on the go, and radio fills the gaps in the car and during storms. None of it needs a cable bill, and the antenna part costs nothing after you buy it.