News Summary - July 4th to July 8th

Strib=Star Tribune PPD=St. Paul Pioneer Press Dispatch

Strib, 7/4, p A7. In "World and Nation" section, a story headlined "Michigan university breaks law in handling killing" describes a cover up of information about an on campus murder. The cover up violates a federal law that requires public reports of incidents of violence on campuses.

Strib, 7/4, p. A11. "She wrote a check, became a target" is a story about use of federal campaign contribution information to harass someone because they worked for a company that does testing using animals.

PPD, 7/4, p. 3A. "Private contractors outnumber troops in Iraq" is based on government data.

Strib, 7/5, p. A3. "Contractors exceed troop level in Iraq" is the Strib version of the story noted above.

Strib, 7/5, p. A8. "Passport crisis diverts diplomats" is based on government data.

PPD, 7/5, p. 1B. "Background checks for volunteers will be free" describes another creative use of government data, i.e. checking up on the backgrounds of school dance chaperones and other volunteers.

PPD, 7/8, p. 1A. "From dreams to desolation" is a story based on government data.