lucaswaldron.bsky.social

Hello to my new followers 👋 I'll be using this space to share projects from @propublica.org's graphics team. We make maps, data viz, interactives, explainers, and more! I'll thread a few examples of what we do...

Live discussion tomorrow at 1PM EST with @nicolefoy.bsky.social Ruth Talbot & @austinkocher.com Sign up below 👇

Welp, this map is already out of date -- on Friday, a federal judge appointed by Trump dismissed the DOJ's voter data lawsuit in Utah. www.sltrib.com/news/politic...

On mobile, I decided to split this map in half for readability and lead with the West Coast because, yes, west coast = best coast, AND the story was focused in Texas, so seeing Texas at the top made sense. (context: this is a map of all agencies with 287(g) agreements with ICE)

The Trans Journalists Association does hugely important work for journalism, including their comprehensive style guide, which many newsrooms reference regularly for fair and accurate coverage. Help them raise $25,000 to continue being an incredible resource: donorbox.org/digging-our-...

Just going to be straight here — no pun intended: I am the only journalist who has been covering this issue in depth, was often the only journalist at hearings, and was the only one explaining what DOJ was actually arguing here. Support my work if you can: www.lawdork.com/subscribe

Many readers have their devices set to "dark mode" and we try really hard to follow a user's preference. If the device or browser is set to dark mode, we show display a much darker version of the map. Here's both desktop and mobile.

The desktop version of the map won't fit nicely on phone screens, so I rotated the map 90 degrees and added a north arrow.

The most traditional version of the map is for desktop and light mode. (This is also the version we share with partners, who often don't support dark mode on their websites)

I gave $1000 because trans journalists need support. We cis people need trans journalists to help us better understand the world! Please join me in supporting the TJA.

Visual representation of the judges that have shut down the Trump administration's demands for confidential voter data. DOJ is 0 - 26, with four pending. Eight of the judges were appointed by Trump. via @peterelkind.bsky.social and @lucaswaldron.bsky.social @propublica.org. 🔗 in thread.

Where things stand on the DOJ's voter data suits: 26 suits dismissed, 4 ongoing. In many cases, the DOJ tried to use Title III of the Civil Rights Act to obtain voter rolls. Another judge (appointed by Trump) wrote "This Court will not read [Title III] to produce such an absurd result."

The Guardian’s Visual & Data Journalism team is expanding! We have three exciting new roles, and we're looking for people who can help us push the boundaries of how we find, report and tell stories. 🧵⬇️

New: A private equity executive took a top Pentagon role. Then a firm he has close ties to landed a $281 Million no-bid contract from the unit he runs. www.propublica.org/article/geor...

I'll be giving a talk in Bologna in November @visualisingclimate.com about how we visualized the risks of carbon capture @propublica.org! Would love to connect with folks who are also attending. The talk will be focused on this story: projects.propublica.org/why-carbon-c...

The government *still* isn’t tracking how often immigration agents detain U.S. citizens. We are. 500+ Americans have been handcuffed, held at gunpoint or held against their will in Trump’s second term. Our tally is almost certainly an undercount. THREAD (content warning: violence) ⬇️

a note: if you'd like to read this story without repeatedly watching footage of violent arrests, you can click to disable the videos at the beginning

This week, ProPublica revealed that a Russian oligarch close to President Vladimir Putin bankrolled Donald Trump Jr.’s Bahamas wedding festivities. Join our reporters on Sept. 23 for a behind-the-scenes conversation. 🗓️ RSVP: events.propublica.org/don-jr-weddi...

NEW: In late 2024, FBI investigators had enough evidence to launch a sweeping bribery probe that could ensnare top lawmakers, including Sen. Susan Collins. Then Trump was reelected and eviscerated the FBI and DOJ teams handling public corruption probes.

NEW: On social media and in tabloids, photos from Don Jr. and Bettina Trump’s Bahamas wedding were tightly curated. But sometimes, what — or, who — isn’t pictured is just as important as what is. Let’s go on an investigative, visual tour.

“The worst place ever I’ve been in my life," Sakariye Abdi Mohamed, a Somali asylum seeker, told me over the phone from Guantanamo Bay last week. Sakariye is one of 7 or 8 Somalis who are being held at Gitmo. They say guards tell them the order to keep Somalis at the facility comes from DC.

Since I joined ProPublica in January, I have been tracking the massive surge in petitions by immigrants to contest their detention. When I looked closer at the data, I found HUGE disparities in the time it takes certain judges to resolve these cases. THREAD ⬇️ www.propublica.org/article/ice-...

Glad folks are appalled by photos of the "phone booth" cage under an awning, but pls understand: This IG report is likely part of a cover-up. Amnesty Int'l interviewed detainees EIGHT MONTHS AGO who said the cage was half this size (couldn't stand up), had no awning, w feet chained to the bottom.

New analysis from @propublica.org: Ectopic Pregnancy Deaths Have Nearly Doubled. It’s Worse in States With Abortion Bans. www.propublica.org/article/ecto...

Starting in 20 mins (4pm ET) -- Clean Air Act: Dismantling One of the Country’s Bedrock Environmental Laws events.propublica.org/clean-air

Today in @thenation.com: a harrowing piece written from inside the Dilley ICE detention center by Maryam Tahmasebi, a green card holder who's been locked up along with her husband and son for months despite none of them committing any crime. www.thenation.com/article/soci...

🚨 WE HAVE A DEAL! After three years, in a major step forward for our members, we have ratified our first contract with @propublica.org’s management. We deeply appreciate everyone who supported us along the way. Here are some of our big wins👇

NEW: @maxblau.bsky.social spent a year reporting on abuses of farmworkers. It left him wondering: Is there any way to find out whether the produce he buys at the grocery store comes from farms with a record of mistreating workers?

ICE has killed another person, this time by depriving him of life-sustaining medication for a known medical condition. Jesus Manuel Arenas-Silva was detained on Thursday. He was dead by Monday. Per @detentionwatchnetwork.org:

Return-to-office policies need to be flexible ... Shosh explains exactly why.

hey folks! tomorrow at 2 pm ET, I'll be doing an AMA on r/politics about the Prairieland case in North Texas, the questions it raises for the First Amendment, and how it targeted trans folks. my colleague Sam Levine, who attended the trial, is participating too. bring your questions!

Proposed regulations by the Bureau of Land Management would limit when someone can object to permits issued for ranching on public lands. “They’re clearly trying to reduce involvement of anyone other than ranchers,” said one BLM employee. www.propublica.org/article/publ...

Only a quarter of the water the Central Oregon Irrigation District diverted from the Deschutes River was consumed by crops. 45% (!) evaporates before ever reaching landowners. For @propublica.org & @opb.org's investigation into water use in central Oregon.

Really cool to see my little charts in @flowingdata.com's newsletter! Here's our full story: projects.propublica.org/why-carbon-c...

We formed our union three years ago, but we still don’t have a contract. Our members are now releasing public testimonials to demand a FAIR CONTRACT NOW: www.propublicaguild.org/updates/vide...

Logan Jaffe edits and writes our newsletters and has been at ProPublica for almost 9 years: “This is a good job. Still, one of the things that concerns me is layoffs.” Support our fight for a strong contract with seniority-based layoff protections: www.propublicaguild.org

For more, here's our investigation with @drilledmedia.bsky.social:

How BP Execs Influenced a Climate Study That Shaped a Generation of Global Policy The oil giant sponsored an elite Princeton research center to address the climate problem without getting off fossil fuels, handpicking scientists aligned with their interests.

I’ve spent more than a year reporting on how the fossil fuel industry has infiltrated academia over the last 30 years, shaping fundamental paradigms on how to address climate change. My first story in the new @propublica.org and @drilledmedia.bsky.social series, “Carbon Captured”, is out today.

If you ever need a stop motion artist for an editorial project, run (don't walk) to work with Case Jernigan! www.casepaint.com/projects

Leaders around the world are banking on tech advances to solve climate change. One leading idea involves capturing carbon pollution from the air and then burying it underground forever. It sounds practical. Here’s why there's no conceivable way it can work: (THREAD)