Texas watchdog journalism roundup for Oct. 21, 2018

Wage theft on the Texas border

Welcome to the latest installment of the Texas watchdog journalism roundup, a showcase of investigative stories that uncover hidden facts, hold officials accountable and demonstrate why journalism matters.

Trapped between the Rio Grande and border checkpoints, Sandro Garcia Moreno is among thousands of undocumented immigrants being ripped off by unscrupulous employers. The San Antonio Express-News analyzed a database of federal wage-theft investigations and found the Rio Grande Valley is a prolific source of worker complaints. Read more …

Must reads: Texas watchdog journalism roundup for August 1, 2018

Iconic Village Apartment Fire in San Marcos, Texas

Welcome to the latest installment of the Texas watchdog journalism roundup, a showcase of hard-hitting investigative stories in Texas that uncovered hidden facts, held officials accountable and demonstrated why journalism matters.

Must reads: Texas watchdog journalism roundup for June 2, 2018

Hugo Rodriguez

Welcome to the latest installment of the Texas watchdog journalism roundup, a series that showcases hard-hitting investigative stories in Texas that uncover hidden facts, hold officials accountable and demonstrate why journalism matters. Read more …

Must reads: Texas watchdog journalism roundup for April 9, 2018

Schlitterbahn slide kills boy

Welcome to the latest installment of the Texas watchdog journalism roundup, a series that showcases hard-hitting investigative stories in Texas that uncover hidden facts, hold officials accountable and demonstrate why journalism matters. Read more …

Must reads: Texas watchdog journalism roundup for Jan. 21, 2018

Eagle Ford Shale Water Usage Increasing

If it seems like facts no longer matter in politics, there’s a sliver of good news:

Investigative journalists are still writing powerful, evidence-based stories that help us understand a complicated world.

Here are the latest examples of watchdog stories in Texas that show why facts still matter

Bigger wells, but more water | San Antonio Express-News

“Shale wells are swallowing twice as much water as they did a few years ago — around 10 million gallons each, or about 15 Olympic-sized swimming pools.” Read more …

Must reads: Texas watchdog journalism roundup for Dec. 3, 2017

View from the Tower of the Americas in San Antonio, Texas

The latest investigative stories in Texas that uncovered hidden facts and held officials accountable:

Centro San Antonio CEO quits amid allegations of embezzlement by staffer | The San Antonio Express-News

A former employee of Centro San Antonio, the nonprofit organization focused on building a “more prosperous downtown,” is accused of embezzling $175,000 by fabricating emails and audits and using an accomplice who posed as an auditor to cover the theft. In response to the discovery, Pat DiGiovanni, Centro’s president and CEO, quit last week. Read more …

Must reads: Texas watchdog journalism roundup for Nov. 19, 2017

Press conference at Sutherland Springs

The latest investigative stories in Texas that uncovered hidden facts and held officials accountable:

Apple served with search warrant in Sutherland Springs shooting | The San Antonio Express-News

Texas Rangers investigating the mass shooting in Sutherland Springs have served a search warrant on Silicon Valley giant Apple Inc. and are seeking digital photos, messages, documents and other types of data that might have been stored by gunman Devin Patrick Kelley, who was found with an iPhone after he killed himself. Read more …

Must reads: Texas watchdog journalism roundup for Oct. 29, 2017

The Texas Tribune investigates furniture rental companies

The latest investigative stories in Texas that uncovered hidden facts and held officials accountable:

How renting furniture in Texas can land you in jail | The Texas Tribune

“Rental companies can avail themselves of a little-known law written decades ago by the rental industry lobby — in Texas and in many other states — that can turn a dispute over a love seat or big screen TV into a criminal offense report, a trip to jail and even felony theft charges.” Read more …