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 "Latin America" ...
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Truthout on the Border
The true intent of United States Foreign Policy in regards to the war on drugs in Mexico and Latin America is hidden behind many pantallas (screens in Spanish). In ten installments, posted in the first half of 2012, the Truthout on the Mexican Border series exposed the unofficial intentions of the US war on drugs in Latin America and its deadly impact. By connecting the dots in ten successively posted articles, the war on drugs appears to be a screen behind which goals of US military and economic hegemony can more easily be achieved in Latin American nations. Many Mexicans know that when it comes to corruption, drugs and crime in their nation, las pantallas usually prevent them from knowing the truth. The same is true of the US war on drugs, which has resulted in deaths and disappearances that are estimated to reach between 60,000 – 120,000 in the six year rule of Mexican President Felipe Calderón (ending on November 30, 2012). Truthout regularly covers US foreign policy and its impact in Latin America. The Truthout on the Mexican Border series was written to create a comprehensive understanding of what is behind the diplomatic and political screens – weaving in such seemingly diverse topics as US immigration and gun policies to understand the dark underside of US hemispheric intentions in Mexico and Latin America.
Tags: U.S.; foreign policy; Mexico; Latin America; drug war; corruption; crime
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In Iowa Meat Plant, Kosher 'Jungle' Breeds Fear; Injury, Short Pay
Nathaniel Popper, reporting for the Forward (NY) investigated a Kosher slaughterhouse in Postville, Iowa, where he uncovered dangerous working conditions, low pay, and anti-unionization pressures that raised questions about the ethics of the Jewish owners of the plant towards their largely immigrant workers.
Tags: Agriprocessors; Occupational Safety and Health Administration; slaughterhouse workers; Latin American immigrants; accidental amputations; Postville, Iowa; union "devils"; animal rights group; health and safety violations; Conservative Jewish synagogue movement; Kosher certification; Orthodox Judaism; immigration authorities; ethics; United Food and Commercial Workers; Father Floyd Paul Ouderkirk; Sholom Rubashkin; Caitlin Didier; Lubavitch Hasidim; Stephen Bloom; "Postville"; PETA; undocumented immigrants; Human Rights Watch; Rabbi Morris Allen; Rabbinical Council of America; Orthodox Union
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Slaves in Amazon Forced to Make Material Used in Cars
In Brazil, Peru and Bolivia hundreds of thousands of unemployed men and women are being recruited for slavery. The workers for the slave-camps make charcoal, while being forced to live without housing, electricity or plumbing, and without pay.
Tags: slave labor; Amazon; South America; labor camps; malaria; tuberculosis; Whirlpool; Nucor; Latin America; Ford; General Motors; Nissan; Toyota; car companies
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Series on Congressman Jerry Weller
Congressman Jerry Weller (R-Ill.) is married to a foreign government official, Zury Rios Sosa, daughter of former Guatemalan dictator Efrain Rios Montt. Weller is a member of a committee "whose main focus is Latin America," and "has been silent about Guatemalan problems that affect the U.S., particularly drug smuggling." The investigation also found that Weller failed to report on his congressional disclosure form the amount of beachfront property he owns in Nicaragua, putting him in "violation of house ethics rules and U.S. law."
Tags: Jerry Weller; Zury Rios Sosa; Efrain Rios Montt; Guatemala; political conflicts of interest; politicians' financial disclosure forms
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Immigrant Journey
Brown covered the story of immigration from Ecuador to Queens County, NY, the most ethnically diverse county in the nation, from both ends of the journey. He found that Ecuadoreans bring their prejudices with them, such as anti-gay opinions and a belief in the inevitability of corrpution in politics. But they also send money back home that keeps the country's economy afloat.
Tags: Immigration; Ecuador; INS; Central America; Latin America; New York City; diversity; poverty; economy
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Masters of chaos: The secret history of the special forces
This book recounts the Special Forces missions over the past 15 years, including Desert Storm, Just Cause, Somalia, the Balkans, Afghanistan and Iraq. It is based on interviews with soldiers of all ranks, access bestowed upon a reporter with 10 years of experience covering insurgencies in Latin America.
Tags: BOOK; military; Special Forces; Iraq; Desert Storm; Afghanistan; Somalia; Green Beret
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The Woman Who Disappeared Twice
CNN en español investigates the disappearances of political dissidents in Argentina between 1976 and 1983. They follow the case of a woman whose body was thrown from an airplane into a river, where it was found by fishermen. Local officials said the body could not be identified, but that was not the case. CNN tracked down the victims family, one among thousands who disappeared in that bloody time.
Tags: TAPE; TRANSCRIPT; Latin America; Cold War; disappearances; missing persons; Operation Condor; Dirty War; Argentina; dictatorship; Uruguay
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Plan for Colombia
The Express-News looks at the United States' efforts to eradicate drug trade in Colombia by spending $1.3 billion on army operations aiming to destroy coca fields. The series questions the effectiveness of the plan. Coca farmers account for the majority of the population in Columbia, and the project would be more successful, if they were provided some alternatives. The reporter examines how the drug war combines with the civil war that has been going on for decades, and finds "that it's unlikely that any significant change will come in Colombia's status as a drug exporter until the civil war is ended."
Tags: kidnapping; assassinations; guerrillas; military; Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC); right-wing militia; international politics; foreign affairs; crime; violence; drug trafficking; cocaine; heroin; Latin America; human rights
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Drama in three acts
A Polish Public Television investigative report exposes the scams of corrupt Polish politicians in the beginning of the 90s. The series reveals that most of the key players are "still active and herald the idea of "clean hands in politics." The major finding is that -- with the support of those in power -- huge amount of public money has been illegally transferred to private pockets and enterprises. The investigation focuses specifically on the embezzlement of money from the Foreign Debt Fund, an institution created to manage the debt of the country to foreign creditors. The reporting took place both in Poland and Venezuela, as one of the main players lives in Latin America.
Tags: intelligence; money and politics; fraud; money laundering; counter espionage; international reporting; business
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The Pros & Cons of Free Trade
Extra examines opinions in favor and against the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA), the extension of the North American Free Trade Agreement, which is supposed to spread democracy to the countries in Latin America by lowering tariffs and opening their markets. The article reports on the ongoing negotiations among the 34 countries that will sign the agreement. The story asks the question, "Will President Bush insist on high labor and environmental standards like his predecessor, and if not, will his constituents make him?"
Tags: economics; GATT; business; tariffs; foreign affairs; unions; labor; subsidies