Pennsylvania AP News

Stevens named acting news editor in New Jersey

Rik Stevens is the interim news editor in New Jersey following Rich Rassmann's resignation. Stevens has been news editor in AP's Albany, N.Y., bureau since July 2001, having joined the AP there the year before. He's directed coverage of stories including the resignation of Gov. Eliot Spitzer amid a prostitution scandal, the crash of Flight 3407 in February 2009 that killed 50 near Buffalo and the mass shooting in Binghamton six weeks later that left 14 dead. Before joining AP, Stevens worked at The Gazette Newspapers in Schenectady, N.Y., and The Saratogian in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. He is a 1989 graduate of the State University of New York at Albany. He can be reached in Albany at 518-458-7821; in Trenton at 609-392-3622; on his cell phone at 518-339-7977; or by e-mail at rstevens@ap.org

AP Markets Web site redesigned to enhance functionality

The Associated Press' premier financial data product, Money & Markets, is now easier to use than ever before, thanks to the redesigned AP Markets Web site. The Web site at http://markets.ap.org has been enhanced to include improved navigation and design. 

Money & Markets, highly customizable for both print and online use, provides insight each day into the financial markets with a broad mix of text, graphics and data modules.

"Users have told us the new site looks great, is easy to navigate, and provides increased functionality and better access to product information," said Josh Orenstein, AP Global Director of Business and Financial Products. "The new features really highlight our Money & Markets product, and the site has been designed so that members can easily take action," Orenstein said.

Read the full press release on AP.org: http://www.ap.org/pages/about/pressreleases/pr_081309a.html.

Border corruption charges

A few months ago, AP staffers Martha Mendoza in San Jose and Chris Sherman on the Texas/Mexico border, in coordination with AP drug war czar Wendy Benjaminson, took notice of a number of anecdotes about U.S. law enforcement agents working near the Mexico border who were being convicted of corruption charges. Mendoza and Sherman diligently began to quantify the sharp increase in corruption cases and learn firsthand from those in prison why they had engaged in drug dealing, human smuggling and accepting bribes. 

The reporters filed a Freedom of Information request with U.S. Customs and Border Protection for all discipline cases from the past three years. An AP spreadsheet was produced from Justice Department records – listing every National Guardsman, sheriff, police, CBP agent and Homeland Security officer working on or near the border who had been sentenced since early 2007 on corruption-related charges. About a dozen people were interviewed in person, behind bars, or via e-mail or phone. Interviews with government officials confirmed the spike in corruption cases. The results: more than 2,000 discipline cases, including 100 serious, corruption-related incidents. The reporting team produced a comprehensive look at border corruption amid the drug war.

Michael Jackson investigation

A mega-story breaks on your beat. The sources you've cultivated aren’t those who can get you near the big story. Los Angeles law enforcement reporter Thomas Watkins faced that challenge when the Michael Jackson story broke. After spending nearly every day since Jackson's death cultivating sources, he connected. It had been reported that Jackson's personal doctor was the target of a manslaughter investigation and the powerful anesthetic propofol had been found in Jackson's home.

A source told Watkins closed that investigators believed Dr. Conrad Murray administered propofol to put Jackson to sleep and that authorities believe this drug had killed him. The source also provided details about the state of Jackson's home, including that the pop star's bedroom was a shambles. The Los Angeles Times, New York Post, CNN, Fox, CBS and many other news organizations either cited the AP exclusive or published it.

The Associated Press' premier financial data product, Money & Markets, is now easier to use than ever before, thanks to the redesigned AP Markets Web site. The Web site at http://markets.ap.org has been enhanced to include improved navigation and design. 

Money & Markets, highly customizable for both print and online use, provides insight each day into the financial markets with a broad mix of text, graphics and data modules.

"Users have told us the new site looks great, is easy to navigate, and provides increased functionality and better access to product information," said Josh Orenstein, AP Global Director of Business and Financial Products. "The new features really highlight our Money & Markets product, and the site has been designed so that members can easily take action," Orenstein said.

Read the full press release on AP.org: http://www.ap.org/pages/about/pressreleases/pr_081309a.html.

Thomas Kent in charge of AP's new Standards Center

Thomas Kent, an Associated Press news executive and former AP international editor and foreign correspondent, has been appointed AP standards editor and deputy managing editor in charge of the news cooperative's new Standards Center. 

Additional information is available online: http://www.ap.org/pages/about/whatsnew/wn_073109a.html.

AP joins nationwide pilot project to help members access non-profit supported journalism

If you’re using Member Marketplace in AP Exchange, you have access to stories from some of the nation’s most prestigious nonprofit investigative journalism organizations – at no additional cost.

The Associated Press has joined with four groups initially in a nationwide pilot project to help member newspapers access and publish – in print or online – a growing amount of foundation and nonprofit supported journalism.

A recent report from J-Lab at American University reflects that grants increasingly are funding investigative projects. Since 2005, of the nearly $128 million in grants tracked by J-Lab, nearly $65 million went to support investigative initiatives.

Here are just a few of the stories out there this month:

• Despite calls for consolidation, more than 80 committees on Capitol Hill still have a say in how DHS functions. The crazy quilt of oversight is making it difficult for Congress to provide cogent guidance on budgeting, organization, and priorities. A project by the Center for Public Integrity and CIR examines the effectiveness of America’s homeland security efforts.
• More than 460 new businesses and interest groups jumped into lobbying Congress on global warming in the weeks before the House neared its historic vote on climate change legislation, a Center for Public Integrity analysis of just-disclosed lobbying records shows.
• Want to know what’s going on with the stimulus in your area? ProPublica has compiled nearly all the contracts, grants and loans that the government has reported awarding so far in the stimulus program. Type in your county or click on your state to find projects in your area.
• The number of people diagnosed with thyroid cancer is growing at an unprecedented rate and medical researchers don’t know why. The increase comes as the rates for most cancers have been declining. Caroline Stetler, an American University journalism graduate student, reports on this mystery
• The continuing recession and weak housing markets made for another difficult quarter for the nation's banks, according to a new analysis of bank financial statements by the Investigative Reporting Workshop. We also created a search tool that permits you to check the financial health of any bank in the nation.

If you do not yet have Member Marketplace, or if you have questions about this pilot program or about accessing this content, let Assistant Bureau Chief Andrew Fraser (afraser@ap.org) or me know.

Upcoming plans for AP Interactives

            Covering a wide variety of topics, new multimedia and interactives pieces are available this month via CustomNews.  Current subjects include NFL and college football previews, the 50th anniversary of Motown, an arctic climate series and more:

• NFL: This interactive will be updated weekly and will take an extensive look at team statistics and allow users to view a progression from opponent to opponent over the course of the whole year.
• College football: The college football interactive will be a weekly fixture throughout the season and AP football writers will pick the key game of the week and offer analysis through statistical breakdowns and video interviews with beat writers covering each team.
• Motown 50th anniversary: This interactive celebrates the 50 years of Motown. It features video, animation and audio narration of Motown’s impact on the entertainment industry. The interactive also takes a look at the studio and talks to the key players involved in Motown’s success.
• Arctic climate: This interactive video and map shows the extent of the boreal forest and discusses the impact of beetles and wildfires. This interactive will be followed up with additional features on the melting permafrost and its emissions of methane, the impact of warming on the Inuit people, the fast-dwindling herds of caribou across the north and the polar bear.

Lifestyles

In September, Lifestyles will be covering fashion weeks in New York, Paris and Milan with text, photos, video and multimedia. A package of stories and recipes for Rosh Hashanah will also be available, along with our usual slate of homes, food, parenting and travel stories.

If you would like to receive the weekly Lifestyles digest, please e-mail the Lifestyles editor at ltolin@ap.org.

Special Editions

            The "Cars" Special Edition moved Tuesday, Sept. 1. It includes the annual New Models Roundup, a carmaker-by-carmaker look at what’s new this season. Feature stories include a look at how this year’s changes for Detroit’s Big Three could affect prices; drivers who try to get higher mileage by "hypermiling"; the enduring popularity of the road trip; and a design trend towards cars that "smile" or look cute.

            Special Editions move on the first or second Tuesday of each month. Upcoming Special Editions for the rest of the year are:

• Oct. 6 – Diet/Exercise
• Nov. 3 – Holidays
• Dec. 1 - Weddings