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We Reviewed Police Tactics Seen in Nearly 400 Protest Videos. Here’s What We Found.

We asked experts to watch videos showing officers using tear gas, pepper balls and explosives on protesters. Police actions often escalated confrontations.

by Talia Buford, Lucas Waldron, Moiz Syed and Al Shaw

“Outright Lies”: Voting Misinformation Flourishes on Facebook

While the social media giant says it opposes voter suppression, the data shows a stark picture: Nearly half of all top-performing posts that mentioned voting by mail were false or misleading.

by Ryan McCarthy

The Pandemic Economy

Thousands of Small Business Owners Have Not Gotten Disaster Loans the Government Promised Them

A top official said 99% of funds were paid, but only 55% of small business owners reported receiving the money. Borrowers were told there was a technical glitch, but the Small Business Administration would not answer questions about it.

by Isaac Arnsdorf

Unheard

Alaska has the highest rate of sexual assault in the nation. These women and men did not choose to be violated, but they now choose to speak about what happened.
Coronavirus

Trump Is Donating Ventilators to Countries That Don’t Need or Can’t Use Them

Nearly 8,000 ventilators are destined for foreign countries as part of Trump’s plan to make the U.S. “king of ventilators.” But public health experts worry the machines are crowding out more urgently needed aid.

by Yeganeh Torbati

Thousands Demand Michigan #FreeGrace After Teenager Was Incarcerated for Not Doing Her Schoolwork

After a ProPublica investigation, public officials are pushing for the release of a Black 15-year-old sent to juvenile detention after a judge ruled that not doing her online schoolwork violated her probation.

by Jodi S. Cohen

TurboTax and H&R Block Used “Unfair and Abusive Practices,” State Regulator Finds

The investigation, which is ongoing, came after a ProPublica series showed that millions of Americans were coerced into paying for tax filing they should get for free.

by Justin Elliott

The Cuomo Administration Hasn’t Said Which Nursing Homes Were Infected With COVID-19 After Its Order Sent Positive Patients Into Them

Dozens of New York nursing homes didn’t see their first COVID-19 case until sick patients were sent there, many under Andrew Cuomo’s state policy. To date, 6% of the state’s nursing home population, or roughly 6,500 residents, have died.

by Joe Sexton and Joaquin Sapien

ProPublica Illinois and Partners Win 3 Driehaus Awards

How McKinsey Is Making $100 Million (and Counting) Advising on the Government’s Bumbling Coronavirus Response

For the world’s best-known corporate-management consultants, helping tackle the pandemic has been a bonanza. It’s not clear what the government has gotten in return.

by Ian MacDougall for ProPublica

Opioid Overdoses Keep Surging in Chicago, Killing Black People on the West Side

Half of Cook County’s confirmed opioid-related deaths have been among Black residents, even though they make up less than a quarter of the county’s population. Officials warn that the COVID-19 pandemic has overshadowed the crisis.

by Duaa Eldeib and Melissa Sanchez

Different Names, Same Address: How Big Businesses Got Government Loans Meant for Small Businesses

ProPublica found at least 15 large companies that received over half a billion dollars in PPP loans using the same technique: Getting multiple loans sent to smaller entities they own.

by Paul Kiel and Jack Gillum

A Teenager Didn’t Do Her Online Schoolwork. So a Judge Sent Her to Juvenile Detention.

A 15-year-old in Michigan was incarcerated during the coronavirus pandemic after a judge ruled that not completing her schoolwork violated her probation. “It just doesn’t make any sense,” said the girl’s mother.

by Jodi S. Cohen

New Jersey Puts $578 Million in Controversial Tax Breaks on Hold After Investigation

A dozen companies that won tax breaks from New Jersey are under investigation, according to a task force created by Gov. Phil Murphy. Several companies are tied to George Norcross. WNYC and ProPublica investigated tax breaks in 2019.

Nancy Solomon, WNYC

Community Storytelling Is Informing Our Coverage of Intellectual and Developmental Disability Services. Share Your Story.

Journalists have not always brought people with intellectual and developmental disabilities into the conversation. We’re trying to change that with our investigation into Arizona’s disability services. But we need your help.

by Beena Raghavendran and Maya Miller, ProPublica, and Amy Silverman for Arizona Daily Star

Trump Financial Regulator Quietly Shelved Discrimination Probes Into Bank of America and Other Lenders

At least six investigations into discriminatory mortgage loan “redlining” have been halted or stalled — against staff recommendations — under the Trump administration’s Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.

by Patrick Rucker, The Capitol Forum

Trump Says He “Disagreed” With Privately Funded Border Wall, So Why Did His Administration Award the Builder $1.7 Billion?

Trump now claims the privately funded wall was built to “make me look bad,” even though the project’s builder and funders are Trump supporters.

by Perla Trevizo and Jeremy Schwartz

You Can Make Millions Selling Masks to the Government in Three Easy Steps

The federal government is essentially providing seed money to PPE startups, including some run by people accused of fraud. Mask brokers describe a simple blueprint for buying masks from China to get rich.

by J. David McSwane

“All the Hospitals Are Full”: In Houston, Overwhelmed ICUs Leave COVID-19 Patients Waiting in ERs

The busiest hospitals in Houston are increasingly telling emergency responders they cannot safely accept new patients as hundreds of coronavirus patients crowd emergency rooms, and hospitals scramble to open more intensive care space.

by Charles Ornstein, ProPublica, and Mike Hixenbaugh, NBC News

Andrew Cuomo’s Report on Controversial Nursing Home Policy for COVID Patients Prompts More Controversy

A state report on Cuomo’s decision to order nursing homes to take in COVID positive patients in the early days of the pandemic fails to deal with the central question: did such admissions lead to more infection and death, and if so how significantly.

by Joaquin Sapien and Joe Sexton

Three Takeaways From the Supreme Court’s Decisions on Trump’s Tax and Financial Documents

The Supreme Court finally ruled on whether Congress and investigators can obtain the president’s financial information. The answer is yes — but it’s a little more complicated than that.

by Katherine Sullivan, WNYC

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