The IRE Resource Center is a major research library containing more than 23,250 investigative stories — both print and broadcast. These stories are searchable online or by contacting the Resource Center directly (573-882-3364 or rescntr@ire.org) where a researcher can help you pinpoint what you need. Browse or search the tipsheet section of our library below. Stories are not available for download but can be easily ordered by contacting the Resource Center:
Search results for "Japan" ...
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60 Minutes: Catastrophe
A story discovering that the preparations for a major earthquake in the Fukushima area were at odds with the consequences of a tsunami and that the nuclear facilities were underprepared.
Tags: fukushima; tsunami; earthquake; japan; nuclear reactor; meltdown; radioactive
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Japan: Hiding America's Children
The story of 15 American fathers whose children were spirited away by their Japanese mothers. ABC News uncovered how these women have used the Japanese government's protection to keep their children hidden. FBI warrants, Interpol notices, U.S. custody decisions - none are recognized or enforced by the Japanese courts or law enforcement, leaving the fathers essentially helpless when it came to exercising their parental rights once the children were kidnapped to Japan.
Tags: abduction; Japan; United States; children
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Genetic Modified Food
In a two-part series, senior investigative correspondent Armen Keteyian examined the business of genetic engineering and the growing impact it is having on the way we grow food, and what we eat. Part one take a look at the business practices of Mondsanto, a major bio-tech seed maker, which patents its genetically modified seeds. Monsanto sells the seed to farmers but prohibits them from replanting their seeds after harvest, a practice known to farmers for 11,000 years. In the story, the team found that Monsanto has been coming after small farmers for seed piracy, suing them when Monsanto suspects farmers of planting its patented seeds "illegally" even when those farmers have never purchased or planted and Monsanto products. Part two examines the secret changes to our foods and asks, why don't we, in the U.S., label genetically modified ingredients when it is done with regular practice in Europe, Japan, Australia and our trading partners? Whether we realize it or not, we probably ate something for dinner last night that had a DNA-altered ingredient in it, but the FDA says that these ingredients do not have to be labeled and therefore no one knows when they are eating genetically modified foods.
Tags: Monsanto; genetically modified food; soybeans; farming; agriculture; seed cleaning; food
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The Dolphin Trade
Primetime tracked the illegal trade of captured wild dophins around the world. Wild dolphins are captured and sold to "swim with the dolphins" parks in resort areas. The story ranged from Japan to Haiti to the Solomon Islands and included exclusive interviews and tense confrontations with dolphin captors and smugglers.
Tags: dolphins; animal trade
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Osaka, Japan's No. 1"Amakudari" Heaven
"After spending ten years of struggling with weak economy, Japan started structural changes for growth. One of the main changes is to enhance the efficiency on Japanese local governments and its affiliate to reduce the huge debts. Makoto Isomichi challenged to analyze how Japan's local governments wastes taxes and show how to privatize its affiliates by calculating its values."
Tags: international; business
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Sizing Up: BNP Joins Bank Quest For Bigness, but It Is No Industry Cure-All
Is bigger really better? The Journal addresses the question in light of ongoing bank mergers. The story finds that "while mergers can help banks cut costs and gain customers, they won't necessarily stave off of the forces that have been making banks less important as sources of capital and advice." The article includes tables of the top ten biggest banks in the world in 1998 and 1988, ranked by assets.
Tags: deregulation; Banque Nationale de Paris (BNP); investment banking; UBS AG; Europe; Switzerland; Japan
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The Secret History of World War II
A Boston Globe historical series provides an in-depth look into the intelligence machinations behind the World War II and the Cold War. The reporters reveal that Western Allies knew of Hitler's plans to systematically exterminate all of Europe's Jews several months earlier than previously thought; that US intelligence ran a covert operation to stall the creation of a Jewish state in the British colony of Palestine, fearing that such state would create generations of Islamic enmity; that American businesses were involved in commerce with the Nazis but also had espionage functions; and that the United States used 4,000 former German spies to spy on the Soviet Union. A major figure profiled in the series is a German Foreign Ministry official who had supplied the Americans with valuable inside documents but the CIA never really trusted him.
Tags: National Security Act; CIA; declassified records; Nazi War Crimes Disclosure Act; Communism; intelligence; espionage; Mussolini; Pearl Harbor; Japan
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Empire: A Tale of Obsession, Betrayal and the Battle for an American Icon
Pacelle's book "traces the decade-long battle for control of the Empire State Building, in which real estate tycoons from the United States and Japan accused one another of various forms of deceit and criminality." The author reveals how Hideki Yokoi, a controversial Japanese tycoon, managed to buy the building without disclosing his identity to the seller, Prudential Insurance Co. The book follows the labyrinth of accusations, lawsuits and jailings stemming from the ownership battles, and reports on the involvement of "such well-known New York real estate people as Donald Trump and Leona Helmsley."
Tags: BOOK; business; corporations; Manhattan
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Slower than a speeding bullet
Washington Monthly investigates how Amtrak, the U.S. national rail agency, has failed to keep its promise to start a "bullet train." The story looks at the technological characteristics of Acela Express, a new train marketed as high-speed transportation device. The article reveals that Acela hit its top speed of 150 miles only once, while "the rest of the time it floats along relatively prosaically under 100 miles an hour, something steam trains accomplished a century ago." The report compares rail business in America and other developed countries, and finds that the U.S.A. is many decades behind Europe and Japan. The story points out that Acela's fares are close to those of the airlines, and examines the financial troubles of Amtrak in recent years.
Tags: customers; flights; ground transportation; Amtrak; rail; Acela Express; airlines; high speed; technology; passengers; cars
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Springtime for Nuclear
The Nation examines the prospects for the nuclear energy industry in the future, and follows the changes in the nuclear policies of the executive and the legislative branches over the years. "While nuclear power advocates may have lost their patron saint in Pete Domenici, they see George W. Bush as the Second Coming," reports the magazine. The story looks at the factors contributing to the falling price of nuclear energy. It also examines the chances of serious accidents, and cites critics who say plants are getting less safe with age. The report compares recent nuclear energy developments amongst the U.S.A and other major producers in the world.
Tags: Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI); Nuclear Regulatory Commission; toxic waste; radiation; power plants; radiation; Russia; Japan; France