Listening to NPR yesterday, I was blown away by the reporting done by young journalists involving a successful FOIA request. The FOIA'd documents led to an investigative story detailing the hazing and abuse of U.S. sailors in a canine unit at a base in Behrain.
Listen to the NPR version of the story, which summarizes the story so far. An excerpt:
The story came out of the news organization Youth Radio in Oakland, Calif., which teaches journalism to young people.
Youth Radio broke the story online and, since, the current commander of naval installations in Europe, Africa and Southwest Asia, Rear Admiral David Mercer, has ordered a review of the Navy's investigation. Youth Radio has also reported on another review that's been ordered, this time by the Chief of Naval Operations, the Navy's highest ranking officer and a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The deadline for that report is Oct. 6.
Listen to the NPR version of the story, which summarizes the story so far. An excerpt:
Incidents ranged from spraying down uniformed personnel with hoses to directing sailors to simulate sex acts on videotape. ... The (independent Naval) investigation's findings, obtained through the Freedom of Information Act and corroborated by Youth Radio's interviews, show the abuse was widespread in the unit, and in some cases sanctioned and instigated by its leadership.
The story came out of the news organization Youth Radio in Oakland, Calif., which teaches journalism to young people.
Youth Radio broke the story online and, since, the current commander of naval installations in Europe, Africa and Southwest Asia, Rear Admiral David Mercer, has ordered a review of the Navy's investigation. Youth Radio has also reported on another review that's been ordered, this time by the Chief of Naval Operations, the Navy's highest ranking officer and a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The deadline for that report is Oct. 6.
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