Emails Reportedly Show Close Coordination Between CNN Team, Emanuel on ‘Chicagoland’

The Chicago Tribune reviewed more than 700 emails pertaining to the making and filming of “Chicagoland,” an eight-part series which finished airing last week.

Though coordination can be expected in any documentary series, the emails reportedly show the Emanuel administration playing an active role in the narrative — and producers encouraging them to play ball.

One email showed executive producer Marc Levin appealing to the mayor’s office last May to be “on the phone in his SUV, in city hall with key advisers and his kitchen cabinet and meeting with CPS head BBB (Barbara Byrd-Bennett) and with CPD (Superintendent Garry) McCarthy.”

The first episode of the series showed several such scenes.

In a separate exchange, the daughter of a PR executive who helped arrange the CNN/Emanuel project reportedly emailed the mayor’s press secretary asking for “the list of story/interview ideas that you and your team were going to put together” for the producers.

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