The early bird deadline for 
The 2025 Freelance Fellowship Recipients
A chemical plant explosion in Geismar, La. has injured more than 30 people and killed at least one, according to Louisiana State Police. It’s the first major explosion since the fertilizer plant in West, Texas, killed 15 people. When a major plant explosion happens, how do you figure out what went wrong? Journalists have been…
Read MoreEight news organizations have been chosen for IRE’s Total Newsroom Training. TNT is a new program that provides intense, in-house training for newsrooms dedicated to watchdog journalism. More than 50 applications were submitted. Training is customized and includes sessions ranging from public records battles to hands-on data analysis. “We are thrilled with the large number of…
Read MoreA joint investigation by The Center for Investigative Reporting, the Tampa Bay Times and CNN identified America’s 50 worst charities — organizations that plead for financial support and lie to donors about where their money goes, taking multiple salaries and secretly paying themselves or their friends through consulting fees and fundraising contracts. Reporters Kris Hundley…
Read MoreThe revelation last month that the Department of Justice seized phone records from the Associated Press turned out to be just the begining of major disclosures about government surveillance, which according to recent reports includes mass collection of phone and internet server data by the National Security Agency. But the Department of Justice surveillance targeting…
Read MoreDoes your investigation contain complex legal questions? Unsure of how to proceed? During the Media Lawyers brown bag, between noon and 1 p.m. on Friday, June 21, bring your lunch and your questions for a personal discussion with some prominent media law experts that will be presenting throughout the 2013 IRE Conference. We’ll provide drinks and dessert. This session…
Read MoreIn cases from Wyoming to Arkansas, Pennsylvania to Texas, drillers have agreed to cash settlements or property buyouts with people who say hydraulic fracturing, also known as fracking, ruined their water, according to a review by Bloomberg News of hundreds of regulatory and legal filings. In most cases, homeowners must agree to keep quiet.
Read MoreCondemned killer Debra Milke still sits on Arizona’s death row. The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals reversed her conviction largely on the testimony of Phoenix Police Detective Armando Saldate, who claimed Milke confessed. He didn’t record it, write it down or have it witnessed. Investigative reporter Wendy Halloran from KPNX (NBC) Phoenix uncovered Saldate had a history…
Read MoreIn this article published by The Guardian, the 29-year-old source behind the biggest intelligence leak in the NSA’s history explains his motives, his uncertain future and why he never intended on hiding in the shadows. Read this IRE Transparency Watch report for more coverage of the NSA surveillance.
Read MoreEdward Snowden: the whistleblower behind the NSA surveillance revelations | The GuardianThe 29-year-old source behind the biggest intelligence leak in the NSA’s history explains his motives, his uncertain future and why he never intended on hiding in the shadows. See more coverage of the NSA surveillance. High prices are driving more motorists to rent tires |…
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