This is the second article in a two-part series on lax ethics rules in the Indiana State Legislature. Both articles come from a joint investigation between the Indiana Environmental Reporter and the Arnolt Center for Investigative Journalism that shows how some Indiana lawmakers stood to benefit financially from environmental legislation they introduced or supported. Click here for the article.
“Lake Monroe is a reservoir, and all reservoirs eventually fill up,” says Michelle Cohen, executive director of Lake Monroe Water Fund. But, she adds, those who rely on the lake for drinking water, recreation, and other uses have the power to extend its life as long as possible. Writer Michael G. Glab takes a deep dive into the health of Lake Monroe. Click here for his report for Deep Dive: WFHB & Limestone Post Investigate.
Jill Bond, news director for The Herald-Times, says Monroe County does not have to become a news desert. “We can regain local control of access to information about our community,” she says. For starters, Bond created a local news fund at the Community Foundation and is auctioning more than 1,000 books of newspapers, spanning about 100 years, to support the fund. Click here to read Jill Bond’s column.
The Arnolt Center for Investigative Journalism and the Indiana Environmental Reporter reviewed statements of economic interest filed in 2022 by Indiana’s state lawmakers. They found more than 100 bills enacted from 2019 to 2022 that benefit industries the authors have ties to, creating at least the appearance of a conflict of interest. Click here to read their findings.
Indiana’s electricity comes primarily from coal, natural gas, and a growing renewables market. The transition to renewables, though, is not without problems, and the grid operators, regulators, and Indiana legislators are at odds with how to handle it. Rebecca Hill takes an in-depth look at Indiana’s power structure, as part of Deep Dive: WFHB & Limestone Post Investigate. Click here to read about the transition of Indiana's energy landscape.
Bloomington and Monroe County have already received their first payments from the first opioid settlement, and health providers wonder where the money will go. In this article for the series “Deep Dive: WFHB & Limestone Post Investigate,” Rebecca Hill interviewed state and local officials to report on the issue and its possible solutions. Click here for the article.
While public schools in Indiana are facing key policy and budgetary challenges, the Orange County public school districts in southern Indiana are working to overcome the challenges children face, via unique initiatives and innovative health-care partnerships, writes Keri Jean Miksza, an advocate with the Indiana Coalition for Public Education–Monroe County. Click here to read Keri’s article.
In part 2 of our housing series, Steve Hinnefeld reports on how housing advocates and officials are addressing the affordable housing problem in Bloomington and Monroe County. This series is part of “Deep Dive: WFHB & Limestone Post Investigate,” a collaboration between WFHB Community Radio and Limestone Post. Click here for the Steve’s housing report and to learn more about Deep Dive.
Primary elections take place across Indiana this year on May 2, with early voting in Monroe County beginning on April 4. As Debora Shaw, spokesperson for the League of Women Voters of Bloomington–Monroe County, writes in this Voting Guide, local primary races may decide the eventual winner of the general election in November. Click here to read the Guide.
This article on local housing issues is our first in a series, called “Deep Dive: WFHB & Limestone Post Investigate,” a collaboration between WFHB Community Radio and Limestone Post, made possible by a grant from the Community Foundation of Bloomington and Monroe County. This is part 1 of 2 in journalist Steve Hinnefeld’s report on housing. Click here to read the article and learn more about Deep Dive.
Advocates say electric grid operators in the Great Lakes region need to update their planning process to better prepare for extreme weather that is becoming more common, and that more transmission lines can help lessen the risk of blackouts. This report is part of a collaborative series from several publications examining climate resilience across the Great Lakes region. Click here to read the article.
The 2022 midterm election season is prime time for misinformation and disinformation on social media. Three social media experts, including Scott Shackelford, professor of Business Law and Ethics at Indiana University, evaluate Facebook, TikTok, Twitter, and YouTube on their ability to handle the problem. This article first appeared in The Conversation and is republished with permission. Click here to see who got a failing grade.
