In Cambodia, Our Journalists Put Nike’s Claims About Factory Conditions to the Test
ProPublica reporter Rob Davis began with a simple question: Had Nike truly become a beacon of environmental stewardship and fair labor practices, as it claimed? To find the answer, he had to travel across the Pacific Ocean.
Reporting From the Northwest
Our Northwest hub covers Washington, Idaho, Alaska and Oregon. The six-person reporting team includes three Local Reporting Network Distinguished Fellows and is committed to partnering with local media.
Nike Repeatedly Raised Concerns About Repression in Cambodia. It Expanded Its Factory Workforce There Anyway.
Nike’s continued growth in Cambodia underscores the level of political and labor repression the company has been willing to tolerate in countries that provide inexpensive labor.
A 700% APR Lending Business Tied to Dr. Phil’s Son Is Dividing an Alaska Tribe
Tribal lender Minto Money has boosted the economy of its Alaska town. But some tribal members are appalled by the millions it’s made off desperate borrowers — much of which, lawsuits allege, has gone to outsider Jay McGraw, son of Dr. Phil.
Liberal Oregon and Washington Vowed to Pioneer Green Energy. Almost Every Other State Is Beating Them.
The Northwest states passed aggressive goals to decarbonize the power supply but left it to the Bonneville Power Administration to build the transmission lines needed for wind and solar. The agency hasn’t delivered.
Northwest News Staff
- Northwest Editor
- Steve Suo
- Reporters
- Rob Davis, Audrey Dutton and McKenzie Funk
- Local Reporting Network Distinguished Fellows
- Kyle Hopkins, Lulu Ramadan and Tony Schick
Local Reporting Network Partners
ProPublica is supporting local and regional newsrooms as they work on important investigative projects affecting their communities. Some of our past and present partners in the region:
- Anchorage Daily News
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- High Country News
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- Idaho Statesman
- Boise, Idaho
- Oregon Public Broadcasting
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- Seattle, Washington
Trump Administration Abandons Deal With Northwest Tribes to Restore Salmon
The Trump administration canceled a deal, signed under President Joe Biden, that would have enabled the removal of four hydroelectric dams along the Columbia River that are considered harmful to salmon.
Portland Said It Was Investing in Homeless People’s Safety. Deaths Have Quadrupled.
The city responded to an increase in homeless deaths by intensifying encampment sweeps and adding emergency shelter at the expense of permanent housing. Experts say this has perpetuated the problem.
Red State Voters Approved Progressive Measures. GOP Lawmakers Are Trying to Undermine Them.
In the wake of ballot measures that increased abortion access and improved sick leave for workers, a coordinated effort is unfolding across the country to restrict direct democracy — and shift power to partisan legislatures.
Newtok, Alaska, Was Supposed to Be a Model for Climate Relocation. Here’s How It Went Wrong.
The project’s challenges highlight how ill-prepared the U.S. is to respond to the way climate change is making some places uninhabitable.
Higher Prices, Rolling Blackouts: The Northwest Is Bracing for the Effects of a Lagging Green Energy Push
Oregon and Washington are nowhere near achieving their clean energy goals. The dramatic consequences are already being felt.
The Department of Education Forced Idaho to Stop Denying Disabled Students an Education. Then Trump Gutted Its Staff.
For years, the Education Department was the only agency that could ensure states would improve conditions for disabled children. Now, Trump’s cuts threaten to hamper its oversight.
How Trump’s Tariffs Could Affect Nike and Its Factory Workers
The sportswear company offers a case study in the ripple effects of the global trade war, including how workers can get squeezed.
Idaho Gave Families $50M to Spend on Private Education. Then It Ended a $30M Program Used by Public School Families.
A Republican lawmaker said ending an Idaho program that helped public school students buy laptops and other materials wasn’t linked to the creation of a private school tax credit. The state’s most prominent conservative group says it should be.
NOAA Scientists Are Cleaning Bathrooms and Reconsidering Lab Experiments After Contracts for Basic Services Expire
A Seattle lab has lost janitorial services, hazardous waste support, IT and building maintenance as it waits for the Commerce Department secretary to personally approve all contracts over $100,000.
“Not Just Measles”: Whooping Cough Cases Are Soaring as Vaccine Rates Decline
While much of the country is focused on the spiraling measles outbreak, experts warn that whooping cough and other preventable diseases could get much worse with falling vaccination rates and Trump’s slashing of public health infrastructure.
Alaska Supreme Court Places New Limits on Pretrial Delays
The move follows an investigation by ProPublica and the Anchorage Daily News that found some cases have taken as long as a decade to reach juries, potentially violating the rights of victims and defendants alike.
An ICE Contractor Is Worth Billions. It’s Still Fighting to Pay Detainees as Little as $1 a Day to Work.
GEO Group, whose stock is valued at $4 billion, says that state minimum wage laws don’t apply to the cleaning services that it’s asked detained migrants to perform at facilities where they’re kept.
Inside the Schools Alaska Ignored
Two inches of raw sewage. Black mold. A bat infestation. Reporter Emily Schwing shares what she uncovered as she investigated dangerous conditions inside Alaska’s deteriorating public schools.
This Hospital System Fought COVID, Then a Far-Right Leader. Now It’s Taking on Idaho’s Abortion Ban.
St. Luke’s, Idaho’s largest health system, was outspoken in defending its staff during a backlash against masks and vaccines. It also sued right-wing figure Ammon Bundy — and won. Now it’s backing its doctors on the abortion front.
As Idaho Pushes to Reform Its Coroner System, Counties Seek to Make It Less Transparent
A bill moving forward with bipartisan support is described as a first step to addressing problems highlighted in a state report and by ProPublica. Meanwhile, counties seek to end access to coroners’ records that were key to ProPublica’s findings.
