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 "Enron" ...
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Post-Enron Law Opens the Boardroom
As a result of the 2002 passing of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the records of large companies became more readily available to investigators and the public. Due to these public filings, the financial compensation for directors at Enron became widely known: "directors received $350,000 a year to attend a handful of meetings. Half collected thousands more as highly paid consultants to the giant energy trader. Others accepted multi-million-dollar donations from the company for nonprofit organizations where they worked."
Tags: Enron; Sarbanes-Oxley Act; directors compensation; nonprofit
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"The PGE Papers"
Jaquiss' investigation into the proposed sale of Portland General Electric, Oregon's largest utility, revealed information from inside sources that sank the deal. While Texas Pacific Group, a private equity firm, publicly promised to keep PGE intact and not try to flip it quickly for big profits, internal documents revealed their real intentions were exactly the opposite. Jaquiss also revealed a tax scam in which hundreds of millions of dollars in taxes were collected from rate-payers but never turned over to the government. Also included are stories from other sources that cover the effects of Jaquiss' reporting.
Tags: City government; public utilities; Enron; energy costs; price gouging; tax fraud
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The Enron Tapes
This series shows how recorded telephone conversations between Enron energy traders link top officials to the now-famous fraudulent activities. The tapes also revealed the company's close connection to the Bush campaign.
Tags: Ken Lay; Jeffrey Skilling; energy; electricity; power; Enron; corporate fraud; utilities
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Rowland linked to Enron Plan; The truth be told.
Reporters discovered an email communication between Enron chairman and Connecticut Gov. Rowland. Rowland had repeatedly denied having any connections with the now-bankrupt energy company. After the publication of this story, he was forced to acknowledge that he had dealt with the company in the past. The report also investigates the $80,000 contribution that Enron made to the Republicans and whether this contribution was linked to Rowland's support to the company's plan.
Tags: Enron Corp.; Gov. Rowland; Enron Chairman; Kenneth Lay; John G. Rowland; Campaign finance
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How to Fix Corporate Governance
This story discusses how shareholders have lost faith in corporations. It chronicles the recent corporate collapses and reveals the shady business practices that caused the demise of America's corporate culture.
Tags: Enron; shareholders; SEC; investors; stock options
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Why Companies Fail; CEOs offer every excuse but the right one: their own errors. Here are ten mistakes to avoid.
"257 public companies with $258 billion in assets declared bankruptcy last year, shattering the previous year's record of 176 companies and $95 billion." Fortune magazine examines this phenomenon and exposes common mistakes that can lead to corporate failure.
Tags: Enron; bankruptcy; corporate failure; wall street
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A Final Accounting: Arthur Andersen
The Chicago Tribune's four part series about Arthur Andersen. "Part 1: The Fall of Andersen - After decades as the gold standard for U.S. auditing firms, Andersen changed its focus and lost its way. Part 2: Civil War Splits Andersen - A revolution sweeps Andersen, pitting auditors against consultants in a race for higher profit. Part 3: Ties to Enron Blinded Andersen - Andersen struggles to deal with a monster it helped create: Enron. Part 4: Repeat Offender Gets Stiff Justice - Faulty decisions and strategy in Andersen's final months set the firm up for its collapse."
Tags: Arthur Andersen; Enron; accounting; accounting scandal; Chicago; auditor; fraud; justice; auditing firms; integrity; banks; money; corruption; finance; financing; Michael Odom; Nancy Temple; Dorsey Baskin; C.E. Andrews; Mike Gagel; Dean Christensen; firm; Harvey Kapnick; Jim Edwards; Duane Kullberg; reform
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The Deal Makers
An investigation by the Washington Post revealed that America Online "was using a series of unconventional transactions to sustain the appearance of breakneck growth in ad revenue" -- even after the Internet boom subsided and it merged with Time Warner. " Time Warner executives were "mesmerized by the hundreds of millions of dollars in online advertising pouring into AOL ... (and) even when the bubble popped and dot-coms collapsed, AOL continued to report record-breaking growth in ad revenue, reinforcing its image as the medium of the future and overwhelming any second thoughts from Time Warner shareholders and employees." What Time Warner didn't know was that, "among other things, AOL turned legal disputes into ad deals, converted long-term contracts into one-time balloon payments, shifted revenue from one division to another, bartered ads for computer equipment and sold ads on behalf of eBay while booking all the sales as its own... (The) stories immediately prompted two federal investigations of AOL Time Warner."
Tags: America Online; AOL; Time Warner; AOL Time Warner; Enron; advertising revenue; merger; balloon payments; contracts; Internet boom; dot-coms
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Corporate Collapse
The Times reports on corporate scandals surrounding energy company Enron, audit firm Arthur Andersen and telecom giant WorldCom. According to the contest entry summary: "In each case, months after publication and following in-depth investigation by authorities, the information in these stories would become the accepted version of the facts. In essence, these stories took the most important -- and most confusing -- events of the past year and quickly ascertained the truth of what had been happening inside the thick walls of a series of corporations."
Tags: Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC); stocks and bonds; Wall Street conflicts of interest; bankruptcy; special purpose entities; corruption; corporations; accounting; finances
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Up in Smoke
Enron's collapse was famous for its accounting debacle and other business side errors. How did such a dishonest company rise to success in the first place? The answer is with a powerful combination of campaign money and political friends designed to create an environment friendly to Enron's style of business. CEO Ken Lay was a former lobbyist himself and knew the Beltway well. The result of their heavy political investment was deregulation in Congress and appointed local commissioners who were already friendly with the company.
Tags: Enron; accounting; lobbying; campaign finance; politics; government; regulation; deregulation; Ken Lay