The Drill Down

A series highlighting the investigative journalism coming out of The Texas Newsroom.
Join us every month as we take deep dives into topics impacting Texans across the Lone Star State.

Got something you think we should cover? Send any tips over to us at tips@kut.org.

Hurricane Beryl exposes gaps in storm preparation laws for Texas seniors

August 2024 – Houston Public Media’s Colleen DeGuzman and The Texas Newsroom’s Stella Chávez reveal what measures – if any – officials have taken to protect senior living facilities in the wake of Hurricane Beryl.

Madeline Gray / For NPR

Trench collapses have killed hundreds of workers in the US over the last decade, investigation finds

July 2024 – Texas Public Radio’s Josh Peck delves into a joint investigation alongside NPR and the program 1A, looking at how ver the past decade, hundreds of workers across the U.S. have been killed when the construction trenches where they worked collapsed.

Women in Texas prison say a guard is preying on them

June 2024 – Texas Public Radio’s Paul Flahive digs into the a situation at a prison unit, where multiple women are accusing a guard of predatory behavior.

The FBI kept investigating Ken Paxton after he beat impeachment. Will he face federal charges?

May 2024 – The Texas Newsroom’s Lauren McGaughy details information obtained about the FBI investigation into Attorney General Ken Paxton that sheds new light on its scope and activity.

County sheriffs claim Texas Department of Criminal Justice is worsening jail overcrowding

April 2024 – Houston Public Media’s Lucio Vasquez shares what he and KERA’s Miranda Suarez have learned about this statewide issue.

How North Texas police departments approach high-speed chases

March 2024 – KERA News and the Fort Worth Report have been investigating departments’ car chase policies.

Understanding what’s going on with I-35’s expansion in Austin

February 2024 – Transportation report Nathan Bernier of KUT News shares an inside look at his reporting on the $4.5 billion project.

An inside look at the state’s takeover of Houston schools – and what’s next

January 2024 – Reporter Dominic Anthony Walsh of Houston Public Media shares what he’s found via public records requests.