Impact

Journalism in the Public Interest

Impact has been at the core of ProPublica’s mission since we launched in 2008, and it remains the principal yardstick for our success today. Our investigative journalism does more than expose wrongdoing and injustice; we intend for it to spark real-world change.

We’ve written a whole white paper on the topic, and examples of how our stories have produced such change — from the resignation of corrupt officials to the passage of new laws — are compiled in our annual reports. On this page, you’ll find our reporting on the impact of our work.

Featured Impact

Congress Scraps Provision to Restrict IRS From Competing With TurboTax

The change comes after ProPublica highlighted the deceptive marketing practices of Intuit, the maker of TurboTax, and other major tax prep companies.

by Justin Elliott

June 5, 1:15 p.m. EDT

More Than Me Shuts Down

The American charity, which runs 19 schools in Liberia, announced this week that it will close in the wake of a ProPublica investigation into the rapes of girls in its care.

by Finlay Young for ProPublica

June 27, 2:01 p.m. EDT

Facebook Won’t Let Employers, Landlords or Lenders Discriminate in Ads Anymore

The sweeping changes come two years after ProPublica’s reporting, which sparked lawsuits and widespread outrage.

by Jack Gillum and Ariana Tobin

March 19, 2 p.m. EDT

After Controversy, Heartland to Close Four Illinois Shelters for Immigrant Youth

At the same time, another shelter operator is trying to expand its footprint in Chicago.

by Melissa Sanchez, Duaa Eldeib, and Jodi S. Cohen

March 13, 4 a.m. CDT

More Impact

Illinois Will Allow Prone, Supine Restraints on Children While Schools Learn to Phase Them Out

The changes to a ban on restraints came after some schools said they could no longer serve children.

by Jennifer Smith Richards, Chicago Tribune, and Jodi S. Cohen and Lakeidra Chavis, ProPublica Illinois

Dec. 4, 6:40 p.m. CST

FBI Investigating Newark Beth Israel’s Transplant Program for Possible Fraud

The bureau is looking at whether the hospital may have defrauded Medicare and Medicaid as it kept a vegetative patient on life support for the sake of its metrics.

by Caroline Chen

Nov. 29, 5 a.m. EST

There’s an Emergency Ban on Isolated Timeouts in Illinois Schools. What’s Next?

The state board of education said it will refer school workers to law enforcement if they are suspected of committing crimes against children as the emergency ban on seclusion in Illinois public schools goes into effect.

by Lakeidra Chavis, Jennifer Smith Richards and Jodi S. Cohen

Nov. 22, 9:04 p.m. CST

Illinois to Take Emergency Action to Halt Isolated Timeouts in Schools

Gov. J.B. Pritzker called the practice of secluding children “appalling” and said he will work with legislators to end it.

by Jennifer Smith Richards, Jodi S. Cohen, Lakeidra Chavis and Dan Petrella

Nov. 20, 3:15 p.m. CST

Un hospital cobra a una de sus enfermeras casi $900,000 tras dar a luz a una bebé prematura

Según Dignity Health, la enfermera de emergencias no cumplió con la fecha límite para agregar a su recién nacida prematura a su plan de salud, lo que la hacía responsable de las facturas médicas. La empresa rechazó las apelaciones de su empleada durante un año hasta que ProPublica se puso en contacto con ellos.

por Marshall Allen

Nov. 19, 11 a.m. EST

Police Don’t Do a Good Job Tracking Hate Crimes. A New Report Calls on Congress to Take Action.

A day after the FBI released its latest hate crime numbers, the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights detailed the many problems with those statistics and what should be done to fix them.

by Rachel Glickhouse

Nov. 13, 2 p.m. EST

Billionaires Keep Benefiting From a Tax Break to Help the Poor. Now, Congress Wants to Investigate.

In response to reporting by ProPublica and others that show the opportunity zone tax break helping the politically connected, members of Congress are calling for changes in the law.

by Jeff Ernsthausen and Justin Elliott

Nov. 8, 5 a.m. EST

How One Employer Stuck a New Mom With an $898,984 Bill for Her Premature Baby

Dignity Health said its employee, an ER nurse, failed to meet the deadline to add her premature newborn to its health plan, so she was responsible for the medical bills. It rejected her appeals for a year until ProPublica called.

by Marshall Allen

Nov. 4, 5 a.m. EST

U.S. Senate Greenlights Funding to Help Prevent Families From Losing Their Land

A ProPublica-New Yorker story about black land loss was cited by the legislation’s sponsor before the near-unanimous vote.

by Lizzie Presser

Oct. 30, 2 p.m. EDT

Illinois Legislators Vote to End License Suspensions for Motorists With Unpaid Parking Tickets

The measure must still be signed by Gov. J.B. Pritzker, who has been critical of how ticket debt harms Chicago motorists.

by Melissa Sanchez

Oct. 29, 6:24 p.m. CDT

Doctor Who Advocated “Unethical” Care of Vegetative Patient Is Placed on Leave

Newark Beth Israel acted after our report that its transplant program kept a patient alive to improve its metrics, while barely consulting his family.

by Caroline Chen

Oct. 11, 11:55 a.m. EDT

Feds to Investigate Hospital Alleged to Have Kept Vegetative Patient Alive to Game Transplant Survival Rates

Spurred by a ProPublica investigation, the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will also carry out an inquiry.

by Caroline Chen

Oct. 8, 12:24 p.m. EDT

The Trump Administration Issues Dozens of Corrections to Its Error-Riddled Immigration Rule

Just weeks before a sweeping immigration policy takes effect, the administration is correcting substantive errors, including ones uncovered by ProPublica that would have had big impacts on military families.

by Yeganeh Torbati and Dara Lind

Oct. 1, 4:06 p.m. EDT

Hundreds of Thousands of Chicago Motorists Could Receive Debt Relief From Vehicle Sticker Tickets as the City Expands Reform

Attention, Chicago motorists: You have until Oct. 31 to buy a city sticker and then qualify for a new debt forgiveness program.

by Melissa Sanchez, ProPublica Illinois, and Elliott Ramos, WBEZ Chicago

Sept. 27, 3:08 p.m. CDT

Employers Used Facebook to Keep Women and Older Workers From Seeing Job Ads. The Federal Government Thinks That’s Illegal.

In a first, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has ruled that companies violated civil rights law through their use of Facebook’s targeting advertising.

by Ariana Tobin

Sept. 24, 9:28 p.m. EDT

We Reported on a Nonprofit Hospital System That Sues Poor Patients. It Just Freed Thousands From Debt.

After an investigation by MLK50 and ProPublica, Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare is erasing debt for unpaid hospital bills owed by more than 6,500 patients. Our reporting found the hospital had profited by aggressively pursuing patients who couldn’t pay.

by Wendi C. Thomas, MLK50

Sept. 24, 5:30 p.m. EDT

Chicago City Council Approves Ticket and Debt Collection Reforms to Help Low-Income and Minority Motorists

The measures, which were prompted by a ProPublica Illinois and WBEZ Chicago investigation, are scheduled to take effect by mid-November.

by Melissa Sanchez, ProPublica Illinois, and Elliott Ramos, WBEZ Chicago

Sept. 18, 1:20 p.m. CDT

Justice Department Will Fund More Prosecutors, Jails and Cops in Rural Alaska

To improve what it calls a public safety emergency, the DOJ detailed how it will spend $10.5 million. Alaska Native advocates want long-term reforms to increase their role in local justice systems as well.

by Kyle Hopkins, Anchorage Daily News

Sept. 13, 5:50 p.m. EDT

Senator Demands Answers From Amazon on Delivery Crashes and Contract Drivers

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, citing a ProPublica investigation, blasts Amazon for “evasive practices and moves to cut regulatory corners.”

by Patricia Callahan and James Bandler

Sept. 12, 7 a.m. EDT

We Reported on Troubled Prisons. Now, Officials and a Gang Have a Shared Goal: Reform.

Following our reporting, top Republicans and Democrats want to take a closer look at Mississippi’s prison system. Meanwhile, one gang says it has turned in more than 250 weapons to show it’s against violence.

by Jerry Mitchell, Mississippi Center for Investigative Reporting

Sept. 6, 2 p.m. EDT

Featured Impact

The change comes after ProPublica highlighted the deceptive marketing practices of Intuit, the maker of TurboTax, and other major tax prep companies.

The American charity, which runs 19 schools in Liberia, announced this week that it will close in the wake of a ProPublica investigation into the rapes of girls in its care.

The sweeping changes come two years after ProPublica’s reporting, which sparked lawsuits and widespread outrage.

At the same time, another shelter operator is trying to expand its footprint in Chicago.

More Impact

The changes to a ban on restraints came after some schools said they could no longer serve children.

The bureau is looking at whether the hospital may have defrauded Medicare and Medicaid as it kept a vegetative patient on life support for the sake of its metrics.

The state board of education said it will refer school workers to law enforcement if they are suspected of committing crimes against children as the emergency ban on seclusion in Illinois public schools goes into effect.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker called the practice of secluding children “appalling” and said he will work with legislators to end it.

A day after the FBI released its latest hate crime numbers, the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights detailed the many problems with those statistics and what should be done to fix them.

In response to reporting by ProPublica and others that show the opportunity zone tax break helping the politically connected, members of Congress are calling for changes in the law.

Dignity Health said its employee, an ER nurse, failed to meet the deadline to add her premature newborn to its health plan, so she was responsible for the medical bills. It rejected her appeals for a year until ProPublica called.

A ProPublica-New Yorker story about black land loss was cited by the legislation’s sponsor before the near-unanimous vote.

The measure must still be signed by Gov. J.B. Pritzker, who has been critical of how ticket debt harms Chicago motorists.

Newark Beth Israel acted after our report that its transplant program kept a patient alive to improve its metrics, while barely consulting his family.

Spurred by a ProPublica investigation, the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will also carry out an inquiry.

Just weeks before a sweeping immigration policy takes effect, the administration is correcting substantive errors, including ones uncovered by ProPublica that would have had big impacts on military families.

Attention, Chicago motorists: You have until Oct. 31 to buy a city sticker and then qualify for a new debt forgiveness program.

In a first, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has ruled that companies violated civil rights law through their use of Facebook’s targeting advertising.

After an investigation by MLK50 and ProPublica, Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare is erasing debt for unpaid hospital bills owed by more than 6,500 patients. Our reporting found the hospital had profited by aggressively pursuing patients who couldn’t pay.

The measures, which were prompted by a ProPublica Illinois and WBEZ Chicago investigation, are scheduled to take effect by mid-November.

To improve what it calls a public safety emergency, the DOJ detailed how it will spend $10.5 million. Alaska Native advocates want long-term reforms to increase their role in local justice systems as well.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, citing a ProPublica investigation, blasts Amazon for “evasive practices and moves to cut regulatory corners.”

Following our reporting, top Republicans and Democrats want to take a closer look at Mississippi’s prison system. Meanwhile, one gang says it has turned in more than 250 weapons to show it’s against violence.

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