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 "relief aid" ...
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Divine Intervention: U.S. AIDS Policy
"The Center’s year-long investigation revealed how rigid rules and funding earmarks of President's Bush $15-billion initiative to fight HIV/AIDS abroad- the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief- hinder effective HIV programming and frustrate countries struggling with the pandemic."
Tags: AIDS; HIV; South Africa; PEPFAR; Ethiopia; Haiti; condoms; education; generic drugs; brand name drugs
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Katrina Crime: Perceived or Real?
These stories showed that many months of steep declines in major violent crime in San Antonio ended within weeks of the arrival of Katrina evacuees and began a steady double digit climb in homicide, aggravated robbery and a variety of other violent crime categories. The stories pointed out that, while it was impossible to conclusively link crime to evacuees, this correlation was almost identical to that which was successfully cited by Houston in funding requests to FEMA and other agencies. The series identified crime hotspots in and around a number of resettlement areas and portrayed the feelings experiences of evacuees, native neighbors and business owners in these areas.
Tags: Hurricane Katrina; evacuees; natural disaster; relief aid; FEMA; crime; crime data; mapping; homicide reports; computer-assisted reporting
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FEMA: A Legacy of Waste
Hurricane Katrina is only the latest episode in a history of bungling and fraud associated with FEMA. The Sun-Sentinel spent nearly a year studying FEMA's work in Miami-Dade County and discovered fraud and waste in the aftermath of Hurricane Frances. They found at least $330 million of FEMA money poured into communities that suffered no damage, as well as FEMA inspectors with criminal records, FEMA funds used for twice as many funerals as official deaths, and many other instances of fraud and waste.
Tags: FEMA; federal funds; federal government; disaster aid; Hurricane Frances; Homeland Security; fraud; hurricanes; disaster relief
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FEMA's Inspectors Included Criminals
In a continuing investigation of misapplied FEMA funds following the 2004 hurricanes that hit Florida, the Sun-Sentinel found nearly 25 percent of government damage inspectors had criminal records for "embezzlement, drug dealing and robbery," among other crimes. These inspectors were the government's defense against accusations of fraud when Miami-Dade received $31 million in relief even though hurricane-force winds did not strike the county.
Tags: FEMA; hurricane relief; Miami-Dade; disaster aid; fraud
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Cashing in on Disaster
This investigation started with the observation that many more Floridians were receiving disaster relief funds than were actually affected by the 2004 storms. The story went on to reveal that some relatively unaffected parts of Florida received even more aid than areas that took a direct hit. Residents of Miami-Dade County got more than $21 million, though the actual damage done there was equivalent to a bad thunderstorm. Reporters found that FEMA inspectors often received inadequate training. Results from the story include a state legislative investigation into the hurricane payments and even involvement from the federal Department of Homeland Security.
Tags: FOIA; hurricane; Federal Emergency Management Agency; FEMA; fraud; disaster relief; inspector; homeland security
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Send Bohos, Nuts & Addicts. How bizarre coalition of Philadelphia misfits confronted the drug lobby and forced the U.S. government to charge the way it thinks about AIDS.
ACT UP Philadelphia has been waging a fierce campaign to focus more attention on the AIDS pandemic. The organization is battling to get full funding for an international AIDS relief fund.
Tags: Act Up; Philadelphia; addicts; drugs
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Silence=Relief: Do Gays in the Military Prefer the Closet?
Reporter Andrew Webb looks into the military's "don't ask, don't tell policy", finding that many homosexuals in the military would not like it removed. "No one- no the gay activists, not Clinton or his aides- worked to find out if gay people in the military actually wanted what the would-be president and his gay backers wanted for them." Furthermore, "gay people in uniform are often reluctant to publicly acknowledge their sexuality. They fear repercussions ranging from discharge to physical violence, and many are extremely conflicted about their sexual orientation- especially those who didn't know or hadn't acknowledged it before entering the service." Ultimately, Webb says "this is a basic issue of human rights or morality. . . Getting rid of the ban on gays serving openly in the military is the morally correct thing to do. But the practical considerations must sometimes delay the pursuit of moral visions."
Tags: military; homosexuals; harassment; sexual orientation; human rights; gay bans
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Flooded With Generosity
The federal government poured $1 billion of disaster-relief aid into North Carolina after Hurricane Fran, the most destructive storm in state history. Whitlock's investigation documented how millions of dollars were wasted on foolish projects along the state's coastline.
Tags: None
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Fertile for Fraud
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that "Farmers routinely collect federal insurance and disaster payments on crops prone to fail. In the process, taxpayers are stuck with a steep price tag for fraud and abuse - well over $100 million a year...(as result of) the failures of the federal government's system for managing agricultural risk; the system is easily corrupted and covers marginal farms, where crops fail year after year. Congress' decade-long expansion of the system has opened a Pandora's box of federal crop payments that defy common sense, waste hundreds of millions of taxpayers' dollars and subvert the honest living for which farmers are admired..."