The Service Employees International Union, besides representing 2 million workers, is one of the most active and powerful political organizations in the nation. Beyond its own direct efforts, which are vast, the union also helps create, lead, and fund dozens of other organizations and coalitions that are influential in public policy debates and elections. NPR […]
Will Evans
Senior Reporter and Producer
Will Evans is a senior reporter and producer for Reveal, covering labor and tech. His reporting has prompted government investigations, legislation, reforms and prosecutions. A series on working conditions at Amazon warehouses was a finalist for a Pulitzer Prize and won a Gerald Loeb Award. His work has also won multiple Investigative Reporters and Editors Awards, including for a series on safety problems at Tesla. Other investigations have exposed secret spying at Uber, illegal discrimination in the temp industry and rampant fraud in California's drug rehab system for the poor. Prior to joining The Center for Investigative Reporting in 2005, Evans was a reporter at The Sacramento Bee. He is based in Reveal's Emeryville, California, office.
Posted inInside the Newsroom
Kings of the Hill
Why weren’t Freddie and Fannie tightly regulated? Political connections and lobbying power.
Posted inMoney and Politics
Liberal, Conservative Groups Vie for Vets’ Interests
Two politically opposed veterans’ advocacy groups—Vets for Freedom and Vote Vets—are battling for voters. NPR and CIR look beyond the political rhetoric to examine the organizations’ financing, and how they might affect this election. >> Listen to the story on National Public Radio.
Don't miss a story. Get our investigations and reporters’ insights delivered to your inbox.
Posted inMoney and Politics
Nonprofits Look for New Ways to Shape Campaign
The 2008 presidential campaign began with predictions that outside groups would play influential roles. Now nonprofits are quietly mobilizing, especially on the Left. One network of liberal activist groups, started by Progress Now, is trying to shape the debate with a streamlined operation of small staff, low budgets and the Internet—and is backed by powerful […]
Posted inMoney and Politics
Troubles Loom for ‘527’ Ad Efforts
Independent political groups are already trying to influence the presidential campaign with TV ads and automated phone calls. Candidates John McCain and Barack Obama say they don’t want any more Swift Boat-like attacks. CIR and NPR investigate. >> Visit the NPR website to hear the complete story.
Posted inInside the Newsroom
McCain and his lobbyists
McCain lets go of fundraisers CIR reported were lobbyists for foreign governments.
Posted inMoney and Politics
Misleading Calls Confuse Voters
A nonprofit organization with ties to Sen. Hillary Clinton is under fire for running apparently illegal “robocalls” in advance of next week’s Democratic primary in North Carolina. The group promotes voting by single women, but its recent calls contained misleading information that may discourage voting in the African-American community, a bastion of support for Sen. […]
Posted inInside the Newsroom
More details on anti-McCain group
A political organization financed by film producer Steve Bing has given hundreds of thousands of dollars to a liberal group running attack ads against Republican presidential candidate John McCain.
Posted inMoney and Politics
The Money Behind the Anti-McCain Ad
>> Listen to the story on National Public Radio With Sen. John McCain clinching the Republican presidential nomination, a new Democrat-funded group has already begun an ad campaign labeling him the “McSame” as President Bush. The campaign represents the opening salvo from a consortium of top Democrat donors, operatives and unions who at this point […]
Posted inInside the Newsroom
The price of influence?
Does political fundraising help lobbyists gain influence for their clients? It depends who you ask.