An Alternative Weekly published somewhere on the near North Side of the Windy City, often read while consuming caffeine in beverage form surrounded by kindred spirits.
Their blurb would have you believe that they have been:
Published since 1971, the Chicago Reader is widely recognized as one of the leading alternative weeklies in the U.S. It specializes in features rather than news, with emphasis on urban issues and politics, arts and culture, and literary journalism that seeks to capture the spirit of contemporary city life. The paper has won numerous journalistic awards and honors, both local and national, and is well-known as a showcase for Chicago’s most talented writers, critics, photographers, and illustrators.
The Reader is also well-known for its indispensable guides to Chicago theater, film, arts, and music, and for an extensive classified advertising section that focuses on the needs of young urban adults. It is a controlled-circulation newspaper distributed primarily in city neighborhoods where young people live in high concentrations.
Then again, they engage in shameless self-promotion. Personally, I liked the paper, and also found it ideal for packing books belonging to my exgirlfriend when she decided to end our adulterous fling and move to Ann Arbor.