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Because state law keeps secret most accusations made to the New Mexico state dental board, the public has little opportunity to find out if their dentist has been the subject of complaints, Brendan L. Smith writes in the Santa Fe Reporter. The paper's examination of some publicly available records uncovers cases in which the board approved licenses for dentists who had been convicted in other states of molestation and drug abuse. The patients of one Santa Fe dentist accuse her doing unnecessary and substandard full-mouth reconstructions.

Continue ReadingSecrecy Laws Leave Dentists’ Patients Vulnerable
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Because of the advent of DNA forensics, thousands of convictions in the United States have been overturned in light of new physical evidence. According to recent studies, 80 percent of these wrongful convictions were based upon false or mistaken eyewitness testimony. David S. Bernstein of the The Boston Phoenix reports on the outmoded techniques the Boston Police Department uses for eyewitness identification. He describes three convictions that merit another look.

Continue ReadingEyewitness Testimony Is Suspect in Wrongful Convictions
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"The source seeking anonymity isn’t 'bucking the system' -- he is the system," David Ehrenstein writes in L.A. Weekly. It's not just the Jayson Blairs of the news industry who deceive readers; it's those reporters who publish dubious information supplied by public relations representatives whose identity and motives remain concealed. In some journalistic circles, shoe-leather reporting has been replaced by a formula Ehrenstein describes this way: "Promise the bosses at your paper that you will get scoops, then cut deals with highly placed individuals to serve as their conduit to the front pages."

Continue ReadingAnonymous Sources Are No Longer Frightened Little Men

Writing in "The Reliable Source," Richard Leiby (pictured) presents evidence to support the theory that Michael Rubin wrote the memo that was the subject of Jason Vest's story for the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies last week. Leiby describes Rubin as "a thirty-something neocon intellectual" who served as a Coalition Provisional Authority political officer in Iraq for nine months. He is now a scholar at the "hawkish American Enterprise Institute." Rubin wouldn't confirm or deny that he wrote the memo.

Continue ReadingWashington Post Columnist Speculates on Identity of Iraq Memo Writer

The memo that was the subject of Jason Vest's article for many Association of Alternative Newsweeklies papers is published here. The memo writer begins by emphasizing the positive: the sincere gratitude of the Iraqis and bustling commerce in Baghdad. But he warns that the Coalition Provisional Authority is isolated by its "security bubble" and must be careful not to project weakness to insurgents and corrupt Governing Council members. The memo writer, whose name was redacted in the text Vest obtained, warns that it would be "a grave mistake to transfer authority to the United Nations." He claims that an audit of the UN oil-for-food system has already uncovered "serious wrongdoing in banks, and discrepancies of billions of dollars." AAN is making the memo available because of high reader interest and the number of media queries that have come in since Vest's article was posted.

Continue ReadingText of Redacted Memo by U.S. Official in Iraq Posted
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When singer Michael Fracasso "finds, as he frequently does, a certain inflection, he can break your heart or stir your soul on the beat," Dave Marsh writes in The Austin Chronicle. Marsh profiles the talented Austin singer whose wife says he doesn't want fame for himself, only his songs.

Continue ReadingSongwriter Michael Fracasso Pursues Art over Hits

The postwar stabilization of Iraq is not going well, a Coalition Provisional Authority official wrote in a memo in early March. The result: "Baghdadis have an uneasy sense that they are heading towards civil war." The memo describes corruption within the Iraqi Governing Council, resentments about the centralization of power in Baghdad, insufficient security in the Green Zone where CPA officials stay, and black-market sales of U.S.-supplied weapons by Iraqi police. Investigative reporter Jason Vest obtained a copy of the memo from a Western intelligence official and was commissioned to write an article about it for the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies. His piece, "Fables of the Reconstruction," is being published simultaneously on the Web sites of scores of AAN papers.

Continue ReadingU.S. Errors Could Inflame Deeper Conflicts in Iraq, CPA Official Warns

Seattle Weekly writers bash George W. Bush, but the president might take some consolation in the generous contributions he gets by way of the paper's co-owner, Goldman Sachs. The financial investment company's employees "have donated $436,199 to Bush over the course of the president's political career -- and a startling $301,225 in this year's election cycle alone," Josh Feit reports in The Stranger. Goldman Sachs is one of three investors in the Weekly's parent company, Village Voice Media.

Continue ReadingPolitics of Newsweeklies’ Owners and Editorial Staffs Conflict