An investigation by The Charlotte (N.C.) Observer found that some dangerously ill patients who visit Charlotte’s psychiatric hospital are instead given medicine and sent home – sometimes with disastrous results. With perennial overcrowding at the county’s 66-bed psychiatric facility, few who visit the hospital’s emergency department are admitted. The result: patients like Kenny Chapman don’t…
Read MoreAccording to an investigation by Ryan Holeywell of BailoutSleuth.com, “At least one of every nine banks that got taxpayer investment through the government’s Troubled Asset Relief Program was later cited by federal regulators for violating rules or failing to meet operating or financial standards.” This is in contradiction to Treasury Department statements claiming TARP funds…
Read MoreA computer-assisted analysis by Bloomberg News reporter Jonathan D. Salant of Federal Election Commission data found corporate political action committees siding with vulnerable Democratic incumbents, the candidates that Republicans need to beat if they are to take back control of the House of Representatives this fall.
Read MoreIRE would like to thank several volunteers and former board members whose efforts have made a significant difference to the organization over the past several years. The work of these members played an important role in the success of our just-concluded annual conference in Las Vegas. Michael J. Kelley, who recently retired as managing editor…
Read MoreSeven members of IRE’s Board of Directors were elected this past weekend at the annual conference in Las Vegas. The newly elected members of the 13-member board are: Sarah Cohen, of Duke University; Rob Cribb, of the Toronto Star; Andrew Donohue, of voiceofsandiego.org; Manny Garcia, of El Nuevo Herald/The Miami Herald; Aron Pilhofer of The…
Read MoreIRE members have access to a Web-based data exploration application to quickly and easily analyze demographic data while on deadline. ESRI is offering an online seminar on using this tool for economic development Thursday, June 17, 2-3 p.m. EDT. Register for “How Greater New Orleans is Stimulating the Economy with Geospatial Apps” here . ESRI…
Read MoreAn investigation by the Huffington Post Investigative Fund found “some of the nation’s largest and most elite universities stand to gain millions of dollars from selling the names and addresses of students and alumni to credit card companies while granting the companies special access to school events.” The schools earn bonuses when the credit cards…
Read More“New government and BP documents, interviews with experts and testimony by witnesses provide the clearest indication to date that a hodgepodge of oversight agencies granted exceptions to rules, allowed risks to accumulate and made a disaster more likely on the rig, particularly with a mix of different companies operating on the Deepwater whose interests were…
Read MoreFrom almost the time it opened, a Wisconsin gun store has been in trouble with federal authorities. After repeated warnings about problems, the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives revoked the store’s license in 2007. But as Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reporter John Diedrich reported, three years later the case is tied up in…
Read MoreMark Lagerkvist launches New Jersey Watchdog with an investigation of a state assemblyman who collected $570,000 in disability payments after retiring as a police officer with a bad back at age 31. Assemblyman David Rible, now 42, competes in five-mile runs, dances as a celebrity and hauls trash to the curb. In addition to his…
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