Skip to content
ProPublica Donate
ProPublica Donate
Photo of Al Shaw

Al Shaw

Al Shaw is a Senior News Application Developer at ProPublica.

Need to Get in Touch?

Al Shaw is a Senior News Application Developer at ProPublica. He uses data and interactive graphics to cover environmental issues, natural disasters and politics.

A year before Hurricane Harvey devastated Houston, Shaw was part of a team that produced “Hell and High Water,” which warned of the region's vulnerability to coastal storms. The project won a Peabody Award in 2017. Shaw's project, “Losing Ground,” about the century-long erosion of Louisiana's coast won a Gold Medal from the Society for News Design. His interactive maps surrounding FEMA's response to Hurricane Sandy were honored with the Society of Professional Journalists’ Sigma Delta Chi award. Before joining ProPublica, Shaw was a designer/developer at the political news website Talking Points Memo.

Musk Adviser May Make as Much as $1 Million a Year While Helping to Dismantle Agency That Regulates Tesla and X

Records show that Chris Young is simultaneously working as a political adviser to Musk while serving in the Department of Government Efficiency, helping to gut the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Who’s Running the DOGE Wrecking Machine: The World’s Richest Man or a Little-Known Bureaucrat?

Insiders tell ProPublica that Amy Gleason is only in charge on paper, while Musk’s top lieutenants really run DOGE. One person who has been in meetings with Gleason described her as having “little to no actual decision making” responsibilities.

The Staffers Helping Elon Musk Dismantle and Downsize the U.S. Government, One Agency at a Time

Musk and his lieutenants are reshaping the government and its mission with the blessing of President Trump. ProPublica has confirmed the names and roles of more than 30 staffers affiliated with the billionaire.

Elon Musk’s Demolition Crew

Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, has been unleashed on federal agencies. ProPublica is attempting to document who is working with him and what they are doing.

Unreasonable Risk

How to Reduce Formaldehyde Exposure in Your Home

The underregulated toxic chemical can be found in common household items from couches to clothes. We asked experts how you can reduce your exposure.

Unreasonable Risk

How Much Formaldehyde Is in Your Car, Your Kitchen or Your Furniture? Here’s What Our Testing Found.

The chemical can trigger health problems and causes more cancer than any other toxic air pollutant. Our reporters traveled around New York City and New Jersey with equipment to measure its presence. The results proved concerning.

Unreasonable Risk

Check the Formaldehyde Cancer Risk in Your Neighborhood

In most of the country, formaldehyde contributes more to outdoor cancer risk than any other toxic air pollutant. Look up your address to see risks from the chemical on your block and where it comes from.

Unreasonable Risk

Formaldehyde Causes More Cancer Than Any Other Toxic Air Pollutant. Little Is Being Done to Curb the Risk.

The Environmental Protection Agency’s attempts to reckon with formaldehyde have been repeatedly thwarted by the companies that rely on it. If the past is any guide, even modest steps toward reform are all but guaranteed to hit a dead end under Trump.

Swept Away

Swept Away

From birth certificates to loved ones’ ashes, these are just some of the belongings cities take when they clear homeless encampments.

Friends of the Court

Supreme Connections: Search Supreme Court Financial Disclosures

Find organizations and people that have paid the current justices, reimbursed them for travel, given them gifts and more.