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 "devastation" ...
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The Deadliest Place in Mexico
The Juarez Valley, a narrow corridor of green farmland carved from the Chihuahuan desert along the Rio Grande, was once known for its cotton, which rivaled Egypt’s. But that was before the Juarez cartel moved in to set up a lucrative drug smuggling trade. “The Deadliest Place in Mexico” explores untold aspects of Mexico’s drug war as it has played out in the small farming communities of this valley. The violence began in 2008, when the Sinaloa cartel moved in to take over the Juarez cartel’s turf. The Mexican government sent in the military to quell the violence — but instead the murder rate exploded. While the bloodshed in the nearby City of Juarez attracted widespread media attention, the violence spilling into the rural Juarez Valley received far less, eve as the killings began to escalate in brutal ways. Community advocates, elected officials, even police officers were shot down in the streets. Several residents were stabbed in the face with ice picks. By 2009, the valley, with a population of 20,000, had a murder rate six times higher than Juarez itself. Newspapers began to call the rural farming region the “Valley of Death.” This investigation uses extensive Freedom of Information Act requests, court documents, and difficult-to-obtain interviews in Spanish and English with current and former Juarez Valley residents, Mexican officials, narcotraffickers and U.S. and Mexican law enforcement officials, to reveal that many of these shocking deaths were perpetrated with the participation of Mexican authorities. It shows scenes of devastation — households where six members of a single family were killed, without a single police investigation. It uncovers targeted killings by masked gunmen of community activists and innocent residents for speaking out against violence and repression facilitated by corrupt military and government officials. And it gathers multiple witnesses who describe soldiers themselves, working in league with the Sinaloa cartel, perpetrating violence against civilians. "The cemeteries are all full. There isn't anywhere left to bury the bodies," one former resident said. "You'll find nothing there but ghost towns and soldiers."
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Led by an innocent into a web of evil
The investigation chronicles the tireless efforts of Boston federal agents who followed the trail of a single photo of a distraught toddler erroneously sent to them by a Boston-area man obsessed with child pornography. It ended with the arrests of more than 42 men from California to Mexico and the discovery of more than 140 exploited children, one of them only days old. In the telling, staff writer Jenifer B. McKim deftly details the exploding worldwide problem of child pornography, the new and innovative efforts made by investigators to rescue children and track down criminals, and the devastating toll that child porn takes on victims and families.
Tags: child porn; pornography; sex abuse; children
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Empty-desk epidemic
For years, Chicago officials published upbeat statistics that masked a crisis in the city's schools: Nearly 32,000 of the city's K-8 grade students — or roughly 1 in 8 —miss a month or more of class per year, while others simply vanish from school without a trace. This devastating pattern of absenteeism, which disproportionately affects African-Americans and children with disabilities, came to light only after Chicago Tribune reporters dug it out during a years-long FOIA battle to obtain internal district data.
Tags: K-12 education; schools; absenteesim; Chicago; statistics manipulation
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Plunder in the Pacific
"Plunder in the Pacific," an eight-country investigation, revealed how Asian, European and Latin American fleets have devastated what was once one of the world’s great fish stocks. Jack mackerel in the South Pacific has decreased from around 30 million tons to less than three tons in just two decades. We found that national interests and geopolitical rivalry for six years blocked efforts to ratify a regional fisheries management organization that could impose binding regulations to rescue jack mackerel from further collapse. Bound only by voluntary restrictions, fleets competed in what amounted to a free-for-all in no man’s water.
Tags: Pacific; ocean resources; fisheries
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House of Horrors
This series follows the devastating facts of the death of a 10-year-old girl and the abuse of her twin brother and how child welfare workers failed to notice the warning signs until it was too late.
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Do It Yourself Plastic Surgery
Prescription strength chemicals and other procedures should not be done at home without a doctor. A number of websites are selling such products at a discount rate and many people are buying them and facing devastating consequences. These products are unapproved and experts say using these can result in “blindness, paralysis, or death”.
Tags: Botox; syringes; prescriptions; drugs; money; medications; medicine; Federal Drug Administration (FDA); skin
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Witness to War
This first-hand account of conflict in region of Afghanistan and Pakistan reveals how horrific living and working in this region can be. This investigation reveals the “human cost of conflict, reality of life in refugee camps, examine how children are impacted by the instability, and discuss whether there’s any hope for the future”.
Tags: documentary; danger; devastation; distrust; civil war; war on terror; media; violence; journalists; death; disease; global issues; oppression
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"Defective Drywall Series: Made in the U.S.A.?"
An investigation into faulty drywall arose after "devastating" structural damage occurred in homes across the U.S. Health concerns were also called into questions as some of the drywall proved to be toxic. At first Chinese produced drywall was blamed, but further in-depth investigation revealed that in was American made drywall that was being produced at a low, almost dangerous quality.
Tags: Chinese drywall; white mineral gypsum; plaster; Georgia Pacific; National Sypsum
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Goldman Sachs: Low Road to High Finance
After the collapse of the financial market in the United States, there were many key components which played a large role in the devastation to many Americans. These key components mainly focus on major financial institutions, which played a large role in manipulating the mortgage and mortgage security markets. Furthermore, the institutions that should be keeping them honest, failed to do so.
Tags: Nation's financial sector; financial institutions; mortgage; market; American International Group (AIG); Federal Reserve Bank of New York; Moody's; Securities and Exchange Commission; Citigroup, Inc.; Bank of America Corp.
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Teen Drinking Series
This series shows the devastating impact of "teen related driving deaths" in the DC suburbs, where 11 people were killed in the summer and fall of 2004. Alcohol, driver inexperience and fast cars are all factors in the epidemic. The series focuses on the dangerous behavior teens embark on, the victims of teen driving deaths and legislation proposed to place more restrictions on teen drivers.
Tags: driving; drivers license; automobile; accidents; car wrecks; DUI; DWI; underage drinking; handheld cameras; DV camera; police ride-along; visual story telling