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October 2008 - Posts

Friday, October 31, 2008 5:46 AM

Where Housing Still Bubbles

The Plain Dealer is doing a fine job exposing corruption in Cuyahoga County. Their latest report, "CMHA Paid Top Dollar for Houses Even As Property Values Crashed," was written by Stan Donaldson. The Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Agency used taxpayer
posted by BrianSummers | 0 Comments
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Thursday, October 30, 2008 5:25 AM

Detroit's Road to Ruin

As the Big Three automakers lobby for bailouts, two outstanding articles have appeared. "How Detroit Drove Into a Ditch" by Paul Ingrassia in The Wall Street Journal provides a revealing history of the Big Three. Here's a excerpt on the watershed year
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Wednesday, October 29, 2008 5:06 AM

12 Top Election Stories and Web Sites

It's been quite a year for politics and campaign coverage. As we head to the finish line, I'd like to nominate the journalists, publications and Web sites that I think have done the best job of covering the elections. 1. For depth of political coverage,
posted by jonmarshall | 0 Comments
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Tuesday, October 28, 2008 5:27 AM

Inside the Housing Bubble

“Building Flawed American Dreams,” by David Streitfeld and Gretchen Morgenson in The New York Times, provides an insider’s perspective on the housing bubble. SAN ANTONIO — A grandson of Mexican immigrants and a former mayor of this town, Henry G. Cisneros
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Monday, October 27, 2008 5:46 AM

Polling Place Blues

While most political reporters follow the fortunes of McCain and Obama during the last days of the presidential campaign, Michael Scherer of Time magazine looks ahead to what might actually happen in voting booths around the country. His "7
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Friday, October 24, 2008 5:30 AM

Death of an Informant

The Tallahassee Democrat is taking advantage of some of the newest forms of media to report and spread the story of Rachel Hoffman, a 23-year-old police informant who was murdered during a botched drug sting. For the newspaper's ongoing investigation
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Thursday, October 23, 2008 1:38 AM

The Gangs of New Jersey

"Gangs at the Shore" by Ed Johnson in the Asbury Park Press is a chilling series on the growth of violent gangs in New Jersey's shore towns. Some of Johnson's most revealing scenes take place on the gang members' turf. Bangs Avenue in Asbury Park and
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Wednesday, October 22, 2008 5:20 AM

All You Can Eat

Wright Thompson of ESPN The Magazine has written a funny first-person account of trying to eat like a football player. His "Eat, Drink and be Scary" describes Thompson's experiences attempting to match University of South Florida defensive end
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Tuesday, October 21, 2008 5:32 AM

Exposing Congressional Earmarks

"The Favor Factory" by David Heath and Christine Willmsen of the Seattle Times uses data mining to show that despite congressional reforms lawmakers slipped $3.5 billion in hidden earmarks into the 2008 defense spending bill. No matter who wins, the
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Monday, October 20, 2008 5:46 AM

Behind the Attack Ads

NPR and the Center for Investigative Reporting have teamed up to reveal who is behind the nasty political ads during this year's election season. "The Secret Money Project" lets viewers click on a map of the U.S. to see the advertisements running
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Friday, October 17, 2008 5:07 AM

An Offer the Bankers Could Not Refuse

"Drama Behind a $250 Billion Banking Deal" by Mark Landler and Eric Dash in The New York Times provides stunning details on how, in a single meeting, Treasury Secretary Paulson restructured the American banking system. The chief executives of the nine
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Thursday, October 16, 2008 2:39 AM

Riding Roughshod

"Renegade Riders" by David Shaffer, Tom Meersman and Glenn Howatt of The Minneapolis Star Tribune is an excellent investigation into the long-term damage caused by all-terrain vehicles on public wildlands. Across Minnesota, as ATV ridership soars, the
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Wednesday, October 15, 2008 5:53 AM

Finding Mr. Schrupp

"Mr. Schrupp's Final Lesson" by Jeff Seidel in the Detroit Free Press is a nice story about a beloved teacher. But what really stands out is the way Seidel connects with readers by telling them how he found it. I'm often asked: How do you find the stories
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Tuesday, October 14, 2008 5:47 AM

20 Top Crime Stories

We’ve seen some amazing crime stories on News Gems lately. These Top Twenty from the past six months range from the jungles of Africa to a small town in Tennessee. Some are groundbreaking exposés while others tell stories from the perspectives of frightened
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Monday, October 13, 2008 5:35 AM

Trouble at Fulton 911

D.L. Bennett, Cameron McWhirter and Heather Vogell of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution have done a fine job investigating the troubled 911 call center in Fulton County, Georgia. The staff of Fulton County's 911 center has caused scores of mistakes in
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Friday, October 10, 2008 3:47 AM

Speed Racers

Like the lyrics of a Bruce Springsteen song, "The Need for Speed" by John Larrabee in the October issue of Rhode Island Monthly describes the quest for thrills by teens and young adults on Saturday nights. Larrabee uses concrete details to show
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Thursday, October 09, 2008 4:27 AM

The Needle and the Damage Done

The spread of heroin and other drugs in suburban and small-town America is brought to life—and death—by Mario Quadracci’s “Contagious” in Milwaukee Magazine. Quadracci introduces us to Ben Stibbe, a user and dealer who was charged with first-degree reckless
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Wednesday, October 08, 2008 5:47 AM

Military Risks

Counterfeit computer parts threaten the safety of U.S. military equipment, according to an important investigation by Brian Grow, Chi-Chu Tschang, Cliff Edwards and Brian Burnsed of Business Week. Their "Dangerous Fakes" traces how phony microchips make
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Tuesday, October 07, 2008 6:35 AM

Credit Crunch

In recent weeks panic has gripped Wall Street as credit markets froze, stock prices plunged and policy makers groped for answers. Joe Nocera of The New York Times chronicles the stunning loss of confidence in his fast-paced narrative, "As Credit Crisis
posted by BrianSummers | 1 Comments
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Monday, October 06, 2008 5:33 AM

That Nurse Might Be a Felon

On September 22 we featured an Asbury Park Press story, "Dozens of Felons Driving School Buses." Today we highlight a Los Angeles Times investigation, "Criminal Past Is No Bar to Nursing in California," by ProPublica's Tracy Weber and Charles Ornstein.
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Friday, October 03, 2008 6:39 AM

Million-Dollar Spigot

"Taxpayers Bankroll Waste, Inflated Fees" by Kevin McDermott and Nicholas J.C. Pistor of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch is an eye-opening investigation into Illinois' Capital Litigation Trust Fund, a tax-funded account that pays expenses in death penalty
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Thursday, October 02, 2008 10:20 PM

No Comment

Our apologies to everyone who has tried to leave a comment on News Gems lately. We're aware that our comment function isn't working well and are working with our sponsors at SPJ to get it fixed. We value your feedback and story ideas. If anyone wants
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Thursday, October 02, 2008 6:17 AM

Can Plastic Go Green?

"In Praise of Plastic" by Keith O'Brien of the Boston Globe offers surprising insights into plastic's environmental impact. People love to hate plastic for the petroleum used to produce it, for the litter it becomes, for the space it takes up in landfills,
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Wednesday, October 01, 2008 4:45 AM

The Battle for Ramadi

Neil Shea's "Ramadi Nights" in The Virginia Quarterly Review is a haunting narrative about young American marines as they hunt for information about insurgents in Iraq. Shea's story follows members of the Third Battalion, Eighth Marine Regiment, as
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