A Closer Look
Examining the News
What We Learned From the First Year of the Local Reporting Network
Reporters across the country are brimming with ideas for great stories to investigate. All they lack is time and support.
What I Learned Covering HUD: Oversight Failures Are Symptoms of Deeper Dysfunction
My goal this year was to explore HUD’s failure to enforce legal standards for decent, safe, sanitary housing. What started as a simple premise brought to light greater challenges: Years of congressional cuts have left the agency in a state of chaos as communities suffer.
What Happens When the Next Financial Crisis Strikes?
As the 10-year anniversary of the last crash nears, pundits are predicting the next one. That’ll bring another problem: Who’s going to solve the crisis when our president has poisoned relations with the institutions that helped fix the last one?
Why Manafort and Cohen Thought They’d Get Away With It
It takes a special counsel to actually catch white-collar criminals.
Tax Case Flips the Script for Democrats and the GOP. But What About for Jurists?
A lawsuit attacking last year’s tax cut will test whether judicial conservatives align with Republicans, who find themselves defending Congress’ power, or with the states’ rights doctrine at the heart of their legal thinking.
A Free Press Works for All of Us
The cause of investigative reporting, a crucial element of our democracy, benefits enormously from our country’s tradition of a free, unfettered press.
Why the IRS’ Recent Dark Money Decision May Be Less Dire Than It Seems
With the tax agency already “toothless” on political cases, how much difference does it make if it’s now “deaf and blind,” too?
How the Fight Against Affirmative Action at Harvard Could Threaten Rich Whites
If preferences for black and Hispanic applicants are abolished, expect a backlash against admissions boosts for children of alumni and donors.
How Mitch McConnell Made Donald Trump
The president owes both his election and his long-term impact to the Senate majority leader, who not only engineered the strategy that will let Trump make two Supreme Court appointments, but also created the circumstances that facilitated his rise.
Jared Kushner’s Grandmother Bemoaned the “Closed Doors” That Faced Refugees to America
The family of President Trump’s son-in-law and adviser escaped the Holocaust — but had to wait in a camp for years to be allowed into the U.S. If Kushner shares her view, he’s keeping it private.
What It Was Like Reporting on a Teenager Marked for Death by the Gang MS-13
Henry, the teenager, gave me more access than any source has ever allowed me. And given his youth and vulnerable position, I often wondered if it was too much. But he wanted his story told.
Warren Buffett Recommends Investing in Index Funds — But Many of His Employees Don’t Have That Option
The billionaire investor has long praised the virtues of putting money in low-fee index funds, but many of his companies don’t offer such funds in workers’ retirement accounts. It’s a problem shared by millions of Americans.
How Senior Daddies — Like Donald Trump — Are Eligible for a Social Security Bonus
There are hidden problems in the safety net, including extra cash for people who have kids late in life. Here are some of the most unfair examples, along with some simple ways to fix them.
How Political Pessimism Helps Doom Tougher Gun Laws
Saying ‘nothing will change’ has empowered the NRA and ignores its declining punch.
Revelations About the FBI’s Delay on Clinton Emails May Be Less Than They Seem
Reports have examined the lag in examining Hillary Clinton’s emails just before the 2016 election. But the question inside the FBI wasn’t whether to reveal the emails quickly — it was whether it was proper to reveal them at all.
Taking Care to Get a Mississippi Scandal Right
People in the state took a chance that I would resist stereotypes and report an important truth about the crisis in mental health resources.
Carried Interest Reform Is a Sham
Republicans claim they’re fixing a tax loophole that benefits wealthy money managers. Don’t believe them.
