Investigative Journalist in Houston, Texas
Interesting letter-to-the-editor today in the San Antonio Express-News written by Linnea Schlobohm, who sums up one of the main themes of this blog better than I ever could: After reading Brian Chasnoff’s beautifully crafted story on the San Antonio River, “Paradise Lost to Progress” (Front Page, Sept. 6), I remembered a recent TV comment predicting …
Two years ago, on the anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, my colleagues Karisa King and Scott Stroud wrote a story that went beyond the platitudes of politicians and pundits. Karisa and Scott checked to see if Texas was actually safer after receiving more than a billion dollars in Homeland Security grant money: …
During the hottest summer in recorded history, many San Antonio residents turned off their sprinklers and watched their lawns turn the color of hay as they followed water restrictions enacted by the San Antonio Water System. But what did SAWS require of businesses that consume millions of gallons of water in a single month? While …
Jay Rosen at PressThink came up with a funny tweet last week: It’s a clever way of pointing out that journalists are spending way too much time on stories that people can get anywhere — for free — on the Internet. The lesson here is that the media need to stop making so many snowmen …
Mindy McAdams compiled 15 blog posts into a single pdf file to create a great primer about blogging, videos, pictures, podcasting — and why you ought to be learning it all. McAdams wrote this guide for journalists but it’s useful for anyone who wants to tell stories in the multimedia world and make connections with …
Express-News Reporter Scott Huddleston, who’s been covering the turmoil within the Daughters of the Republic of Texas, wrote a follow-up story about a discussion to prohibit the nonprofit’s employees from talking to the media — even after the employees no longer work for the group: Read more: How much did it cost to save the …
What others are saying about watchdog journalism: Nieman Journalism Lab: How much money did it cost for a 13,000-word article investigating patient deaths at a New Orleans hospital during Katrina? Answer: A lot. Try six figures. Street Roots: Interview with Harper’s editor Ken Silverstein about the state of investigative journalism. “I don’t know where the …
Kiddie Park, the troubled children’s attraction that I wrote about in June, is under new ownership. Reporter Elizabeth Allen covered the reopening yesterday of the remodeled park. There’s also a neat slideshow by photographer Lisa Krantz of kids having a blast. The decades-old rollercoaster, which suffered structural failures on at least two occasions and knocked …
Have you heard of the nuclear accident at the SL-1 military facility that killed three men in 1961? Some readers of the San Antonio Express-News know about it. And today they questioned claims by nuclear plant owner CPS Energy that no one has ever been harmed by operations at a nuclear plant in the United …
Ben Popken and Meg Marco at the Consumerist wrote a 3,500-word muckraking blog post examining the business practices of Cash4Gold, the company that pays “top dollar” for your unwanted gold trinkets. The company’s pitch has aired in commercials nationwide — including during the Super Bowl. Blogs are often viewed as venues that pilfer and riff …