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Andy Curliss of The News & Observer (Raleigh, N.C.) reported that former North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley got at least $50,000 in free golf dues from an expensive club near Raleigh and did not report the gift on the required disclosure forms. The News & Observer‘s continued coverage of Gov. Easley has led to federal…
Read MoreDan Kane and Eric Ferreri of The News & Observer (Raleigh, N.C.) took a look at a little known perk for University of North Carolina administrators known as “retreat rights” that paid them as much as a full year’s leave at their administrative salaries while they prepared for courses. In several cases, the administrators left…
Read MoreMilwaukee Journal Sentinel reporters John Fauber and Meg Kissinger reviewed unsealed court records and found that at a time when fears were growing about the link between hormone therapy and breast cancer a drug company paid the University of Wisconsin Medical School to sponsor ghostwritten medical education articles that downplayed the risk. The article is…
Read MoreAnalysis of foreign lobbying disclosure records by ProPublica and the Sunlight Foundation provide insight into foreign influence on Capitol Hill. “More than 280 lobbying firms collected $87 million in fees for representing 340 foreign clients, including governments, government-controlled organizations, political parties, separatist groups and a handful of for-profit firms.” United Arab a, principally addressing interests in…
Read MoreDespite a huge budget deficit, an Associated Press review of legislative pay records showed that many California lawmakers had given pay raises to their staff in the first half of 2009. These pay increases came at a time when the state had to make “some $30 billion in cuts over a two-year period to education,…
Read MoreJohn Schmid and Ben Poston of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel found that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office “has become overwhelmed by the growing volume and complexity of the applications it receives, creating a massive backlog that by its own reckoning could take at least six years to get under control.” The also found that…
Read MoreJonathan D. Salant and Lizzie O’Leary of Bloomberg.com report that there are approximately 3,300 lobbyists currently working on the issue of health care. “That’s six lobbyists for each of the 535 members of the House and Senate, according to Senate records, and three times the number of people registered to lobby on defense.” During the…
Read MoreDuring an era when freelance investigative journalism is more vital than ever, IRE has awarded its second year of grants to freelancers. This year, IRE distributed $3,000 from the endowed fellowship fund. A panel of three judges, all experienced investigative reporters who freelance, reviewed applications and selected the fellows. The 2009 IRE Freelance Investigative Journalism…
Read MoreHolly Hacker of The Dallas Morning News looked at new data compiled by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board that showed how Texas public school students from the Class of 2007 fared in their first year at Texas public universities. Analysis showed that “at some North Texas high schools, half or more of graduates who…
Read MoreThe accused killer of Los Angeles teenager Lily Burk “was set free in June 2009, despite failing to report to his parole agent for weeks, being a wanted fugitive on two different arrest warrants, and being arrested three times on drug charges and testing positive for cocaine — all in a matter of six months,…
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