Yay! The first newspaper for illiterates! Do you like one paragraph synopsis of incredibly complicated world issues, and then WHOLE PAGES devoted to idiotic celebrity gossip or useless sports nonsense - then the RedEye is the paper for you. Every time I see someone reading this rag, I think "You're not too bright, are ya?" Shame on you, Tribune for printing instant litter. read more

Decent free magazine that you can find just about anywhere in Chicago. It covers music, movies and such. There are reviews for restaurants, new music and movies as well. It definitely seems to want to draw in the urban hipsters but seems to be a bit stale in doing a solid job of it. The hipsters probably read something else anyway since pretty much everyone knows that the Chicago Tribune also puts out this little magazine. I noticed Redeye also put out a movie newspaper which was also free. It covered new releases but overall that newspaper was pretty much just full of ads with just a small movie section. Not my first choice on magazines but it is free so what the hell, I pick it up anyway. read more

100% recycled content. If you read last week's Us Magazine and glance at newspaper stand titles occasionally, you've already heard or read everything by the time they print it and get it in your hands. People wonder why newspaper readership is tanking. Publishers have no credibility other than the fact that they've somehow survived for decades. And they treat readers like idiots. If RedEye showed some respect and didn't have dumb titles for things like "What happened while you were sleeping" I at least might not be offended by the sight of it. But they're not going to create more fans of the paper by handing them completely disposable fodder they have already gotten somewhere else. Even if every weekday newspaper box is empty by the crack of dawn, every garbage can downtown is full before 9am. read more

Several hundred days ago when I was still a journalism undergrad downtown, our Broadcast Journalism professor summed up the Red Eye nicely: "Red Eye? Don't get me started on that fluff." My blood pressure rises when one comes into my line of sight. If you like being informed of places, people and events between Irving Park rd, Roosevelt rd, Western ave and Lake Michigan, Red Eye has the scoop on everything, including the best bars in Lincoln Park and where to see B-List celebs at nightclubs you probably wouldn't go to. Part of me thinks I should be happy my generation and others are picking up some type of literary material. Although I'm no literary snob (I fall asleep reading most books nowadays, so I can't finish anything), I think the Red Eye is not worth its price, and what contents it does have can't be justified with real news options. Then again, its owner Chicago Tribune has seemed to have morphed into a much larger version. Anyone read the "Live!" section of that lately? read more

Anyone remember the war between the Red Eye and Red Streak?? Newsweek even did a piece about the differences between the two reads. I remember the debut of the RedEye and thought it was a pretty cool concept: a condensed version of the news. At the time of the debut, the Red Eye came in handy because the horribly slow free internet access from Loyola University Chicago to an apartment off campus. I survived off a sad, free dial up connection for so long and a catchy newspaper sure helped sum up the gossip and news of the day. After Red Eye won out on the condensed newspaper war in Chicago and I got DSL, I read it occasionally thereafter. Afterwhile, it began to feel like the US Weekly or OK! of newspapers. The gossip is at least a day old if you follow the gossip blogs. The news portion is mainly AP reports and nothing I hadn't heard before through online newspapers and the newsstations. Even it's biggest feature is just okay that is the main stories. The flashy cover draws you in, but then you read and it's lame. For being the cover story, they aren't that full of information or that interesting. I used to read the columns often, but they got boring, redundant, and even a little whiny afterwhile. For me, the best feature is the Metromix section. It provides an extensive list of activities going on in the city and drink specials. I guess that I've outgrown the Red Eye a bit because it doesn't do much for me these days. Since it's free, it's good to use as packing material. read more

Finally, a newspaper without all of that boring news! Perfect for those who still have full use of their frontal lobe, but choose not to do anything with it! What's that? Jamie Foxx took a dump in Japonais' bathroom? Liz Crokin is all over it! Why is the CTA so darned slow? Kyra Kyles has the scoop! Read 'em the Riot Act, Kyra! Regular crossword puzzles got you down? Complete a RedEye puzzle and finally feel good about yourself! Sure, it's free. But somehow I manage to feel ripped off every time I pick one of these up. read more

I'll give them one star because Yelp makes me do it. I can't really comment on it's content, because I don't have the time to read it. My gripe, because I get the Tribune delivered at home, they also drop off the Red Eye. I barely have time for the Tribune. I didn't subscribe to the Red Eye. I have called the Tribune, and told them not to drop it off anymore. They said, they'd stop. Well no, such luck. In my Christmas tip envelope I put a nice note in the envelope, no Red Eye, please. Again, no luck. Emailed the Tribune, no luck, called and emailed again, no luck! Shoot me now, I'm so tried of picking these up off my porch and having to dump them. I sent another email, waiting to see what happens, it's too soon to tell, because each time they stop for a few issues and start again. They seem to have a chronic case of Alzheimer's. How is it that an institution that uses the written word, can't understand emails? What a waste of paper, and resources to bring this to my house and resources when it gets thrown away. And yes, even recycling takes up resources. Hey Red Eye, take a hint deliver to those people that request it, these darn papers are littering the street on my block. Thanks for the trash! read more

I love the Red Eye - when I get to read it. Unfortunately - where I live, they're as rare as mythological creatures of old. I wrote the following letter to their circulation department: "The Ellusive Morning Red Eye" So nice to see the week end the same way it began. No RedEye in the Box at the Red-headed Step-child of stops -- Morse. Of course, going south from Howard, we're the 2nd stop....Annoyingly, People ALREADY on the train - have their copy - happily reading away....*glower* .. but, I digress - it's not THEIR fault .... I'm jealous and will readily admit to it. This morning, however, I was in luck. While there was no paper in the box, someone had left one behind, on one of the seats on the train. I had my prize!! I could read away on my morning commute after all! *Yoink*! At the Morse stop, the Red Eye is as common as the Unicorn; and seen just as frequently. I subscribed to the Saturday Red Eye (the home-delivery only issue) all the way back in the first week of April - I've yet to recieve my Saturday issue of the Red Eye -- ever...it's been 7 weeks now - this week, will make it 8 weeks since subscribing. While I remain hopeful - I'm pretty sure the Saturday sighting of the "unicorn" will only be fantasy....I'll still be waiting ... hopeful, but more jaded as each week passes. I know it exists....I've never seen one....so, now, I'm skeptical of their existance. I'm a kid at heart...please - PLEASE .... can I get my subscription - some day? (hopefully this weekend)? read more

Okay, I admit it, I am a fan of the RED EYE (ducks in case someone throws something). For free, I do not expect a whole heck of alot--so this is just perfect for a quick read. Mind you, it is a really quick read. Things I appreciate about it: Highlights local eateries--great way to make me spend a buck Music section--good to know what is happening. Pop everything--not sure that is necessary. And last but not least--CROSSWORD!! I am a crossword junkie. read more

4 stars for the RedEye because of the 4 things I like about it: 1) It's free. 2) The Sudoku and crossword really are fun. 3) Five on Five is amusing. 4) It keeps me occupied on the train. The articles aren't that great, but it's free, so I'm ok with that. I generally skip over everything but the puzzles and the Five on Five, but I figured it's cheaper than buying a Sudoku or crossword puzzle book. read more

"Gag me!" ... Your typical RedEye reader might exclaim. Well I would like to apply this little quip to how I feel about this god awful sorry excuse for a paper. I am embarassed to be part of the market segment this trash targets. Its fluff, its garbage. I flip through it when I find one on the train and throw it aside. If there was a bit more thoughtful content it would get 3-stars ... but in its current state as tabloid trash - one star is generous. read more

OK. I can appreciate that the RedEye isn't for everyone, and that's fine. What I do not appreciate are the reviewers denigrating RedEye readers, assuming we're all some kind of drooling, semi-literate morons. You do know it is possible to read both the RedEye and books, right? They are not mutually exclusive. I can be seen with a RedEye in hand during my morning commute most days, even reading it if there's room. And believe it or not, I also read books. If I can get a seat during my evening commute, you'll see me with my nose in a book. Wonders never cease! The RedEye is what it is. It's a free paper. It has condensed stories on the most important news items of the day. Yes, condensed. If there is something that sparks my interest I'll go online when I get to work and get the details from CNN, NYT, or the Trib. The RedEye has information on local events, restaurants, and bars. There is also a little pop culture section at the back, and I confess I usually peruse that. It's about the only place I get my celebrity gossip, unlike some of my friends who spend all day clicking Refresh at Perezhilton.com or gawker.com. I don't think there is any reason to feel guilty for taking 5 minutes or less of your day (when you're stuck on a bus or train anyway) to get caught up on the world of entertainment. I think the RedEye has gone a bit downhill lately, though. It seems like there are more ads and less actual content. And while I used to like "Going Public" and "Hey CTA!" it seems that Kyra Kyles has simply run out of things to write about (understandable) and the public has grown tired of griping about the CTA, knowing it won't do any good. I also miss Leo's Nine Lines. read more

Reduce, reuse, recycle I don't subscribe to guilt, but I also don't subscribe to newspapers or pick up free papers on a daily basis. I prefer to read those publications online as much as possible. I AM happy that RedEye is free and that it out-lasted the evil copy cat RedStreak, but I think there should be more emphasis on encouraging readers to check out their publications online. I think their advertisers might have more response from online readers too, as opposed to relying on readers to remember to contact them after they've [hopefully] recycled their paper. Now it's confession time: I get the weekend edition of RedEye delivered to my front door. Talk about a pile of paper! The paper is stuffed with coupons, vendor advertisers and [believe it or not] PARADE magazine! I was thisclose to canceling the free subscription to the once-a-week RedEye which does not post online ... but last weekend's feature on bacon prevented me from canceling and prompted me to make a BLT. read more

The RedEye isn't going to win a Pulitzer anytime soon. It knows this. Or at least, its writers do. And they're okay with this. But for what it is - a free paper that gives you an overview of local, national, and international news, sports, and weird celebrity gossip - it gets the job done. If you don't want to bring your whole Tribune to work and try to manage reading it and folding it and unfolding it and keeping the sections together - the RedEye works. And if you like sudoku and crosswords but are cheap and don't want to shell out for one of those little puzzle books, - the RedEye works. If you get most of your news online and from TV - the RedEye works in that it gives you an idea of what you're going to hear about later. Frankly, it amuses me how some people take such a "holier than thou" attitude about a free newspaper. Like reading it is going to make them dumber or something, so they're all going to lug "War and Peace" to work to show everyone on the El how smart they are. Chill out, kids. Also, while most of the articles are written by staff writers, the rest are from the Associated Press. Having the RedEye around makes my commute seem shorter (I can breeze through the whole thing in 40 minutes - the same length as my commute), I always learn at least ONE new thing from it that I hadn't known previously. Also, having a bunch of weekly and daily specials posted is super helpful, as are the restaurant reviews. read more

I'm a big Red Eye defender for many reasons, none of which include the phrase editorial excellence or respectible journalism. First thing that drives me to grab a RedEye is that it is free. It's easier for me to grab a free publication than to dig around for 50 cents I usually don't have. The Red Eye also runs all the same major stories that the tribune covers, their simply in a short condensed version, which is really all I need to stay on top of public affairs and world topics. The cover stories are usually what get me, because they are usually obscure random new findings or studies that are rather interesting much like the featured stories on Yahoo and MSN. (Can't get enough!) I'm a sucker for gossip, I don't feel there is any reason to snub the entertainment section, It doesn't make you any less smart or intelligent because you want a little humor in your life. There's nothing like a bit of unneccesary hollywood drama to make me appreciate my own lacking of it. The Red Eye... it's quick it's easy, its readable, from cover to cover, (I personally think that's a good thing.) Enjoy it! read more

A previous reviewer (Ross H.) summed it up for me: "It's a free sudoku puzzle surrounded by 30 pages of fluff." I grab a Red Eye the days I don't have a book for the crossword and sudoku during my daily commute (sudoko going to work, crossword going home). I hate the phrase "it is what it is", but the Red Eye is what it is. Beggers can't be choosers. Waste not, want not. An ounce of prevention is worth.... oh never mind. Grab one for the commute if you don't have anything else to occupy your time. read more

For the AP articles that are dumbed down to a 3rd grade level, I give this 2 stars. Unfortunately, any attempt to move beyond that is painful to witness. Some papers seek out journalists. Other, it would seem, use creative writing students. I'm not looking for ground-breaking news reporting, just news...or reporting, of which this paper contains neither. I suppose if you can forego any whiff of journalism to read people whining about public transportation or who the staffers think would be just super in an all-Chicagoan remake of Lost, you might give it 3 stars. If it weren't free, I wouldn't know enough about it to write a review. read more

This is such a great, semi-trashy read, and a great way to start your morning. I'll do the WSJ and NYT at home, but when I'm on the El, this is the way to go. The crosswords are fun and easily solvable, and the Sudoku is awesome too. The sports section is ok, but too much Bears coverage- what about the Hawks? There are some major hotties that need some media "exposure" if you ask me... And that fact that it's free doesn't hurt either... read more

I have to say I really hate the new look of RedEye that debuted this week, so I'm deducting a star off my original review. The old look was perfectly fine to me, so why did they need to redesign it? *ugh* read more

I have a like/dislike relationship with this periodical. I want to make it clear that I truly appreciate the journalists (for the most part) for sharing a piece of their life with me. Most of the time one of y'all manages to get a smile out of me, if not a laugh, first thing in the morning. Even Liz Cronkin, who...I just can't believe is getting paid for what she does. Which is...I'm not sure what she does. That guy Leo Ebersole got me through some miserable months on the way to work, and I don't even really watch sports. Sometimes there are interesting events or food/drink stuffs info. Or info on good sales around town. So why 1 star? The Chicago's Most Beautiful Cat contest, which I believe was rigged. Miss Pussy Galore is way more beautiful than the cats chosen as finalists, and if Red Eye wants any more than one star from me, I demand a rematch. read more

The only redeeming thing about the RedEye is that it comes with a Sudoku and a Crossword. Oh and...no, that's it. read more

Have loved this small version of the Chicago Tribune since it came out! The Sun Times tried to come out with an equivalent but it never attracted as much attention as the Red Eye. When it first came out the RedEye was free on my campus only and a quarter everywhere else. Now I'm seeing free RedEye stands everywhere! :D Yet this does make it harder to find a copy on the way to the L but everyone on the L is usually reading a RedEye if it's a newspaper. This small version of the Trib has the same articles that you would find in the Tribune but it also has its own little features and columnists that I have grown to love! There is always the metromix section which is great to check out when I have free time at night and don't know what to do with it. The RedEye has a great combo of local, national and world news plus it has sports and entertainment news; by having all these sections everyone can enjoy the RedEye and have less weight to carry around everyday since Not everyone reads the Whole newspaper each day! It's convenient small size makes it much easier to read while commuting on the trains and buses through out the city. read more

It's a good place to read yesterday's Perez Hilton's gossip without having to actually visit that atrocious Perez Hilton web site (and suffer through seeing his ugly face and bad dye job)... Though really Yelp is just as useful for news gathering of that sort anyway. While riding the el, it's nice to read as a distraction from the girl who keeps elbowing you because you're too close to her and she thinks she has her own personal taxi called the Blue Line. The cosi $2 off coupons are useful, too. But aside from that, I find it totally irresponsible of the Tribune Company to allow this paper to litter the streets. literally littering.... every day you can walk down just about any street in chicago and find one blowing down the street. Whose money do you think pays to clean that up? read more

Can I say this outloud? I miss the RedEye! :( I used to take the train to work everyday and I always liked flipping through quickly and then heading to the sudoku and crossword puzzle. However, I no longer ride the CTA and therefore rarely get the time to check it out. Unlike my girlfriend, I find the 5-on-5 to be stupid and there is too muh Bears and baseball coverage. They have started to take care of the Chicago Fire more, and I appreciate that as a soccer fan. read more

This publication's 250,000 circulation is probably circulated by someone (an employee, I'm sure) dumping it in the street and gutters downtown and letting the wind blow it around. I personally have picked so many of them while walking on three separate occasions. I just got home from a two week vacation and see someone has done it again in several areas of my neighborhood. I can only imagine that this goes on all over the city. We have enough litterbugs in this city without a professional doing it for "circulation"of their paper. read more

I grab this paper everyday usually, on my way to work. It's great to catch up on what happened the day before in the city, and usually offers decent reviews of restaurants and things to do on the weekend. one of the things that i don't enjoy about the red-eye much is that there is not a TON of news in it. It's mostly driven by advertising, reviews and classifieds. read more

Dear RedEye, I appreciate someone finally getting back to me after I wrote more than once about not having received the Saturday edition after two months of signing up. You now deserve a star upgrade for making me all too happy on my Saturday mornings. So far, it has been a consistant two weeks with the delivery, and hopefully it will continue to last. My day becomes jolted when I do not have your crossword puzzle in one hand and a cup of coffee in the other. Sincerely a RedEye fan, Me read more

I'm a Red Eye addict for two simple reasons: 1) IT'S FREE and 2) Sudoku. Oh John Williams, I wake up every morning, awaiting the moment I will thwart your time. Sometimes I give you a break and figure you had a rough day. But I can't help but smile triumphantly when I solve in 15 minutes a puzzle that took you nearly an hour to complete. John Williams is my arch-rival, and he has no idea I even exist. What better way to channel my uber-competetive energy than toward an oblivious target who never gets tired of losing? Yes, it is entirely satisfying. read more

I heart the REdEye - of course, I love the chicago Tribune, too but this little paper is FREE and is available practically everywhere and on top of it - it's just the right amount of paper to read on a 20-30 minute commute which is every morning for me. IT's got a little bit of everything - sports, entertainment, the little puzzles, and updates on clubs, shows, music, restaurants, and daily specials. It's linked up with http://www.metromix.com which makes it the perfect Chicago little paper. read more

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When the Red Eye was introduced, the explanation given for its creation was that people under the age of 40 barely read anymore, especially newspapers, and what reading they did do was very ADD-affected. Seems like someone in the marketing department decided that the folks in the 20-40 demographic could barely get through the side of a cereal box without becoming distracted by their iPod. Now, as I am in this age group I was instantly enraged. Not only do I read three "real" newspapers everyday, I also am familiar with certain buildings called "bookstores" and "libraries". I consider myself well read and well, dammit, I don't even own an iPod. (although I would totally love one, but that's another rant...). After taking a glance at one of the issues of the "new era of newspapers" I was completely disgusted. Cheezy, tabloid, dumbed-down - basically a Cliff's Notes version of the Tribune. If you are 13 and need to bring an article into your "Current Events" class, something out of the Red Eye might be appropriate, but really, the best you are going to get out of it is a free Suduko and crossword puzzle. read more

Do you own a bird or some other small mammal that lives in a cage? If you do then this is your paper. What a waste of paper. If you see newsprint blowing around the street, there is a very good chance that it will be a RedEye. What a waste of paper and a waste of time. I did actually read a few issues of this and that was time lost that I will never get back. It is a rag sheet plain and simple. They do make a lazy effort to brief you on news stories. If you really want to keep up on what is going on buy a real paper or go on the Internet. read more

The only good thing about the Red Eye is the Sudoku puzzle. Most people just flip through it for a few minutes in the morning while waiting for the bus/train. It's free, which is great because I'm using it as packing material for my move! read more

So it appears that using a not very nice two word phrase to sum up my contempt for this certain paper is not acceptable under Yelp guidelines? It was cool for the first eight months or so it was posted but ok fine, somebody had a problem with it. I feel it was a perfectly frank and succinct way of showing my complete and utter disdain for this "newspaper" but apparently it caused offense to somebody and was removed. Value for money/time is apparently not a concept this flagger was familiar with. This is all kinds of ironic given their dedication to flagging a SHORT review of the Red Eye, am I right? Fine, give me a minute to climb up onto my high horse then I'll continue. I have read the Red Eye when I'm beyond bored on my commute to work and someone left their copy on the seat next to me. However I also went to college where I did my fair share of journalism studies. That is why the original "Fuck you" review went up. I thought it was funny as well as a sort of masked (maybe this was something that only came out in my head) comment on their standards and content. Bullshit publications like the Red Eye are a huge reason why traditional newspapers, the Fourth Estate if you will, are dying out. Hell Ann Arbor, MI doesn't even have a daily newspaper any more and there are reports that Philadelphia might be next! People do not feel the need to "shell out" fifty or seventy five cents for a longer, more in depth and actually researched version of the news when this publication exists for free in the box next to it. Why would they, this version has the totally kick ass bar specials, pages of celebrity news, written portrait (as opposed to cable news talking head) panels on local sports issues, giant pictures, a crossword and twenty five word write ups on national/international events! Everything an informed citizen needs! Remember when the Trib used to have the stones to charge twenty five cents for this? I doubt it; nobody read it then because they realized this tripe wasn't worth a full quarter. God/Allah/Jah/Buddah/whatever save whoever made the decision to make it free and spread this journalistic plague across our city. Hope you guys are happy. Reference for the Ann Arbor mention - http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1914976,00.html Philadelphia - http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/09/magazine/09Newspaper-t.html?pagewanted=all Just to be a prick I'll conclude with the original text... fuck you. Now if you'll excuse me it's time to ride off into the sunset. read more

This paper was free and I still felt like I paid too much for it.

I really don't understand how you can give something free a bad review. Its free, if you don't like it, don't get it. You guys act like someone pinned your eyes open and held a copy of the red eye up to your face ala A Clockwork Orange. I can see why, some people don't like it because of the dumb down articles but you guys are expecting too much out of it not taking it for what its worth. Its a great piece of literature for the daily bus or train ride in the morning. Its short and small and easy to handle. The articles are geared toward younger crowds of course and maybe just one step up from tabloid and that's all it shoots for. This paper is not meant to be your source for news, it is for entertainment purposes only. That's exactly what it does EN-TER-TAIN. Nothing more nothing less. I read this paper back to front, Japanese style, bye the way. Because if I want news I go for a tribune.If I want entertainment, I go for the Reed Eye. This loses one star because I miss the old format and I dislike the columns like the CTA one and they have so much more ads than before. read more

redeye is to newspaper as masturbating is to making love. It reminds you of the real thing, but it's just not as good. Also, no one will admit to doing it. read more

It makes me very, very sad that my generation will only pay attention to watered down news like what is provided in the Red Eye (Britney showed her cooter? Who cares?). I prefer my news to cater to people with an IQ over 70, thanks. read more

If you can read, you can go to the library and get a BOOK, folks, and leave this scandal sheet rag where it belongs (i.e., out of print). Whenever I spy someone reading this on the El, I figure they're a) too lazy to get a book and b) a moron. (If you pick it up for Sudoku or the crossword puzzle, get a book of them instead.) read more

Red Eye is perfect for lining my bird's cage! As an added plus, he is easily entertained for hours happily shredding and pooping on its content! read more

This paper is pretty worthless, but the price - free! - is just about right. Hard to believe that just a year or so ago they were trying to get people to waste 25 cents on this fluffy rag. If you accept a copy from one of the raggedy-looking folks that pass them out by the ton at L stations, you'll find very light treatments on news, sports, entertainment, where to get drunk & be hip, etc. They get one star for putting the Red Streak out of circulation - that paper was even more cheesey! read more