Yes, my subject line rhymes today, sort of. I might be a tiny bit proud of that.
I am hugely, unabashedly proud of the quality investigative journalism done by FFP reporters this week. It’s the sort of work that matters, the sort of work that can change — or maybe already is changing — things. Let’s get into it.
Early adopters of the Flatwater Free Press newsletter remember that, back in March 2022, reporter Yanqi Xu (pronounced Yen-chee Shu) did a story showing that members of the Nebraska Board of Parole a)rarely showed up together to parole hearings and b)were paroling fewer parole-eligible Nebraskans because of it, which c)mattered a lot to the prisoners stuck in prison longer and d)mattered to the state, since our prisons are wildly overcrowded.
It set off quite the stink bomb. The parole board’s lawyer sent us a letter accusing Yanqi of sneaking a recording device into a prison. That would be a crime, if she had done it. (She did nothing of the sort.) Parole board members protested up, down, left and right, saying the story was unfair, unjust, uncouth and quite possibly uncaffeinated, which isn’t even a word.
And then an odd thing happened, the very day that story came out, as Yanqi’s new story shows.
Parole board members started showing up for more parole board hearings.
And then another exceedingly odd thing happened. The parole board’s attendance got even better this January, downright exemplary, right after a state senator introduced a bill meant to force parole board members to show up to hearings.
Now, three parole board members did a thing I truly respect. They talked to Yanqi for her follow-up story. They pointed out some interesting things. They denied that the story and bill had anything to do with increased attendance. Their comments are included in today’s really, really good story.
Now, go back to the top of the newsletter, look again at that chart, and decide for yourself what happened here.
Why aren’t we helping the victims of violent crime? Sometimes, amidst the tumult and thrashing and ALL CAPS FURY of modern life, I find it best to take a deep, cleansing breath, and look at the numbers.
In the past two years of available data, a Nebraska state program meant to use a mix of federal and state funds to help victims of terrible violent crimes has helped 118 victims pay hospital bills, counseling bills, funeral costs.
In that same time span, Wyoming has helped 1,551 crime victims.
Iowa has helped 5,698.
The eye-popping difference between those numbers is the basis of state watchdog reporter Sara Gentzler’s new story out this week. The story raises all sorts of questions, but the main one is: What’s going on here?
You’re the best around. Nothing’s ever gonna keep you down: I have seen the results of our April fundraising drive, and I’m so excited I’m quoting song lyrics from “Karate Kid.” Some 172 new people became recurring donors, giving a bit of their hard-earned money each month or annually to support Nebraska nonprofit journalism and FFP stories like the ones in this newsletter. That shattered our goal of 150 new recurring donors, and surpassed our stretch goal of 170.
And — and! — another 148 of you sent us a one-time donation in April.
I have nothing else to say about this, except that I and the staff of FFP strive daily to do quality journalism and be worthy of your support. Thank you.
Did you forget to donate in April? I can help you with that.
A post-Cabela’s Sidney: FFP reporter Natalia Alamdari, who recently wrote about what has happened in Sidney since Cabela’s closed, appeared on News Channel Nebraska to talk about that story. Interesting discussion.
Thanks to our sponsor: This week it’s the Nebraska Community Foundation, which does truly great things in small town Nebraska. NCF is also great because it supports the important work of Nebraska’s first independent statewide nonprofit newsroom. That’s us! Thank you, NCF.
Questions wanted: Some of our best story ideas come from readers, and they typically start with a burning question that just cries out for an answer. Have a question that our reporters need to look into? Complete this form or reach our newsroom at [email protected].
Sincerely,
—Matthew Hansen, Executive Editor
Here’s what we’re into this week: News from around Nebraska
Every week we like to share great Nebraska journalism, no matter who made it. Here’s what caught our eye this week:
- Last week we brought you the story of a new gigantic Nebraska donor that had poured $1.6 million into the Lincoln mayor’s race.
On Tuesday, Lincoln voted — and the result, after both sides had spent massive amounts of moola, was a 9-point win for incumbent Leirion Gaylor Baird … a result almost identical to her win four years ago. The Nebraska Examiner’s Aaron Sanderford with a very good breakdown of where all the money went, and why it may not have helped boost challenger Suzanne Geist. - Staying in Lincoln for a moment: I’m so very glad that Carson Vaughan is a FFP freelancer, and I was so very excited to (digitally) crack open Tuesday’s New York Times and find a wondrous story from him about Mari Sandoz’s time in Lincoln. If you care about Lincoln, or Sandoz, or good writing, give it a read.
- From the “technology is so cool” file: Undetected technical challenges in a new online payment portal meant that some mental health providers didn’t receive the money owed to them by the state for months. The Journal Star’s Andrew Wegley broke this story.
- More than 100 companies and nonprofits statewide, in addition to the Omaha Chamber of Commerce, are now publicly opposing a bill in the Nebraska Legislature that would ban gender-affirming care for trans kids. The World-Herald’s Erin Bamer with the update.
- At the same time, the Catholic Diocese of Lincoln pulled out of this year’s Give to Lincoln Day, the city’s annual charitable giving day, after a policy change required participating groups to affirm that they don’t discriminate in hiring based on sexual orientation.
- A new watchdog report says that Nebraska prison staff fired 200 projectiles at an inmate. And that it’s happened before. Story from The Reader’s Chris Bowling.
- Another wildfire near the Nebraska National Forest. Scary stuff, considering it’s only May. Story from Lincoln’s 10/11.
- Have you ever noticed that we debate school funding in Nebraska like every year, but no one actually knows how Nebraska schools are funded? Nebraska Public Media’s Elizabeth Rembert did, and she gifted us this explainer so we can at least kind of understand what we’re talking about now.
- Screw it, it’s golf season. A new ranking of the best courses in the state after the opening of three new impressive golf courses. Rankings by OWH sportswriter Stu Pospisil, appearing here in the Scottsbluff Star-Herald.
