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 "on-line" ...
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No-Show Casket
An invesitgation of Batesville Casket Company, an on-line business that has no permission to sell certain brand-name caskets who has a history of frauding customers, never delivering caskets and runnning off with customer's money.
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Who's in the Driver's Seat at Motor Vehicles
The online traffic school, lowestpricetrafficschool.com, had exclusive advertisement in Florida's Official Driver's Handbook through the Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles department. The traffic school was also in charge of printing the booklet, offering it free on line but charging taxpayers for shipping. WTVT found that Fred Dickinson's, the executive director of the DHSMV, wife was a lobbyist for the National Safety Commission which operates the traffic school. She later resigned her position when Gov. Jeb Bush criticized the Dickinsons for the conflict of interest.
Tags: motor vehicles; conflict of interest; state government; National Safety Commission; Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles; traffic schools; lobbying; Fred Dickinson; Sherry Dickinson; driver's handbook
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Mayor's Aide Accused of Dirty Tricks
"Over the past four years, we've reported so many stories of ineffective government, mismanagement; and corruption that San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom refuses to speak with us for any report. In January, we learned that his Press Officer was taking it a step further- going on-line under fake names and blasting us on local blogs, including our own website. This story gave viewers an insight into the resistance all investigative reporters sometimes face, and the difficulty of pursuing hard-hitting stories."
Tags: city government; mayor; web site; blogs; identity; Gavin Newsom; San Francisco
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The Foundation
This series focused on a little-known network of privately run government contractors called "quality improvement organizations," or QIOs, that collectively spend about 300 million tax dollars annually. This story focused on an Iowa QIO, but included an on-line report that detailed the spending and complain investigations at every other QIO in America. That report was based on a review of more than 200 public documents.
Tags: tax dollars; state government; oversight; Medicare
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Cheater's Haven
"The topic of this investigation is on-line education and how it's being abused by athletes in order to gain NCAA eligibility. Seeking shortcuts to normal academic progress or to compensate for previous poor academic work, athletes have made Brigham Young University's on-line program a favored destination for both college and high school students."
Tags: online education; Brigham Young University; NCAA; athletes; acedemics
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Cybercrime Inc.
With increased on-line banking and money transactions comes an increase in cyber-crime. This comes from putting more emphasis on user convenience instead of security. Part of the increase in cyber-crime is also due to meth traffickers, adept at operating localized theft rings, joining forces with global cyber-crime rings. Also some groups, such as those in Russia, are making ordinary citizens unknowing mules to carry out reshipment and money laundering schemes. Law enforcement has been spotty due to cross-jurisdictional hurdles.
Tags: cyber crime; money laundering; meth; on-line banking; computer security; cyber crime rings; law enforcement
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The Mercury Menace
The reporters investigated supermarkets throughout the Chicago area that routinely sell seafood highly contaminated with mercury, a toxic metal that can cause learning disabilities in children and neurological problems in adults. The Tribune commissioned mercury testing of random samples of fish from markets across Chicago.
Tags: mercury; fish; seafood; toxic; food regulations; learning disabilities; FDA
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The dangers of on-line drugs
The authors investigated the safety of ordering prescription drugs on-line. They found that though it was cheaper the buyers weren't always getting what they paid for.
Tags: on-line; prescription drugs; internet; generic brand
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"Toxic Traces"
Minnesota Public Radio investigated the widespread environmental presence of chemicals once used to make Scotchguard. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency was not very aggressive in pursuing the matter, an attitude that is possibly explained by the fact that the commissioner of the agency was at one time an environmental manager for 3M. MPR laid out for the public, both by broadcast and on-line, what was behind the conflicting agendas of the government, 3M and the public.
Tags: pollution; toxic waste; 3M; state government; clean water; whistleblower
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"Illegal...And Thriving"
PartyGaming Inc., a British company that operates on-line gambling sites, is at the vanguard of a global goldrush. Even though 90 percent of PartyGaming's revenues come from the U.S., and the Justice Department swears that online gambling is 100 percent illegal, nothing has been done to stop the trend. And with billions of dollars of potential revenues involved, land-based U.S. casinos are eager to get a piece of the on-line action.
Tags: Internet gaming; Internet gambling; IPO's; offshore companies; DOJ