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Paper Trail

ProPublica

Investigative reporters at ProPublica chase down evidence of wrongdoing and bring it to light. That evidence can be on paper — or on thumb drives, in secret recordings, from conversations with whistleblowers. Each episode, you’ll ride along as we talk to reporters and their sources, uncover hidden facts and show you the receipts. When we publish what we find, things can change. Laws are passed, corrupt leaders fall, innocent people walk out of prison and sometimes a life is even saved. Investigative reporter Jessica Lussenhop is your guide. 

Support our journalism by donating at propublica.org/donate.

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  • 17 episodes
  • fortnightly
  • Avg 36 min
  • English

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Episodes 17

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  • Thursday · 34 min

    Robots on Fire: The Army’s $500 Million Factory Fiasco

    When Ukraine urgently needed artillery, the U.S. Army contracted defense industry giant General Dynamics to set up a new plant to manufacture shell bodies, paying the company $533 million of taxpayer money. But workers inside the factory told ProPublica defense reporter Jesse Coburn that they watched piece after piece of equipment fail in spectacular ways. Jesse takes us inside the factory fiasco and investigates what this botched project tells us about how the most expensive military budget in the world has a record filled with disappointing results. Read the original reporting here: https://www.propublica.org/article/general-dynamics-artillery-factory-failed Contact Jesse Coburn here. Support our journalism by donating at propublica.org/donate.

  • October 29 · 34 min

    Inside Trump’s Futile Hunt for Noncitizen Voters

    President Donald Trump has claimed that hundreds of thousands of people who are not U.S. citizens have been illegally voting in our federal elections, tipping the scales for Democrats. If there was massive fraud, reporters at ProPublica wanted to uncover it. So they followed along as federal investigators set out to find and prosecute these voters. How many were there, really? Read the original reporting here: https://www.propublica.org/article/noncitizen-voting-trump-homeland-security-investigations Support our journalism by donating at propublica.org/donate.

  • October 15 · 44 min

    Susan Collins and the Case of the Disappearing FBI Probe

    When the Trump administration shut down an elite FBI anti-corruption unit, investigations in progress got shelved. ProPublica reporters learned details of one of these: The CEO of a naval technology company alleged that he had bribed politicians, including Sen. Susan Collins. If he was telling the truth, his story provided a road map to how corruption really works in Washington, D.C. But the CEO was in prison for fraud, and Collins claimed she’d been cleared by the FBI. Could anything he said be true? Read the original reporting here: https://www.propublica.org/article/fbi-susan-collins-navatek-campaign-donations-investigation Contact the reporters here: Molly Redden, William Turton, Avi Asher-Schapiro Support our journalism by donating at propublica.org/donate.

  • October 1 · 36 min

    Who’s the Shadow President?

    Reporter Andy Kroll got his hands on secret tapes of a low-profile bureaucrat named Russell Vought. Turns out, as director of the Office of Management and Budget, he’s been quietly reshaping the federal government and commanding many of the second Trump administration’s biggest moves. Read the reporting here: https://www.propublica.org/article/russ-vought-trump-shadow-president-omb Support our journalism by donating at propublica.org/donate.

  • September 15 · 28 min

    Don Jr.’s Secret Wedding Guest

    While investigating the personal wealth of the president’s oldest son, investigative reporters Justin Elliott and Brett Murphy learned something almost too strange to be true: that a Russian oligarch closely allied with Vladimir Putin might have attended Donald Trump Jr.’s recent wedding in the Bahamas. Using a combination of social media and shoe-leather reporting, a team of ProPublica reporters soon realized that the guest list was just the tip of the iceberg. Read the reporting here: https://www.propublica.org/article/donald-trump-jr-wedding-bankrolled-russian-oligarch-umar-kremlev-putin Support our journalism by donating at propublica.org/donate.

  • September 10 · 44 min

    The Predatory Industry Behind MLB’s Dominican Superstar Pipeline

    Major League Baseball has built a pipeline in the Dominican Republic to scoop up young players with the potential of superstars like Red Sox hero David “Big Papi” Ortiz. But reporter Gus Garcia-Roberts uncovered how MLB has allowed a shadow industry to flourish — one that exploits young players and their families. In this episode, Gus brings us the story of Belfi Rivera, a supernaturally talented young Dominican player who experienced firsthand how the system is broken. Support our journalism by donating at propublica.org/donate.

  • September 3 · 44 min

    How the Planet-Altering Disaster of “Forever Chemicals” Was Kept Secret

    We now know harmful “forever chemicals” are likely in the bodies of most people on Earth. Decades ago, 3M knew that these chemicals had seeped into the public’s blood, but they kept that a secret. One 3M scientist helped reporter Sharon Lerner understand how they kept it quiet for so long. Reporter: Sharon Lerner Read More: https://www.propublica.org/article/3m-forever-chemicals-pfas-pfos-inside-story Support our journalism by donating at propublica.org/donate.

  • August 20 · 41 min

    The True Story of Why Immigration Agents Raided a Chicago Apartment Building

    In the middle of a September night last year, hundreds of agents stormed a Chicago apartment building, some rappelling down from a Black Hawk helicopter. They arrested 37 immigrants and claimed that two were confirmed members of the violent Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua — but then never identified any of them. Reporters Melissa Sanchez and Sebastian Rotella set out to track down the people arrested, and, along with a team of ProPublica reporters, they uncovered a very different story behind the raid. Read the original reporting here: https://www.propublica.org/article/chicago-venezuela-immigration-ice-raid-landlord-tren-de-aragua https://www.propublica.org/article/chicago-venezuela-immigration-ice-fbi-raids-no-criminal-charges Support our journalism by donating at propublica.org/donate.

  • August 6 · 45 min

    How “Forgive and Forget” Buried a Church’s Dark Secret

    Host Jessica Lussenhop received an unusual email: A prosecutor had major concerns about a case in Minnesota. A man had pleaded guilty to felony child sexual abuse, but it seemed like the church he belonged to, the Old Apostolic Lutheran Church, might have played a part in keeping the abuse quiet. Lussenhop teamed up with reporter Andy Mannix, and they discovered this case was just a symptom of a much bigger problem in the OALC. Read the original stories here: https://www.propublica.org/series/forgive-and-forget The National Sexual Assault Hotline can be reached at 800-656-HOPE (4673). If you have information about the OALC, contact Andy Mannix and Jeremy Kohler. Support our journalism by donating at propublica.org/donate.

  • June 25 · 38 min

    Should People Who Killed Their Abusers Walk Free?

    In Oklahoma, a group of mostly women serving long sentences for the murders of their abusive partners found an unlikely potential pathway to freedom. But that wasn’t the end of the story.

  • May 21 · 41 min

    How to Lose a Car in 15 Days

    Connecticut drivers kept reporting their cars were towed from their apartment complexes and then sold about two weeks later. Local reporters from The Connecticut Mirror teamed up with ProPublica to investigate.

  • May 14 · 38 min

    What the FDA Won’t Tell You About Your Medications

    For years, the Food and Drug Administration told the public that generic medications are just as safe and effective as the brand-name versions. But ProPublica reporters uncovered information that proves this isn’t always true.

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