Archive for January 2009
Illinois gala for Obama supported by lobbyists he banned from donating to campaign
Supporters from Barack Obama’s home state held a celebration this week that was paid for, in part, by the same lobbying firms the president-elect banned from donating to his campaign and inaugural committee, Bloomberg’s Jonathan D. Salant and Kate Andersen report. Seven firms that earned a total of at least $30 million in lobbying fees…
Read MoreOfficial confirms detainee was tortured
In an interview with The Washington Post‘s Bob Woodward, the official overseeing U.S. military commissions confirmed that treatment of a Guantanamo Bay detainee qualified as torture. “The public record of the Guantánamo interrogation of the detainee, Mohammed al-Qahtani, has long included what officials labeled abusive techniques, including exposure to extreme temperatures and isolation, but the…
Read MoreBreaking News Resources: Aviation data and resources
A US Airways jet went down in the Hudson River this afternoon. There are no reports of fatalities as ferries rush to the scene to help rescue the passengers and crew. IRE and NICAR have compiled information to help in covering such aviation disasters. Please contact the IRE Resource Center (573-882-3364) or Database Library (573-884-7711)…
Read MorePostmark deadline for IRE Awards is this Friday – January 15
The deadline for submitting entries for the IRE Awards is this Friday, January 15. All entries must be postmarked midnight on Friday. As you review work from 2009, don’t forget that we have added a new category to the contest that honors breaking news investigations. It is open to all journalists, regardless of media platform.…
Read MoreDocuments detail complaints that FDA managers are too lenient with industry
Internal Food and Drug Administration documents indicate that an FDA official overruled agency scientists and approved the sale of an imaging device for breast cancer after receiving a phone call from a Connecticut congressman. The legislator’s call and its effect on what is supposed to be a science-based approval process is only one of many…
Read MoreExamining the environmental cost of coal mining practice
A year-long investigation by the Center for Public Integrity details the steep environmental toll taken by the practice of longwall mining, a process employed to quickly and cheaply extract coal. The investigation found that longwall mining dramatically rearranges the earth’s landscape, depleting water resources and disrupting wildlife.
Read MoreCoal ash dam in Tennessee had previous leaks
“The chief executive of the Tennessee Valley Authority, which operates the coal-burning power plant responsible for an enormous flood of coal ash in East Tennessee late last month, acknowledged Thursday that the plant’s containment ponds had leaked two other times in the last five years but had not been adequately repaired,” according to a report…
Read MoreInvestigation into problems in county program kept secret
Voice of San Diego reporter Will Carless reports that the county of San Diego has kept secret the results of an investigation into a report of improprieties in a program that provides wheelchairs and other medical services to children with physical disabilities. The investigation lasted more than a year and led to disciplinary action and…
Read MoreCitigroup bailed out subprime lender
A report by John Gittelsohn of the Orange Country Register details how Daniel Sadek, a subprime mortgage lender, was bailed out by Citigroup. Sadek was the founder of Quick Loan Funding which wrote over $4 billion in subprime loans before its demise in 2007. Citigroup, recipient of the largest federal bank bailout, offered Sadek modified…
Read MorePostmark deadline for 2008 IRE Awards is fast approaching!
We’d like to take this opportunity to remind you that tomorrow, January 7, is the postmark deadline for the 2008 IRE Awards. Don’t miss this opportunity to have your hard work recognized! All entries become a permanent part of the IRE Resource Center‘s investigative story collection, creating an invaluable resource for journalists. Entry forms are…
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