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 "licenses" ...
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Start Freakin'
In Seattle, "Stop Freakin', call Beacon" is the catch-phrase that propelled Beacon Plumbing into an instantly recognizable brand and the region's largest emergency plumbing service. We found the company doing unlicensed plumbing work, shoddy repairs, and overcharging customers. Ensuing investigations revealed that the man in the Beacon uniform might not be a plumber at all and that his former dress code may have included pinstripes at the State lock-up.
Tags: fraud; consumer investigation; professional license; advertising;
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How Safe is Your Child's Day Care?
WFOR looked at every licensed day care in South Florida and examined their safety inspection records, making this material readily available to their viewers.
Tags: day care; South Florida; safety inspection; children;
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Dateline NBC: Tricks of the Trade
In this investigation, Dateline exposed what experts call deceptive sales practices in the marketing of equity indexed annuities - especially to senior citizens. Hidden cameras captured the claims agents made and the critical disclosures they glossed over when they thought they were alone with retirees.
Tags: fraud; abusive sales tactics; equity indexed annuities; marketing; sales methods; retirement planning seminars; scare tactics; insurance licenses;
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Racial Profiling
The two day series attempted to determine if the practice of targeting citizens based on their race was being used by area law enforcement. Their findings included: Black drivers in Sheveport and nearby Bossier City were cited for traffic violations more than twice as often as white drivers, based on traffic citation data over nearly five years. Although black divers were a minority of each city's licensed drivers, they were disproportionally cited for lower-level violations, such as window tint or loud music. Several officers from each city police department routinely issued more tickets to black drivers and issued more tickets for lower-level violations that for serious infractions, such as speeding or running a red light.
Tags: racial profiling; driving violations; law enforcement; low-level citations; black drivers; citation records; FOIA; police behavior
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The Casino Kings
The state of South Dakota partners with thousands of bars and restaurants that offer video gambling. The state takes in more than $100 million each year from the games, but basic information about who owns and operates the establishments is hidden from public view by state law. Using liquor license records and business registrations, the newspaper built a backdoor database of owners, officers and financiers that took six months. The reporting revealed a consolidation of licenses by a handful of individuals and partnerships in the state's most lucrative markets.
Tags: video gambling; bars; public records; South Dakota; lottery; money; license
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Virginia Tech Massacre Investigation
The series was published around the time of the one year anniversary on the April 2007 Virginia Tech campus school shooting, and published periodically from June to December. It was found that university officials misled the public about how long they knew a gunman was at large, delaying the issued warning.
Tags: Seung-Hui Cho; Norris Hall; school shooting; gun control; Columbine; concealed weapon; license; serial killer; murder;
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Casino Scandal
Scranton billionaire Louis DeNaples was awarded a slots license in December of 2006 by the Pennsylvania Gaming Board despite being a convicted felon with ties to the Bufalino Crime Family.
Tags: mafia; slot machine; Governor Ed Rendell; perjury; mobster;
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9/11 Redux: Thousands of Aliens' in U.S. Flight School Illegally
This investigation exposed the fact that thousands of foreign national were still obtaining U.S. pilot training and U.S pilot licenses illegally without the required security background checks implemented after the 9-11 terrorists attacks. The story exposed serious flaws in the TSA and FAA system of insuring pilots had successfully done in obtaining piloting skills in the USA prior to the September 11 attacks of 2001.
Tags: September 11, 2001; terrorism; flight schools; Department of Homeland Security; DHS; Transportation Security Administration; TSA; Federal Aviation Administration; FAA; pilot licenses
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Houston Texas Bus Safety
This story looks at two bus crashes in Texas to determine how companies are regulated. It also looks at how Houston operators who cater to Hispanic, working-class passengers are allowed to operate, some illegally, despite poor safety records and questionable licensing.
Tags: buses; public safety; driving records; racial discrimination; bus crashes; chameleon carrier; driving offenses;