Investigative Journalism Resource

Investigating the Workplace

2008-10-07T11:34:00.002-05:00

Many scandals occur in the labor industry that can be related to business and other areas of investigative reporting. Workplace Fairness is a website that features some information that should be known when investigating the workplace. It features workers' rights when it comes to things like wages, health care, unions and workplace safety.

One area that is extremely controversial but very prominent is the child labor issue. IREWOC stands for International Research on Working Children and their website features articles and research on the child labor scandal and can be useful in finding a story.

The U.S. Department of Labor features a lot of up-to-date statistics about labor unions including things like average earnings and under what characteristics workers are selected.

Investigating Education

2008-10-07T11:12:00.002-05:00

A lot of focus has been put on providing a higher education and is becoming even more of an issue due to current political campaigning. The U.S. Department of Education has a great website that features many articles and laws that play into the education system. The website also features budgets and the federal role our government plays in education as well.

A good website I found that has a lot of articles and information on student loans and debt consolidation is on About.com is their Business School section. It has many articles that involve such things as student loan interest rates and top companies and grant resources that many students depend on to get through schooling. This information could be useful for finding out which companies are really helping students and which are hurting, for example

IRE.com has a great section of its website dedicated to investigative education articles that features many stories that could help you get started.

The National Center for Education website features a ton of statistics, tables and figures that can be used in finding a story as well.

Investigating Business

2008-10-06T23:42:00.002-05:00

A lot of greed and corruption occurs when it comes to making money, and the latest financial crisis that our country faces is a classic example. Understanding the business world is important, so Fox Business is a good place to start. You can track the market and can be helpful with making connections with certain companies and why they are going up or down.

MSNBC actually has a section of articles on business scandals. A lot of these scandals go under the radar and could be developed into a bigger story.

Many businesses contribute money to candidates during election time and it is important to understand who they are giving it to and what they are getting out of it. Again, Open Secrets is a great website for tracking these contributions and what their significance is.

Environmental Issues

2008-10-06T23:30:00.002-05:00

As global warming and greenhouse gases become more of an issue, environmental concerns have risen. There is much to be studied on environmental issues and things change everyday. The Council on Foreign Relations has a great section for environmental news in order to keep up with such things as climate change, energy security and pollution.

The Environmental Protection Agency, or the EPA, has a great section that displays laws and regulations that have been passed and followed. Knowing these regualtions could be important in this field of investigating to keep up with who is following and breaking the law.

A list of articles pertaining to the latest news and research on the environment can also be found here.

Investigating Politics

2008-10-02T14:48:00.004-05:00

The current presidential race has many twists and turns that could be accounted for many different reasons. It is important to look at all aspects of the current election and investigate what factors come into play more than others.

An important website when tracking current and past polls is Rasmussen Reports. Correlations can be found by looking at the polls and their relevance to current situations in politics, such as our financial problems or the popularity of the vice presidents.

OpenSecrets.org is a great website for tracking campaign contributions from the presidential race to all congressional races.

Getting Started:

2008-10-02T14:28:00.005-05:00

A nice starting website that is full of investigative writing is IRE, which stands for Investigative Reporters and Editors. This website is full of stories that investigate everything from campaign funds and politics to education and environmental concerns.

Another good place to start is Poynter.org in the section labeled Al's Morning Meetings. This column features many story ideas that can be localized or expanded on with more research for an intriguing story.

My E-Mail Address

2008-08-21T15:08:00.001-05:00

If you need to contact me, my e-mail is CardsOS01@msn.com