December 2019 Archive
In Search of Solutions to Alaska’s Law Enforcement Crisis
We spent a year investigating how Alaska’s sexual violence crisis is compounded by a lack of law enforcement. Now, we’re looking at the system and how it can be fixed.
We’ve Been Tracking Pharma Payments to Doctors For Nearly A Decade. We Just Made A Big Breakthrough.
For years, we’ve wondered whether a doctor who received a payment linked to a particular drug prescribed more of that drug. With our new analysis, we finally have the answer: yes.
Doctors Prescribe More of a Drug If They Receive Money from a Pharma Company Tied to It
Pharmaceutical companies have paid doctors billions of dollars for consulting, promotional talks, meals and more. A new ProPublica analysis finds doctors who received payments linked to specific drugs prescribed more of those drugs.
How We Reconstructed the Flawed Navigation Controls Behind the Navy’s Worst Maritime Accident in 40 Years
To see the complex navigation system aboard the USS John S. McCain is to wonder how any amount of training would have been enough for sailors to have been confident using it.
The Navy Installed Touch-Screen Steering Systems to Save Money. 10 Sailors Paid With Their Lives.
When the USS John S. McCain crashed in the Pacific, the Navy blamed the destroyer’s crew for the loss of 10 sailors. The truth is the Navy’s flawed technology set the McCain up for disaster.
Schools Aren’t Supposed to Forcibly Restrain Children as Punishment. In Illinois, It Happened Repeatedly.
As Illinois moves to restrict the use of physical restraint in schools, records show the practice was often misused, leaving students and staff injured.
How We Reported This Story
We created the first-ever database of thousands of incidents of restraint and seclusion in Illinois.
My Home Is a Place That Feels Safe. For Too Many Families, That’s Not the Case.
Where we live becomes part of who we are. It affects our quality of life. That’s why I report on low-income housing.
TurboTax Tricked Customers Into Paying to File Taxes. Now Several States Are Investigating It.
ProPublica revealed that TurboTax maker Intuit charged millions of Americans for tax filing services they were eligible to receive for free. Now multiple state attorneys general have opened investigations into the company.
In “Cancer Alley,” Toxic Polluters Face Little Oversight From Environmental Regulators
Louisiana’s Department of Environmental Quality has been accused of protecting the chemical industry it regulates. The agency is facing cutbacks as new plants are slated for communities that already have some of the country’s most toxic air.
How an Environmental Regulator Became Known for Protecting Industry
In the late 1980s, Louisiana’s governor made environmental protection a priority. He only lasted one term. Now, the state’s Department of Environmental Quality has a reputation for going easy on industry.
What Happens When a Health Plan Has No Limits? An Acupuncturist Earns $677 a Session.
New Jersey’s health plan for school employees pays out-of-network providers virtually whatever they want. Dozens of acupuncturists and physical therapists earned more than $200,000 in 2018 from school staff alone. One brought in $1 million.
A Chicago Psychiatric Hospital Is Under Fire After Child Abuse Allegations. Again.
A new lawsuit calls Chicago Lakeshore a “hospital of horrors,” where children as young as 7 were allegedly sexually abused and others were injected with sedatives and physically attacked — all while officials covered it up.
ProPublica Selects 13 Investigative Projects, New Editor for Third Year of Local Reporting Network
Seven of the projects will focus on state government, while the rest will cover a broad range of subjects, bringing the network to 20 total reporters. T. Christian Miller will also become a senior editor.
“They Painted Over Problems”: How Residents of One Affordable Housing Complex Went From Hope to Despair
Twenty years after a private developer took over an affordable housing complex, the property has deteriorated once again and is in need of a multimillion-dollar renovation. A multilayered and confusing financial situation has left some tenants distressed.
There Are Kentuckians Who Still Don’t Have Broadband Because the Former Governor Chose an Investment Bank Over Experts
A report from the state auditor confirms officials knew their initiative would likely cost much more than they were letting on. The project is two years behind schedule and could cost taxpayers $1.5 billion over the next 30 years.
McKinsey Called Our Story About Its ICE Contract False. It’s Not.
The consulting giant asserts our story “misleads readers” and “disregards facts” — but its statement mischaracterizes what’s in the article, ignores hundreds of pages of proof we shared with the firm and provides no evidence to back its claims.
How McKinsey Makes Its Own Rules
The consulting giant, which likes to compare itself to the Marines and the Catholic Church, has a habit of disregarding rules and norms in its government work.
I Spent Three Years Running a Collaboration Across Newsrooms. Here’s What I Learned.
ProPublica worked with close to 200 newsrooms in the U.S. to crowdsource hate crimes and bias incidents as part of our Documenting Hate project. The collaboration is wrapping up, but its lessons are worth remembering.
The Law Says She Should Have Been Protected From Birth. Instead, She Was Left in the Care of Her Drug-Addicted Mother, Who Killed Her.
Hundreds of thousands of children are abused or neglected in the U.S. each year, but only one federal law directly addresses this tragic reality for children not in state care. The law is routinely violated — with heartbreaking consequences.
