IRE Radio Podcast | Prison to the Pulpit

Investigations often don’t go according to plan. Dead-end data and stubborn sources are just some of the factors that can throw off a months-long reporting project. Other times, breaking news can put your work on the fast track to publication. That’s exactly what happened to the Tampa Bay Times when reporter Corey Johnson and colleague John Romano started digging into Henry Lyons, a powerhouse preacher who once swindled millions as the head of one of the largest religious organizations in the country. On this episode, we talk to Corey about how he was able to obtain church records and how breaking news forced the paper to make a detour from their original plans.

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EPISODE NOTES

Looking for links to the stories and resources we discussed on this week's podcast? We've collected them for you.

• Read the Times reporting on Lyons’ ouster here, and Corey and John’s major investigation here.
• Read reporting by the St. Petersburg Times on Lyons’ prior conviction here.
• Members only: Download audio from “Exposing religious organizations,” a 2017 IRE Conference featuring Michele Chabin and Ismael Estrada.
• Members only: Download the tipsheet “Investigating Religion: Public records, not so public records and just showing up” by Eric Gorski.

CREDITS

Emily Hopkins reported this story. IRE Editorial Director Sarah Hutchins edits the podcast. Original episode artwork comes from podcast host Blake Nelson. We are recorded in the studios of KBIA at the University of Missouri.

MUSIC

Soothe (Blue Dot Session) / CC BY-NC 4.0

Inamorta (Blue Dot Session) / CC BY-NC 4.0

Astrisx (Blue Dot Session) / CC BY-NC 4.0

Our Fingers Cold (Blue Dot Session) / CC BY-NC 4.0

Trois Gnossiennes 2 (Blue Dot Session) / CC BY-NC 4.0