Ilana Arougheti

(they/she) Hi! I'm a metro and audio reporter based in Chicago. I graduated from Northwestern University in June 2023, with majors in journalism and sociology and a minor in gender studies.

I'm passionate about media literacy and data accessibility. When reporting, I enjoy taking deep dives into civic infrastructure and promoting community networks of care.

I've worked on beats including local politics, housing equity, education, policing, transportation, investigations and religion. My recent work has focused on healthcare and labor news, as well as breaking coverage of hostages in the Israel-Hamas war.

    Writing and Audio

    I graduated from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University in June 2023. I hold degrees in journalism, sociology and gender studies.

    I interned at the Chicago Tribune from July 2023 to January 2024, working on the Business and Emerging News desks. There, I reported extensively on healthcare news, labor strikes, breaking news and cultural events. 

    Moving between two desks at the Tribune taught me to see thorough spot news and thoughtful enterprise possibilities in every situation. I've highlighted joy and tragedy across residents' lives, tracked evolutions in the Chicago hospital landscape and built relationships with communities impacted by the Oct. 7 Hamas hostage crisis.

    I was a reporting intern at the Chicago Sun-Times from January to March 2023. There, I gained experience with breaking news and election night coverage, and focused particularly on transportation and religion stories.

    In the summer of 2022, I was a metro reporting intern at The News & Observer in Raleigh, N.C. I reported on civic issues, crime and accountability in the Triangle region of North Carolina, with a special focus on Durham.

    I held several roles for my college newspaper, the Daily Northwestern, including city editor and investigations editor. 

    Feel free to say hi, send scoops or ask questions at iarougheti@gmail.com or ‪‪(872) 256-1815‬.

    Featured Articles

    Chicago Sun-Times •

    Ukrainian students, refugees host prayer vigil on invasion anniversary: ‘I will remember this all my life’

    One year after Russia invaded Ukraine, 13-year-old Oksana Mazur stood surrounded by peers in a Chicago auditorium, a prayer candle clutched to her chest, belting out the Ukrainian national anthem.

    In April, Mazur had been forced to leave Ternopil, in western Ukraine, after Russia invaded. She’s one of 75 students at St. Nicholas Cathedral School in Ukrainian Village who arrived from Ukraine within the last year.

    St. Nicholas hosted a prayer vigil Friday to mark and mourn the first anniversary

    My Work

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    Podcasts

    The Daily Northwestern •

    Defining Safe: Defining Queer Space

    Nearly 25 percent of Northwestern’s campus self-identified as queer in ASG’s last survey, but the Gender and Sexuality Resource Center only holds 10 people. And that’s one of the only institutional spaces on campus for queer students. There are proposals in the works to expand it, but for many students, campus-sponsored spaces aren’t the best ways to be in community with other queer students — or aren’t even spaces that feel like theirs. New from Defining Safe: How do queer students at Northwest
    The Daily Northwestern •

    Podculture: Why All Your Favorite Villains Are Gay…ish

    There’s a few characteristics that define the classic Disney villain: they usually hate princesses, end up falling from a great height and… are queer coded? It turns out many of Disney’s most popular cartoon villains possess traits often associated with queer people. Listen as we discuss what queer coding is, if it counts as representation and how Disney has used it to tarnish otherwise standard villains.
    The Daily Northwestern •

    Speak Your Mind: Wildcat Welcomer Wellness

    As Northwestern’s second remote quarter kicked into gear two weeks ago, incoming first-year students and transfers began to explore the reality of a completely virtual campus. On the other side of the computer screen, hundreds of student leaders were responsible for preparing Wildcat Welcome. They had to get NU’s newest Wildcats started off on the right foot and build up their own community and confidence in the process.

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