Shows / Paper Trail
Paper Trail
Investigative reporters at ProPublica chase down evidence of wrongdoing and bring it to light. That evidence can be on paper — or on thumb drives, in secret recordings, from conversations with whistleblowers. Each episode, you’ll ride along as we talk to reporters and their sources, uncover hidden facts and show you the receipts. When we publish what we find, things can change. Laws are passed, corrupt leaders fall, innocent people walk out of prison and sometimes a life is even saved…
Episodes
Paper TrailInside Trump’s Futile Hunt for Noncitizen Voters
President Donald Trump has claimed that hundreds of thousands of people who are not U.S. citizens have been illegally voting in our federal elections, tipping…
Paper TrailSusan Collins and the Case of the Disappearing FBI Probe
When the Trump administration shut down an elite FBI anti-corruption unit, investigations in progress got shelved. ProPublica reporters learned details of one…
Paper TrailWho’s the Shadow President?
Reporter Andy Kroll got his hands on secret tapes of a low-profile bureaucrat named Russell Vought. Turns out, as director of the Office of Management and…
Paper TrailDon Jr.’s Secret Wedding Guest
While investigating the personal wealth of the president’s oldest son, investigative reporters Justin Elliott and Brett Murphy learned something almost too…
Paper TrailThe Predatory Industry Behind MLB’s Dominican Superstar Pipeline
Major League Baseball has built a pipeline in the Dominican Republic to scoop up young players with the potential of superstars like Red Sox hero David “Big…
Paper TrailHow the Planet-Altering Disaster of “Forever Chemicals” Was Kept Secret
We now know harmful “forever chemicals” are likely in the bodies of most people on Earth. Decades ago, 3M knew that these chemicals had seeped into the…
Paper TrailThe True Story of Why Immigration Agents Raided a Chicago Apartment Building
In the middle of a September night last year, hundreds of agents stormed a Chicago apartment building, some rappelling down from a Black Hawk helicopter. They…
Paper TrailHow “Forgive and Forget” Buried a Church’s Dark Secret
Host Jessica Lussenhop received an unusual email: A prosecutor had major concerns about a case in Minnesota. A man had pleaded guilty to felony child sexual…
Paper TrailWhat Happened When Trump Officials Destroyed USAID (From Reveal)
This week, we’re presenting a conversation with ProPublica reporters that originally aired on Reveal’s podcast “More to the Story.” When the administration and…
Paper TrailHow Microsoft’s “Little Workaround” Created a Major Pentagon Threat
A source told reporter Renee Dudley something she found hard to believe: that Microsoft was running tech support for the Department of Defense through China…
Paper TrailShould People Who Killed Their Abusers Walk Free?
In 2024, Oklahoma legislators passed an unusual law: It would create a pathway to freedom for people who could prove that domestic violence was a substantial…
Paper TrailHow a 25-Cent Pill Became a Hundred-Billion-Dollar Business
Reporter David Armstrong was diagnosed with cancer and soon learned that one of his drugs would cost almost $1,000 per pill. He set out to discover why, and…
Paper TrailHow to Fight a Health Insurance Denial With a Little-Known Tool
ProPublica got a tip from a reader named Teressa. Her husband was having a severe mental health crisis, and her health insurance company was denying coverage…
Paper TrailHow to Lose a Car in 15 Days
Local reporters at The Connecticut Mirror heard story after story of drivers having their cars towed and then sold out from underneath them, sometimes in just…
Paper TrailWhat the FDA Won’t Tell You About Your Medications
For years, the Food and Drug Administration told the public that generics are just as safe and effective as brand-name medications. But ProPublica reporters…
- Paper Trail
Introducing “Paper Trail”
Investigative journalism can change the world. Host and reporter Jessica Lussenhop tells the story of how she learned that for herself. Follow this feed for a…