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Billions disappear in Baghdad
An investigation by Donald L. Barlett and James B. Steele in the October issue of Vanity Fair traces $12 billion in U.S. currency which was sent from the Federal Reserve to Baghdad between April 2003 and June 2004. While some of the money was spent on special projects and ministries, Barlett and Steele report that…
Read MoreCredit card promotions profitable for two Iowa universities
Clark Kauffman of the Des Moines Register reported in a two-part series that Iowa’s two largest public universities are aggressively marketing credit cards to their students as part of an arrangement that generates millions of dollars for the schools’ privately run alumni organizations. Records obtained by the Register showed that while the schools and their…
Read MoreThe football injury to die for
Most high-school football players aren’t concerned about concussions, nor would they tell their coach if they got one. However, Alan Schwarz of The New York Times, gives some compelling arguments for why they should be a lot more concerned. According Schwarz’s investigative report, teenagers who receive a second blow to the head following a first,…
Read MoreFugitives evade Tennessee authorities
Tennessee has let more escaped fugitives slip through its judicial cracks than almost any other state. In fact, convicts on the run have murdered at least nine people during the past 30 years, all due to a system not equipped to handle fugitives who get out of state custody. In a series, bolstered by in-depth…
Read MoreSeries investigates Twin Cities groundwater
In a three-part series that began Sunday, Sept. 16, David Shaffer of the Star Tribune analyzed databases and pollution reports to identify 20 areas of significant groundwater contamination in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan region. Most of them are located in the suburbs, and some pose a serious threat to drinking water supplies. The series looks…
Read MoreChronic Polluters, Tainted Waters
Josh Kovner and Regine Labossiere of The Hartford Courant conducted a two-month investigation into the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection’s lax enforcement of the federal Clean Water Act. They found that 17 of 35 companies covered by the Act are dumping toxic chemicals into the state’s waterways under permit limits that have expired, some more…
Read MoreUS exports unsafe products
While much hoopla was made of the recall of certain Chinese-made products by the Consumer Product Safety Division, United States companies have been allowed to export unsafe products overseas, according to a report by Russell Carrollo of The Sacramento Bee. These items included very flammable children
Read MoreCEOs of healthcare nonprofit netting top dollars
The Honolulu Advertiser examined nonprofit salaries and reported that “the largest healthcare nonprofits in Hawai’i pay their chief executive more than $820,000 on average. Large foundations and trusts in Hawai’i pay an average of $341,000 to their top manager. Executives at a sampling of service providers were paid the least, averaging $133,100.” The healthcare companies…
Read MorePoughkeepsie firms benefit from government grants
The Poughkeepsie Journal used an analysis of federal data to find that “United States government agencies paid $39.4 million through federal contracts to more than 150 local businesses, nonprofits and individuals in the two most recent fiscal years.” While there has been a trend nationally of larger corporations receiving more grants at the expense of…
Read MoreAnimal shelter practices questioned
Sarah Okeson of Florida Today investigated the Brevard County animal services department after questions have been raised about how the Animal Services & Enforcement Department is being run. Allegations include one employee who has been illegally selling animals from the shelters. An audit found that the ownership records of 43 animals were changed in the…
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