Bethany Barnes

A video version would be very cool. And thanks for the Local Matters appreciation!

This exists! It’s called Local Matters. We are sponsored by @ire.org & @knightcolumbia.org. Local Matters is a free, weekly newsletter that is curated by myself and three other working journalists. This is our 8th year!

Anyone can sign up here: visitor.r20.constantcontact.com/manage/optin...

Yes!! You can sign back up here: visitor.r20.constantcontact.com/manage/optin...

An FBI agent killed a man after the Boston Marathon bombing. Oakland PD had helped hide his past A trove of internal police files provides a more complete accounting of the early episode that could have jeopardized Aaron McFarlane’s career before a high-profile shooting.

In 2000, rookie Oakland cop Aaron McFarland wrote report saying he arrested man w drugs.

His probable cause for stop: the man had crossed a solid red light.

The problem: At that time of night the lights blink red.

Katey & I obtained new records:

www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/arti...

Rebecca Woolington Named Deputy Editor of the Long-term Investigations Team

So thrilled to be joining The Post’s incredible investigations team as a deputy editor!

www.washingtonpost.com/pr/2025/08/1...

Rebecca Woolington Named Deputy Editor of the Long-term Investigations Team

Beyond thrilled to share that @rwoolington.bsky.social is joining The Washington Post's investigations team www.washingtonpost.com/pr/2025/08/1...

Middle School Cheerleaders Made a TikTok Video Portraying a School Shooting. They Were Charged With a Crime. Social videos, memes and retweets are becoming fodder for criminal charges in an era of heightened responses to student threats. Authorities say harsh punishment is necessary, but experts say the crac...

In rural Tennessee, 16 middle schoolers waiting for cheerleading practice to start made a TikTok video seeming to role play a school shooting.

The sheriff's office charged every single one with a crime.

www.propublica.org/article/soci...

Toxic metal found in L.A. air after fires. No one knows where it’s coming from A little-known and highly dangerous earth metal used to craft spaceships has been found in wildfire-ravaged homes and in the air in Los Angeles. Experts are shocked — and alarmed.

New:

Beryllium, a metal so toxic that breathing in a minuscule amount over time can cause a chronic & fatal illness, is being found in homes after the LA wildfires.

Nobody knows where it's coming from. Few are testing for it.

w/ @meganmunce.bsky.social @sfchronicle.com

tinyurl.com/4pkefbfx

Want to work for The Indy? Apply today. - The Nevada Independent The longevity of many of our team members says it all — The Indy is a great place to work and we’re proud to be doing meaningful work each and every day. Want to be part of it?

Passionate about doing great journalism to serve Nevadans? Join our team!

Co-Editors Michelle Rindels and Riley Snyder run down the three job openings we just posted: thenevadaindependent.com/article/want...

3 big California insurers accused of underinsuring L.A. fire survivors These allegations come after the Chronicle published an investigation into how flaws in software and the way insurance companies use it have left California homeowners underinsured after wildfires.

New from me and @meganmunce.bsky.social: Three major insurance companies have been accused of systematically under-insuring LA wildfire victims via flawed software, following our @sfchronicle.com investigation into the issue.

Gift link: tinyurl.com/4dmpcb25

‘Wildly underprepared’: National Guard troops seen sleeping on floors in exclusive photos State troops sent to Los Angeles by the Trump administration, without the approval of California Gov. Gavin Newsom, were expected to sleep on floors or outdoors, a source told the Chronicle.

EXCLUSIVE:

CA National Guard troops sent by Trump to LA amid immigration protests are sleeping on concrete floors. No fed funding for food, water, fuel, equipment or lodging.

Source: “Currently, there is no plan for where everyone is sleeping tonight”

www.sfchronicle.com/california/a...

I can't recommend this #ire25 class highly enough, taught by two of the best investigative storytellers in the biz!

What you’ll learn:

⚫️ Understanding the investigative narrative

⚫️ How to pitch

⚫️ Turning sources into characters

⚫️ Writing a scene

⚫️ Self-editing tips and techniques

⚫️ Organizing and writing a deeply reported investigative narrative

Image advertising the IRE master class mentioned in the post with headshots of the instructors

There are still spots in our Writing The Investigative Narrative class at @ire.org!

Come talk craft with me & @rwoolington.bsky.social ✨📰

Sign up here: www.ire.org/product/ire2...

Congratulations to Zachary Sampson, Shreya Vuttaluru, Bethany Barnes and the whole team at the Tampa Bay Times on winning this month's Sidney for their sweeping investigation of manatee deaths in Florida and the state's declining water quality.

Tampa Bay Times wins May Sidney for Sounding the Alarm About Florida’s Manatee Crisis Zachary Sampson, Shreya Vuttaluru and Bethany Barnes win the May Sidney Award for “Wasting Away,” a Tampa Bay Times investigation into the mass die-off of manatees in Florida. The manatee is a gentle ...

The Tampa Bay Times wins the May Sidney for their first-of-its-kind investigation into the water quality crisis that is killing the state’s manatees:

The story quoted here is an excellent read, and very sad. Manatees 💔

Wasting Away: Rampant pollution caused manatees to starve. Florida waters are getting worse. A Times analysis of millions of water samples found dangerous contamination across the state.

We owe these gentle creatures better: Rampant pollution caused manatees to starve. Florida waters are getting worse project.tampabay.com/investigatio...

Wasting Away: Rampant pollution caused manatees to starve. Florida waters are getting worse. A Times analysis of millions of water samples found dangerous contamination across the state.

ecological catastrophe in florida but no worries they are focusing on the real threats: fluoridated water

project.tampabay.com/investigatio...

Denver airport air traffic control went out for 6 minutes on Monday, report says Pilots flying into Denver International Airport on Monday couldn’t communicate with air traffic controllers for about six minutes after multiple radio transmitters failed, according to reporting fr…

Pilots flying into Denver International Airport on Monday couldn’t communicate with air traffic controllers for about six minutes after multiple radio transmitters failed, according to reporting from Denver7.

‘Really horrifying’: Missouri draws scorn over treatment of teen mom in foster care • Missouri Independent The story of a Missouri foster teen fighting to stay with her baby highlights systemic issues lawmakers say they've spent years trying to fix.

"If they had deliberately set out to emotionally torture three generations of a single family — Hailey, her aunt and, most important, her infant — they couldn’t have done a more thorough, efficient job of it than they did and continue to do in this case" missouriindependent.com/2025/05/05/h...

JOURNALISTS OF BLUESKY: I'm hiring!

We're looking for a talented reporter to join the Lexington Herald-Leader on the Bluegrass Politics team.

This position will cover state government — the legislature, Gov. Andy Beshear, agencies, etc. — and Kentucky politics.

Questions? Reach out to me.

Inside a high school newspaper’s fight for editorial independence The Alexandria, Virginia school board says it wants to “help students grow as journalists." Theogony's student journalists wonder who, exactly, the board is protecting.

“I’ve been doing this work for 34 years…and I don’t remember ever seeing a policy that names the principal, in writing, as the editor of the paper." www.niemanlab.org/2025/05/insi...

The Price of Remission When I was diagnosed with cancer, I set out to understand why a single pill of Revlimid cost the same as a new iPhone. I’ve covered high drug prices as a reporter for years. What I discovered shocked ...

I have written many healthcare stories, but never before have I written about my own health. I decided to do so after learning one of my drugs costs nearly $1,000 a pill and just 25 cents to make. What I found was an incredible story of discovery and exploitation. www.propublica.org/article/revl...

Stories like these are only possible because of our readers and the support of the @sfchronicle.com leadership. Now more than ever, investigative reporting is needed across the U.S. — esp. at the local level. Subscribe to one (or more) local news outlets so we can keep doing this work <3

Two reporters hug after learning they are finalists for the Pulitzer

The finalists for the 2025 Pulitzer Prize in National Reporting

Deeply grateful for the recognition from the @pulitzerprizes.bsky.social for @jennifergollan.bsky.social's and my investigation into deadly, reckless police pursuits. And especially grateful to the families who shared their stories w/ us.

Florida Republican doubles down on false claim that Florida has state OSHA Rep. Shane Abbott needs to take a look at a copy of the Florida Statutes that's less than 25 years old.

Florida Rep. Shane Abbott, R-DeFuniak Springs, once again falsely claimed that Florida has a state OSHA agency, in defense of a bill that would gut over a dozen worker protections for temp workers (really basic, but meaningful stuff) if passed. www.orlandoweekly.com/news/florida...

State Bar of California admits it used AI to develop exam questions, triggering new furor Using AI-developed questions written by non-legally-trained psychometricians represents 'an obvious conflict of interest,' critics say.

State Bar of California admits it used AI to develop exam questions, triggering new furor

A Florida nurse was stalked, then killed. Why didn’t police arrest her ex? She told officers he was armed and angry — but in domestic violence stalking cases, help often comes slowly, if at all.

Gutting detail in this expertly reported narrative by Lauren Peace, which shows how the system failed a woman desperately seeking help — as well as the cops trying to protect her.
www.tampabay.com/news/crime/2... @longreads.com @thesundaylongread.bsky.social

Brace yourselves, then read this story by
Lauren Peace. It's heart-wrenching but proud of @tampabaytimes.bsky.social for drawing attention to domestic violence. I hope it inspires lawmakers and police to figure out a better way to handle situations like this one. www.tampabay.com/news/crime/2...