

About Me
I am an investigative reporter specializing in health, environmental and consumer issues. My work has revealed safety lapses at biological research labs, food manufacturers and nursing homes; hazards in municipal water systems and near forgotten lead factories; the criminal backgrounds of dietary supplement makers and the role of substandard hospital care in maternal deaths.
I am a past president of Investigative Reporters and Editors, a national journalism training organization, and I am a professor and the Washington, D.C., program director for the University of Missouri School of Journalism. I have reported for USA TODAY, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Knight Ridder’s Washington Bureau, the Detroit Free Press, The Arizona Republic and the Dallas Times Herald. My reporting honors include three Gerald Loeb Awards, three Scripps Howard Awards and a duPont-Columbia Award.
(Photo credit: Lisa Damico Portraits)

Featured Work



Pandora's Gamble:
Lab Leaks, Pandemics, and a World At Risk
Released
What Dr. Fauci told me about a secret meeting on Covid's origin
USA TODAY
Could an accident have caused COVID-19? Why the Wuhan lab-leak theory shouldn't be dismissed



'Doctors are still stunned': How did foreign bacteria leave a Texas girl with brain damage?
USA TODAY
Near Misses at High-Security Lab Illustrate Risk of Accidents With Coronaviruses
ProPublica
Hospitals blame moms when childbirth goes wrong. Secret data suggest it’s not that simple.
USA TODAY



