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 "conductors" ...
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Terror on the Tracks
"Terror on the Tracks" exposes major gaps in freight rail security. We spent months criss-crossing the state gathering undercover video of Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway trains carrying hazardous cargo. We found locomotives idling, unlocked, unmanned, unguarded - with the key, called a reverser, inside. The reverser makes the train move forward or backward on the track. The presence of the reverser would allow any intruder with basic knowledge to steal the train - potentially making them easy targets for terrorists. Our sources - current engineers and conductors working for BNSF with everything to lose by talking to us - say the trains are much more vulnerable than the company or the government is willing to admit. During our investigation we discovered trains had been stolen before - mostly by joy riders - all across the country.
Tags: freight rail security; terrorists; hazardous; cargo; engineers; conductors
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The Plight of the White-Tie Worker
This contest entry looks at the outrageous salaries of some of this country's top orchestra and symphony conductors and executives. In some cases, the conductors' salaries exceeded those of the organizations' nonprofit missions. In one example, Lorin Maazel, the conductor of the New York Philharmonic, reported a $2,280,000 salary, despite the fact that the organization was facing a $2 million deficit.
Tags: orchestra conductors and executives; New York Philharmonic; Chicago Symphony; Philadelphia Orchestra; Cleveland Orchestra; American Federation of Musicians
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Silicon Hell: High Tech's Toxic Toll
San Francisco Bay Guardian looks at the the health problems of workers in the computer industry. Reveals large computer companies are contaminating soil, air and water with hazardous chemicals.
Tags: computers; pollution; chemicals; factory workers; semi-conductors; OSHA; EPA Toxic Release Inventory Data; Hazardous Substance Database abstracts; San Jose sewage treatment plant records; brain cancer; California Health Department
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Danger on the Rails
The series examined why Union Pacific was having so many fatal and otherwise serious accidents. The dangerous situation continues despite the fact that the federal government has identified many of the factors that make modern railroading unsafe. The stories show that Union Pacific was handling unprecedented amounts of freight with fewer workers. Engineers and conductors were forced to work 70 to 80 hour weeks, often in irregular shifts. The train dispatchers were overworked and not allowed to familiarize themselves with the track. Other basic safety measures, like brake tests, were being ignored. The series also addressed why Union Pacific's operations were plagued by gridlock and showed cost saving moves brought out in their plan to merge with Southern Pacific.
Tags: trains
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No title (id: 2759)
Reporter Dispatch (White Plains, N.Y.) looks into the excess labor costs on the Metro-North Commuter Railroad; reporter finds one conductor on the line makes more than the railroad president, Nov. 12, 1984.