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 "tiles" ...
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Airport Bacteria
KGTV sampled and tested the airport carpet and tile to find out just what passengers are exposed to in the security screening areas of Phoenix, Las Vegas and San Diego.
Tags: airports; bacteria; security screening; germs;
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Dangerous Sealant
Based on a tip from a viewer, KCNC investigated the toxicity of a bathroom tile sealant called Tile Perfect Stand 'N Seal. They found numerous complaints from across the country about the sealant making people ill. The safety labels on the cans did not match the sealant producer's internal documents about product safety. The producer, called Roanoke Companies, announced a recall of 300,000 cans of sealant on the day the story aired.
Tags: poison; hazardous materials; household chemicals; sealant; Tile Perfect; product recall
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Why Roofs Failed: Lessons of Two Hurricanes
Following the four hurricanes that hit Florida in 2004, this investigative team probed into why damage to homes was so significant despite seemingly high building codes. Politicians took 10 years to enact these stricter codes, meaning all homes built within that period were inadequately prepared for hurricanes. The most common type of damage was that done to roofs. This investigation found roofing tiles were not fit for Florida housetops. A flaw existed even in the brand new building codes: inland homes were not held to the same standards as those on the coast. However, these 2004 hurricanes proved damage was comparable no matter how close homes were to the water.
Tags: hurricane; wind; rain; weather; damage; building code; home; house; roof; shingle
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The Columbia Disaster
These stories are about the Columbia space shuttle accident. They include pieces on the frequency and severity of foam impacts on previous shuttles;a story that Columbia mission engineers had been worried about possible damage by the foam strike but had been dismissed by their superiors; reporting on the behind-the-scenes debate over whether to seek imagery of the damage and about the inadequacies of the efforts to try to predict damage; a story on how accident investigating board members were being paid by NASA in order to get around federal-open meeting requirements; and a look at 6 other chronic shuttle problems that have been accepted as "normal" by NASA engineers, just as foam was accepted.
Tags: Columbia Space Shuttle; NASA; accident investigation; foam; Columbia mission; NASA engineers; Columbia Accident Investigation Board; engineering reports; astronauts; Mission Control; Challenger; Edwards Air Force Base; Atlantis; Endeavor; Discovery; Marshall Space Flight Center; insulation; debris; tiles; United Space Alliance; wing failure
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Frittered Away: Some Workers Find Retirement Nest Eggs Full of Strange Assets. Coins, parking lots, stores, and artwork turn up; loses can be serious. Employers resist a change.
Article explains how some companies are using 401(k) plans in ways that employees never intended. As a result, employees of some companies which have gone bankrupt (like Color Tile) end up having nothing left in their 401(k) plan because the company misused their retirement funds. This story also includes a "side-bar" story entitled "Color Tile's 401(k) Plan Runs Aground: Employees regret not being vigilant." This supplemental article explains what went wrong with Color Tile's 401 (k) plan, and how people can investigate their own 401 (k) plans to ensure the same thing doesn't happen to them.
Tags: 401 (k); 401K; Color Tile; retirement; funds; nest egg; employment; money; funds; bankrupt; bankruptcy; employees; workers
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The Art of Deception
A Seattle Times investigation revealed that a seemingly reputable Asian antiques dealer neighboring some of Seattle’s most respected art galleries in the touristy Pioneer Square peddles blatantly fake ceramic tiles, vases and jars worth only a fraction of their selling price. Fraudulent artifacts sold for thousands of dollars is nothing new in the Asian art world, but this gallery, Thesaurus Fine Arts, is unique because their pieces, unlike many fakes, are purportedly backed by scientific evaluation. Company papers list Thesaurus employees as officers, but The Times learned that the gallery is secretly owned and operated by Steven Cheung, a wealthy Hong Kong-born U.S. citizen with homes in Seattle, Hong Kong and Shanghai. He’s an internationally known economist who has been a candidate for the Nobel Prize in economy. The Times discovered that Cheung is connected to both the TL labs that had certified the teapot and tile -- and that the IRS is investigating him for tax fraud.
Tags: art; Asian; antiques; consumer fraud; Seattle; Thesaurus Fine Arts; Steven Cheung; thermoluminescence; TL; Hong Kong University; University of Washington; IRS; Justice Department; Oxford; Daybreak
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No title (id: 10901)
The Seattle Times investigates faulty construction at the Seattle Mariner's King Dome. Concrete ceiling tiles came loose in 1988, but stadium officials ignored the problem and covered it up. In 1994, four heavy ceiling tiles crashed into the stands almost hurting some fans, 1994.
Tags: WA Nalder Guillen CHA Construction Flaw Cover-up at Mariner's King Dome; 25 pgs.
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No title (id: 6472)
WRC-TV (Washington, D.C.) commissions a study showing how normal maintanance on asbestos floor tiles can release the carcinogen at dangerous levels, Nov. 27 - 29, 1989.
Tags: TAPE; Thompson EPA