ProPublica

Journalism in the Public Interest

Cancel

About Us

Kim Barker

Kim Barker

Contact Info

Get Updates

Stay on top of what we’re working on by subscribing to our email digest.

optional

Our Hottest Stories

  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
Kim just finished her term as the Edward R. Murrow Press Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York, where she studied, wrote and lectured on Pakistan and Afghanistan and U.S. policy. She was the South Asia bureau chief for the Tribune from 2004 to 2009 and was based in New Delhi and Islamabad. At the Tribune, Barker covered major stories such as the assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto and rising militancy in both Pakistan and Afghanistan. She began covering the region after Sept. 11, 2001, and spent two years on a project called “Struggle for the Soul of Islam," a series about Islam that sent her to Iran, Pakistan and Indonesia.

Articles

With Spotlight on Super PAC Dollars, Nonprofits Escape Scrutiny

Feb. 3, 6:02 p.m.

Super PAC filings for 2011 reveal few surprises in identifying contributors: Unions give to Democrats, while businesses back Republicans. Much less is known about the social-welfare nonprofits that might play a big role in the election.

PAC Track: Now Includes Contributions

Feb. 1, 11:22 a.m.

What and where are the super PACs spending?

In the Gusher of Super PACs, Even One Named ‘The Internet’

Jan. 20, 1:53 p.m.

Super PACs with similar-sounding names, satirical motives or undeclared aims are setting the stage for voter confusion in the months ahead. A super PAC called “a SuperPAC”? No kidding.

Kashmiri-American Pleads Guilty in Pakistan Spy Plot

Dec. 7, 2011, 7:53 p.m.

Syed Ghulam Nabi Fai, the head of the Kashmiri American Council, admitted making false statements to U.S. officials about $3.5 million in payments he received from Pakistan and its Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate, or ISI. The money was allegedly used to try to influence U.S. policy on the disputed
territory of Kashmir.

‘Spillionaires’ Powerbroker Loses Re-election Bid

Nov. 21, 2011, 3 p.m.

Craig Taffaro Jr., president of Louisiana’s St. Bernard parish, who had been accused of favoritism in awarding work after the BP oil spill, loses to a candidate promising reform.

Super PAC Man Gobbles Up Regulators’ Time, Patience

Nov. 18, 2011, 11:50 a.m.

A Florida man has flooded the FEC with filings for a new kind of political action committee, showing how easy it is to create them and how few rules there are. 

Man Accused in Pakistani Spy Plot Dies

Oct. 7, 2011, 2:32 p.m.

It’s unclear how death will affect the U.S. Justice Department case against Zaheer Ahmad and another man, accused of using Pakistani money to try to influence U.S. policy on Kashmir.

The Man Behind Pakistan Spy Agency’s Plot to Influence Washington

Oct. 3, 2011, 10:04 a.m.

In some ways, Syed Ghulam Nabi Fai was living the American dream, with friends in high places and a nice home in suburban Washington. Now the advocate for Kashmir is under house arrest, facing a charge that he was a foreign agent.

Revealed: Man Sought in Plot to Influence U.S. Politics Is Prominent Figure in Pakistan

July 20, 2011, 9:03 p.m.

Investigators say Pakistani-American doctor helped launder money sent by Pakistani intelligence to U.S. politicians

In An Unusual Criminal Case, the U.S. Points the Finger at Pakistan’s Top Spy Agency Again

July 19, 2011, 11:24 p.m.

In an indictment unsealed Tuesday, the FBI accused two men of funneling millions of dollars from the Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate, or ISI, into political campaign donations and other activities meant to influence American policy on Kashmir.

Spillionaires Revisited: Gov’t Official’s Associates Got Big Contracts After the BP Oil Spill

July 18, 2011, 11:06 a.m.

Craig Taffaro, president of Louisiana’s St. Bernard Parish, has denied allegations in an earlier ProPublica story, but new reporting shows that longtime associates got lucrative spill-related work—and then they helped raise money for his re-election.

An AWKward Relationship: The U.S. and Its Ties to Hamid Karzai’s Half-Brother

July 13, 2011, 3:53 p.m.

Ahmed Wali Karzai, assassinated earlier this week, was repeatedly accused of corruption and drug-dealing but remained a key Western ally and power broker in southern Afghanistan.

Super-PACs and Dark Money: ProPublica’s Guide to the New World of Campaign Finance

July 11, 2011, 12:38 p.m.

As the nation gets ready for more record-breaking election spending, here’s a closer look at the secretive groups working hard to influence the outcome.

Inside the Campaign to Release Al-Jazeera English Journalist Dorothy Parvaz

May 23, 2011, 7 p.m.

Dorothy Parvaz’s supporters created a Facebook page, tweeted, and sent emails but felt their missives were disappearing into the ether, ignored by an Iranian regime that listens to no one.

U.S. Officials Equate Pakistani Spy Agency With Terror Groups in Leaked Documents

April 25, 2011, 3:35 p.m.

Material published by Wikileaks and the Guardian gives a more detailed picture of U.S.-Pakistan relations, one colored by deep suspicion.

Gulf’s Delacroix Islanders Watch As Their World Disappears

April 13, 2011, 12:05 p.m.

The BP oil spill is just the latest disaster to hit a fishing community that has struggled with hurricanes, erosion and competition from cheap imports. The fishermen ask themselves about the future and worry that they may be the last of their kind.

‘Spillionaires’: Profiteering and Mismanagement in the Wake of the BP Oil Spill

April 13, 2011, 12:05 p.m.

Some people profited by charging BP outrageous rates for cleanup. Others profited from BP claims money, handed out in arbitrary ways. Meanwhile, others hurt by the spill ended up getting much less.

Female Foreign Correspondents’ Code of Silence, Finally Broken

Feb. 19, 2011, 4:39 p.m.

Lessons learned from CBS News Correspondent Lara Logan.

Kim Barker

Contact Info

Get Updates

Stay on top of what we’re working on by subscribing to our email digest.

optional

Our Hottest Stories

  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •