Impact

Journalism in the Public Interest

Impact has been at the core of ProPublica’s mission since we launched in 2008, and it remains the principal yardstick for our success today. Our investigative journalism does more than expose wrongdoing and injustice; we intend for it to spark real-world change.

We’ve written a whole white paper on the topic, and examples of how our stories have produced such change — from the resignation of corrupt officials to the passage of new laws — are compiled in our annual reports. On this page, you’ll find our reporting on the impact of our work.

Featured Impact

The Supreme Court Has Adopted a Conduct Code, but Who Will Enforce It?

Experts say it is unclear if the new rules, which come after reporting by ProPublica and others revealed that justices had repeatedly failed to disclose gifts and travel from wealthy donors, would address the issues raised by the recent revelations.

by Joshua Kaplan, Justin Elliott, Brett Murphy and Alex Mierjeski

Dozens of Museums and Universities Pledge to Return Native American Remains. Few Have Funded the Effort.

Reporting from nearly 50 local newsrooms, based on ProPublica’s “Repatriation Project,” has sparked a wave of apologies and commitment to returning ancestral remains. But without funding for the work tribal nations could still face empty promises.

by Logan Jaffe, Mary Hudetz and Ash Ngu

Texas Legislature Closes Gun Background Check Loophole

State lawmakers passed a bill requiring courts to report involuntary mental health hospitalizations of juveniles for inclusion in the federal gun background check system. The law closes a gap revealed by ProPublica and The Texas Tribune in 2022.

by Jeremy Schwartz

Legislation to Support Stillbirth Prevention Heads to House After Unanimous Senate Approval

Following ProPublica’s reporting on the nation’s stillbirth crisis, a bipartisan group of senators reintroduced a bill to fund prevention. After the Senate passed the legislation unanimously in September, the House is expected to take it up next.

by Duaa Eldeib

More Impact

School District With Highest Student Arrest Rate in the Nation Agrees to Reform How It Disciplines Disabled Students

Following a ProPublica-Chicago Tribune investigation, the Garrison School in Illinois will change its disciplinary practices and provide services to those who missed class due to being arrested or sent to a seclusion room.

by Jennifer Smith Richards and Jodi S. Cohen

El Departamento de Justicia llega a un acuerdo con un Sheriff de Wisconsin para mejorar servicios para quienes no hablan inglés

Años después de que los agentes del Condado Dane culparan por error a un trabajador inmigrante por la muerte de su hijo en una granja lechera, la oficina del alguacil acordó reformas destinadas a garantizar que los residentes que hablan inglés limitado puedan obtener los servicios necesarios.

por Melissa Sanchez y Maryam Jameel

Judge Orders Guardianship Firm to Return Thousands It Took From an Elderly Woman for Services It Never Provided

New York Guardianship Services had billed Judith Zbiegniewicz $450 a month for court-ordered care, but a judge found the company provided “minimal services, if any” for years, including at the height of the coronavirus pandemic.

by Jake Pearson

DOJ Reaches Agreement With Wisconsin Sheriff’s Office to Improve Services for People Who Don’t Speak English

Years after deputies in Dane County, Wisconsin, mistakenly blamed an immigrant worker for his son’s death on a dairy farm, the sheriff’s office has agreed to reforms meant to ensure that residents who speak limited English can get needed services.

by Melissa Sanchez and Maryam Jameel

Biden EPA Rejects Plastics Industry’s Fuzzy Math That Misleads Customers About Recycled Content

The plastics industry uses a controversial accounting method to inflate the recycled content it advertises in products. A new EPA policy won’t allow it for any products it endorses as a “Safer Choice.”

by Lisa Song

DOJ Files Antitrust Suit Against RealPage, Maker of Rent-Setting Algorithm

The lawsuit, which comes in the wake of a ProPublica investigation into the Texas company, accuses RealPage of taking part in an illegal price-fixing scheme to reduce competition among landlords to boost prices — and profits.

by Heather Vogell

Uvalde City Officials Release Shooting Records That Provide New Details, Reaffirm Previous Reporting

The release is the first major disclosure of documents by a government agency involved in the flawed response to the deadliest school shooting in Texas history, and it comes after a yearslong legal battle involving nearly two dozen news outlets.

by Lomi Kriel and Lexi Churchill, ProPublica and The Texas Tribune, and Zach Despart, Terri Langford and Kayla Guo, The Texas Tribune

New York Lawmakers Call for Police Commissioner to Be Stripped of Power to Bury Brutality Cases

The City Council members’ call for reform comes after a ProPublica investigation revealed that NYPD Commissioner Edward Caban had repeatedly short-circuited disciplinary cases against officers accused of abuse.

by Eric Umansky

People Are Still Being Swallowed by Storm Drains. One U.S. Agency Is Pushing for Safety Measures.

A new federal rule requires that local officials in flood-prone areas consider safety features for drain openings. In 2021, ProPublica reported that uncovered storm drains were responsible for at least three dozen deaths over six years.

by Topher Sanders

Maryland Is on Track to Process a Nearly 50-Year-Old Backlog of Rape Kits

A new law extends the state’s sexual assault evidence protections to cover DNA samples. But getting justice in hundreds of cold cases will require more than just testing, survivors say.

by Catherine Rentz

West Texas Pastor Who Used Illegal Donations From Churches to Campaign for Office Is Fined $3,500

Fines issued to Scott Beard of Abilene’s Fountaingate Fellowship and two pastors follow reporting from ProPublica and The Texas Tribune that revealed the churches donated to his campaign for local office despite state and federal prohibitions.

by Jessica Priest

NYPD Restores Thousands of Missing Records but Removes Case Numbers From Its Discipline Database

The department restored more than 2,000 missing discipline records to its public database of uniformed officers, weeks after ProPublica revealed data reliability issues. But it also removed case numbers, making future oversight more difficult.

by Sergio Hernandez

The Federal Government Just Acknowledged the Harm Its Dams Have Caused Tribes. Here’s What It Left Out.

The Biden administration said officials historically gave “little, if any, consideration” to impacts on tribal fishing. But some sought deliberately to upend the harvest, according to documents obtained by ProPublica and Oregon Public Broadcasting.

by Tony Schick, Oregon Public Broadcasting

Three States Have Warned Against Sending Students to an Unregulated Boarding School for Youth With Autism

After visiting Shrub Oak International School, officials from Connecticut, Washington and Massachusetts have advised districts of troubling conditions at the school where a ProPublica investigation uncovered reports of abuse and neglect.

by Jennifer Smith Richards and Jodi S. Cohen

Microsoft President Grilled by Congress Over Cybersecurity Failures

The criticism from members of the House Homeland Security Committee came in response to a ProPublica investigation that found Microsoft repeatedly rebuffed an engineer’s warnings that a product flaw had left millions of users vulnerable to attack.

by Renee Dudley

Harlan Crow Provided Clarence Thomas at Least 3 Previously Undisclosed Private Jet Trips, Senate Probe Finds

The Supreme Court justice flew to Montana and other destinations on the billionaire GOP donor’s dime. Crow’s lawyer revealed these flights to the Senate Judiciary Committee, whose ongoing investigation was sparked by ProPublica’s reporting.

by Justin Elliott, Joshua Kaplan and Alex Mierjeski

Bill to Fund Stillbirth Prevention and Research Passes Congress

The bill expands the use of existing federal money to be used to fight stillbirths. Lawmakers cited ProPublica’s reporting on the issue as key to adding urgency and building support for the measure.

by Duaa Eldeib

Justice Clarence Thomas Acknowledges He Should Have Disclosed Free Trips From Billionaire Donor

The trips include vacations in Indonesia and at the exclusive, men’s-only Bohemian Grove retreat, which were first reported by ProPublica last year.

by Joshua Kaplan, Justin Elliott and Alex Mierjeski

An Illinois School District’s Reliance on Police to Ticket Students Is Discriminatory, Civil Rights Complaint Says

Two civil rights groups are asking the U.S. Department of Education to force Rockford Public Schools, the third-largest district in Illinois, to stop discriminatory discipline involving police.

by Jennifer Smith Richards and Jodi S. Cohen

After Decades, Voters Finally OK Replacement for Crumbling Idaho School

The vote follows a yearlong investigation by the Idaho Statesman and ProPublica into how the state’s restrictive funding policies left students studying in deteriorating buildings across the state.

by Becca Savransky, Idaho Statesman

Latest Stories from ProPublica

School District With Highest Student Arrest Rate in the Nation Agrees to Reform How It Disciplines Disabled Students

Nike Shareholders Want to Force Actions on Environmental and Worker Protections. They Face Long Odds.

El Departamento de Justicia llega a un acuerdo con un Sheriff de Wisconsin para mejorar servicios para quienes no hablan inglés

Judge Orders Guardianship Firm to Return Thousands It Took From an Elderly Woman for Services It Never Provided