Kara Brandeisky

Reporting Intern

Kara Brandeisky was a reporting intern at ProPublica. She previously interned at NPR, Slate, Congressional Quarterly, The New Yorker Washington bureau and The New Republic. She graduated from Georgetown University with a degree in Government.

NSA Surveillance Lawsuit Tracker

A federal appeals court recently ruled that the National Security Agency's bulk collection of Americans' phone records is illegal.

Timeline: The Tortured History of the Senate’s Torture Report

It has been more than five years since the Senate began investigating the CIA’s detainee program, a period marked by White House indecisiveness, Republican opposition, and what we now know was CIA snooping.

Everything That's Happened Since Supreme Court Ruled on Voting Rights Act

Ahead of the November midterms, we take stock of the state of voting rights across the country.

Four Ways You Can Seek Back Pay for an Unpaid Internship

Think you’re entitled to be paid for your unpaid internship? Here are resources you should know about.

Three Things Obama's New Clemency Initiative Doesn't Do

Prisoners' advocates call the reforms a step forward, but they don't address discrimination in presidential pardons or apply to everyone serving harsh sentences from outdated guidelines.

The Department of Labor’s Internships Investigations

In 2010, the Labor Department issued a new fact sheet clarifying when an intern needs to be paid under federal labor law. We collected the case files for all the internship investigations the Labor Department concluded in the three years after issuing new regulations.

How the Labor Department Has Let Companies Off the Hook for Unpaid Internships

Four years after warning for-profit companies about unpaid internships, the agency has investigated relatively few employers for wage violations.

Labor Department Intervenes on Behalf of Hearst Interns

The federal agency asks the Second Circuit to crack down on employers that refuse to pay interns.

What the Proposed NSA Reforms Wouldn't Do

All the plans purport to end the bulk phone records collection program, but there are big differences.

Drug Company Agrees to Pay $27.6 Million to Settle Allegations Involving Chicago Psychiatrist

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. was accused of paying Michael Reinstein, a psychiatrist who has figured into two ProPublica investigations, to overprescribe a risky antipsychotic.

Voting Rights Advocates Try to Put Oversight Back on the Map

In June, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that states and local governments with a history of discrimination no longer needed to submit new voting laws for federal approval. Now, voting rights advocates are trying to put them back under oversight using the courts and Congress.

New York University Ramps up Internship Oversight

Career center now asks employers to certify that internship listings abide by Labor Department guidelines

Roe V. Wade and Some of the Best Reporting on Abortion

Four decades after Roe v. Wade, a range of #MuckReads, #Longreads and explainers on abortion.

Four Questionable Claims Obama Has Made on NSA Surveillance

President Obama, who delivered a speech on surveillance policy today, has made a series of misleading statements about the NSA.

Key Reads on Government Shutdowns

A roundup of interesting stories about government shutdowns.

Northwestern’s Journalism Program Offers Students Internships with Prestige, But No Paycheck

Colleges have used internships as a way to prepare their students for the professional world, but they’re also collecting tuition for unpaid internships.

The Surveillance Reforms Obama Supported Before He Was President

The White House has opposed efforts to rein in NSA snooping, but only five years ago, Sen. Obama supported substantial reforms.

Has the Gov't Lied on Snooping? Let's Go to the Videotape

Since Edward Snowden leaked documents detailing the NSA's surveillance programs, the Director of National Intelligence acknowledged that part of his congressional testimony was "erroneous." But that's not the only questionable comment by administration officials.

Six Ways Congress May Reform NSA Snooping

A measure to end one NSA program was just defeated in the House by a surprisingly narrow margin. Here are other proposals on the table.

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