From Dodd-Frank to Dud: How Financial Reform May Be Going Wrong
Some fear the grandest ambitions of the law passed last year to reform the nation's financial system are being undermined in the rule-making process.
Safeguard the public interest.
Support ProPublica’s award-winning investigative journalism.
Our Awards
ProPublica was a recipient of the 2011 Pulitzer Prize in National Reporting and a 2010 Pulitzer Prize in Investigative Reporting. See a full list of our awards.
Got questions about medical ethics?
Post them to this discussion thread on Facebook, and reporters Charles Ornstein and Tracy Weber will answer.
ProPublica on the Kindle
ProPublica is participating in Amazon's Kindle Singles program. Our latest stories are available here and here.
Videos
Visit ProPublica's channel on YouTube.
The ProPublica Nerd Blog
Projects and Code from the ProPublica News Apps Team
Our Tumblr
Officials say the darndest things, and we’re writing them down.
Recovery Tracker
Find stimulus spending in your county and state with our tracker, the most comprehensive updated database of stimulus projects.
Complaints & Corrections
To contact us with concerns and corrections, e-mail us at feedback@propublica.org. All e-mails may be published unless you tell us otherwise. Read our corrections.
Profiles: Shoddy Bank Practices Continue Even After Mortgage Mods
Many homeowners have received a mortgage modification only to find themselves once again at risk of foreclosure because of errors by their mortgage company. ProPublica investigated six of these cases.
Long Path to Courtroom for War Contractor Accused of Bribery
George H. Lee was indicted this week—almost seven years after he allegedly traded bribes for contracts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Confessed Terrorist Tried to Help U.S. Track Down Other Terrorists
David Coleman Headley testified Tuesday that he tried to help U.S. authorities lure a suspected mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai attacks out of Pakistan. He also said an al-Qaida-connected leader wanted to assassinate the head of Lockheed Martin.
How Do We Know Pakistan Terror Witness Is Telling the Truth?
Prosecutors knew the star witness in a U.S. federal court trial involving the 2008 Mumbai attacks had a tainted past. So, FBI investigators scoured the world for evidence to corroborate his testimony.
Reader’s Guide: Pakistan’s Terror Ties and the Shifting Relations Between Pakistan and the U.S.
When bin Laden was discovered hiding in a Pakistani town populated by the country’s military elite, questions surfaced again about Pakistan relationship with terrorist groups. An ongoing trial in Chicago, involving the 2008 Mumbai attacks, is keeping those suspicions alive.
Automakers’ Bailout and Bankruptcies Shortchanged Accident Victims
The government bailout and restructuring of GM and Chrysler may have saved the companies from collapse, but it left thousands of car-accident victims in the lurch.
Podcast: Richard Tofel on the Future of News
From paywalls to online-only content, the news industry is evolving at an incredible pace. But where does ProPublica fall into the mix? And what exactly is a 'story with moral force'? ProPublica General Manager Richard Tofel explains it all in this week's podcast.
Emails Show Drug Company Used Third-Party Medical Groups to Influence Regulators, Undercut Rivals
Two medical groups recruited to lobby the Food and Drug Administration against generic versions of a Sanofi-Aventis blood-thinner each received millions from the manufacturer.
Exxon Ad Makes Gas Drilling Seem Simpler—and Safer—Than It Really Is
Exxon's full-page ad illustrates how well pipes are protected with casings of steel and cement. But the picture's not as pretty as the company paints it.
In HBO’s ‘Too Big to Fail,’ the Heroes Are Really Zeroes
Watch carefully, and you'll see how the three men who saved the world—Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, NY Fed's Timothy Geithner, and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson—get it wrong again and again and again.
Witness: Pakistani Intel Officer Ordered Hit on Mumbai Jews
Confessed terrorist David Coleman Headley says he met with six Pakistani intelligence officers during his years of terrorist activity. In court on Tuesday he said he was “pleased” when he learned that 166 people had been slaughtered in the Mumbai attacks.Major Projects
Nuclear Safety
NRC Waives Enforcement of Fire Rules at Nuclear Plants
Fire poses one of the dangers at a nuclear power plant, but at nearly half the country’s commercial reactors, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission is not writing violations. Instead, plants are relying on a patchwork of interim measures to address longstanding fire hazards.
Dollars for Doctors
How Industry Money Reaches Physicians
Emails Show Drug Company Used Third-Party Medical Groups to Influence Regulators, Undercut Rivals
Two medical groups recruited to lobby the Food and Drug Administration against generic versions of a Sanofi-Aventis blood-thinner each received millions from the manufacturer.
Pakistan’s Terror Connections
Confessed Terrorist Tried to Help U.S. Track Down Other Terrorists
David Coleman Headley testified Tuesday that he tried to help U.S. authorities lure a suspected mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai attacks out of Pakistan. He also said an al-Qaida-connected leader wanted to assassinate the head of Lockheed Martin.
Buried Secrets
Gas Drilling's Environmental Threat
Exxon Ad Makes Gas Drilling Seem Simpler—and Safer—Than It Really Is
Exxon's full-page ad illustrates how well pipes are protected with casings of steel and cement. But the picture's not as pretty as the company paints it.
The Wall Street Money Machine
From Dodd-Frank to Dud: How Financial Reform May Be Going Wrong
Some fear the grandest ambitions of the law passed last year to reform the nation's financial system are being undermined in the rule-making process.
Post Mortem
Death Investigation in America
NOPD Officers Convicted in Handyman’s Beating Death
A federal jury in New Orleans convicts two officers originally cleared of wrongdoing when a local forensic pathologist called Raymond Robair's beating death an accident.
Get Updates
Follow ProPublicans on Twitter
Catch up with ProPublica staffers on the popular social networking service.
Investigations Elsewhere
- Tobacco-Maker Lorillard Among Companies Whose Lobby Pays Off—Bloomberg
- State Blocks Auditor From Iraq Police Training—Washington Times
- Deaths at Clinic Raise Questions on Safety of Cheap Nips and Tucks—Miami New Times
- Energy Industry Shapes Lessons in Public Schools—Washington Post
- Measuring the Human Cost of an iPad Made in China—Wall St. Journal
- Massey Directors Did Little to Improve Safety—Charleston Gazette
Our Hottest Stories
- Even After Mortgage Modification, Shoddy Bank Practices Hurt Homeowners
- From Dodd-Frank to Dud: How Financial Reform May Be Going Wrong
- Witness: Pakistani Intel Officer Ordered Hit on Mumbai Jews
- U.S. Insurance Firm Neglects Survivors of Iraqi Translators, May Face Criminal Charges
- Trial Testimony Intensifies Allegations Pakistan Is Playing Double Game
- Star Witness in Terror Trial Could Heighten U.S.-Pakistan Tension
- How Do We Know Pakistan Terror Witness Is Telling the Truth?
- Profiles: Shoddy Bank Practices Continue Even After Mortgage Mods
- Long Path to Courtroom for War Contractor Accused of Bribery
- Inside the Campaign to Release Al-Jazeera English Journalist Dorothy Parvaz
- In HBO’s 'Too Big to Fail,' the Heroes Are Really Zeroes
- Even After Mortgage Modification, Shoddy Bank Practices Hurt Homeowners
- How Do We Know Pakistan Terror Witness Is Telling the Truth?
- From Dodd-Frank to Dud: How Financial Reform May Be Going Wrong
- Profiles: Shoddy Bank Practices Continue Even After Mortgage Mods
- Exxon Ad Makes Gas Drilling Seem Simpler—and Safer—Than It Really Is
- Fannie and Freddie’s Regulator Opposes Making Mortgage Giants Subject to FOIA
- Trial Testimony Intensifies Allegations Pakistan Is Playing Double Game
- Cheat Sheet on Bank Investigations and the Probes That Have Petered Out
- Foreclosure Contractors Face New Scrutiny From States
Reporting Network
Become a Source
Help journalists around the country by sharing your stories, insights and experiences. More info »
In collaboration with 