The IRE Resource Center is a major research library containing more than 23,250 investigative stories — both print and broadcast. These stories are searchable online or by contacting the Resource Center directly (573-882-3364 or rescntr@ire.org) where a researcher can help you pinpoint what you need. Browse or search the tipsheet section of our library below. Stories are not available for download but can be easily ordered by contacting the Resource Center:
Search results for "Big Ten" ...
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"NCAA - College Athletic Fees"
In this months-long report, USA Today analyzed hundreds of "financial reports" that college athletic programs are "required to release to the NCAA." They found that many schools are relying more on student fees to finance sports programs (without student's knowledge). The investigation also reveals a growing "unrest" at many universities in response to the financial "divide between sports and academics."
Tags: Football Bowl Subdivision; Coalition of Intercollegiate Athletics; Big East Conference; University of Cincinnati; Nebraska State; Louisiana State; Atlantic Coast; Big Ten; Big 12; Pacific-10; Southeastern
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Concerns in Happy Valley
Penn State's football coach Joe Paterno is the winningest coach in Division I history despite the many criminal charges against his program's players over the years. A database was created using computer assisted reporting to analyze players' Pennsylvania court records over the last seven years.
Tags: Nittany Lions; off-campus; scholarship; NCAA; CAR; Football Bowl Subdivision; Big Ten; linebacker;
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Sizing Up: BNP Joins Bank Quest For Bigness, but It Is No Industry Cure-All
Is bigger really better? The Journal addresses the question in light of ongoing bank mergers. The story finds that "while mergers can help banks cut costs and gain customers, they won't necessarily stave off of the forces that have been making banks less important as sources of capital and advice." The article includes tables of the top ten biggest banks in the world in 1998 and 1988, ranked by assets.
Tags: deregulation; Banque Nationale de Paris (BNP); investment banking; UBS AG; Europe; Switzerland; Japan
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The Orgasm Industry. Drug Companies Search for a Female Viagra.
Since the launch of Viagra in May 1998, pharmaceutical companies have scrambled to find the next big sex drug for women. Start-up pharmaceutical companies and enterprising physicians have jumped into the fray to threat what they see as an underserved market of tens of millions of sexually dysfunctional women.
Tags: viagra; drug companies; female; woman; sex; pharmaceutical
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Judicial Junkets
ABC News investigates "big money lobbying of federal judges ... through the use of free junkets." Large corporations and foundations with interests in cases that come before the federal courts often invite the judges on all-expense paid trips. The main finding is that "one in ten judges, nearly 300 members of the federal bench, including two U.S. Supreme Court justices, have accepted the controversial free trips to one or several privately funded luxury "seminars" held at golf resorts, dude ranches and luxury hotels."
Tags: TAPE; TRANSCRIPT; ethics; financial disclosure; money and politics; hidden camera; undercover footage; business; right wing; justice; law
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The Secret Report
A WCPO-TV investigation reveals that four of Cincinnati's biggest corporate giants -- Procter & Gamble, General Electric, Kroger and Cincinnati Bell -- commissioned a secret report ten years ago aimed at cutting the insurance costs of the companies. "Afraid to lose tens of thousands of potential patients the Big Four employed, hospitals and doctors cut deals that drove down their pay." The WCPO-TV investigation found that "physicians today could earn dramatically more by just moving hours away."
Tags: insurance; secret agreement; physicians; Cincinnati; TAPE; transcript
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Yucca Mountain Conflict of Interest
A Las Vegas Sun investigation reveals that the law firm hired by the Energy Department to do legal work on the Yucca Mountain repository has been lobbying to get the project built. The Energy Department manages the proposed Yucca Mountain project, a federal proposal to bury tens of thousands of tons of nuclear waste at the site about 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas. The plan is controversial, environmentalists say its a bad idea, the nuclear energy industry says its needed. The Energy Department hired Chicago-based Winston & Straw to "independently review Yucca documents and impartially advise the DOE about possible flaws." But the Las Vegas Sun learned that Winston & Straw also does lobbying work for the Nuclear Energy Institute, the energy industry's top trade group and the "most vocal Yucca proponent in Washington." Nevada lawmakers contend that Winston & Straw involvement with the NEI and DOE presents a dangerous conflict of interest.
Tags: conflict of interest; ethics; Winston & Shaw; lawyers; federal government; Energy Department; Department of Energy; Yucca Mountain; nuclear waste; nuclear energy; Nuclear Energy Institute; lobbying; big money; politics; environment
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Big Brother-in-Law
This article examines the government's alliance with privately owned files that are available on the Web and give specific information about citizens. "Using a password, FBI agents can log on to a custom Web page that links them with privately owned files on tens of millions of Americans."
Tags: privacy; government; FBI; IRS; computers
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IRE Feed 6: IRE TV Award Winners and Finalists
IRE Feed 6: The TV Award Winners and Finalists is a compilation of 14 reports from 14 stations in 11 markets ranging in size from Lexington, KY to Chicago, IL. 1)"Danger in Schools," KTRK-TV, Houston. A story that investigated Houston Schools putting known pedophiles back into the classroom. 2) "Where the Money Goes," WKYT-TV, Lexington, KY. Reveals that Lexington Schools spent tens of thousands of taxpayer's dollars on catered meals. 3) "Prescription for Trouble," KDFW-TV, Dallas. Investigates how Eckerds Pharmacy used teenagers to dispense prescriptions. 4) "Code of Silence," WTLV-TV, Jacksonville, FL. The medical system fights to protect a drunk doctor. 5) "Fighting for a Smile," WCCO-TV, Minneapolis. The VA's bureaucracy keeps dentures from veterans. 6) "Blood Priority," KSTP-TV, Minneapolis. Army choppers crash after cost cutting compromises safety. 7) "Missing Evidence," WMAQ-TV, Chicago. Chicago Police sell evidence right out of the vault. 8) "Failure to Protect," WBAL-TV, Baltimore. Maryland Police fail to enter protection orders to safeguard domestic violence victims. 9) "Prisoners in Their Own Homes," WFLA-TV, Tampa. Criminals strike again -- while on home detention. 10) "The $600 House," WOOD-TV, Grand Rapids, MI. HUD sells houses at pennies on the dollar to insiders. 11) "Preying on Your Pity," KPRC-TV, Houston. Telemarketers pretend to be handicapped to solicit cash. 12)"Crusade for Cash," KGTV-TV, San Diego. Lawyers use the ADA to file nuisance suits for big bucks. 13)"First USA," WFAA-TV, Dallas. Credit Card company jacks up interest rates, slaps phony late fees. 14)"Legal Loanshark," WAMI-TV, Miami. Lax laws permit car title loan companies to charge exorbitant rates.
Tags: tape; Investigative reporting; computer-assisted reporting; IRE; FOI; CAR
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Water Department Investigation
KGTV reports that "(PART 1) ...through a series of mistakes and favors, big water customers are allowed to run up huge bills that go unpaid. Our investigation turned up $1 million in accounts that were in limbo. Several hotels ran up overdue bills in the many tens of thousands of dollars. Meanwhile small residential customers that don't pay on time have their water shut off... (PART 2) ... dozens of industrial water meters that were recording only 10 percent of the water going through them. These were new water meters that were being misread... (PART 3) ...the construction industry is on the honor system to pay for water.... The city cuts the number of water police and we document several instances where officers are told not to pursue large or influential customers."
Tags: TAPE TRANSCRIPT FOIA favoritism Metron Farnier Company Enduro meters