More than a year since a devastating copper mining accident in Zambia, nearby residents still live with poisoned soil and water. They’re casualties of a global geopolitical battle over the metals and minerals needed for AI data centers, electric cars and renewable energy. examination.news/4t0TLgM
🏆 The Examination has been nominated in The #Webby Awards! Our investigation into the poisonous lead trade is a finalist for the Best Individual Editorial Feature. And you can help us win a People’s Voice Award here by voting here before April 16 👇
After we found lead poisoning, a battery recycling factory in the Republic of Congo was shut down. Officials promised medical care and a cleanup and @who.int offered to help, but since then, residents have heard nothing. Read the full story 👇
🗣️Your opinion matters. We are conducting an audience survey to better understand your needs and interests. Your feedback helps us improve our reporting. Take the survey: examination.news/audience-sur...
We want to hear from you! Help shape the future of our newsroom by taking our audience survey. Your feedback will help us understand what you value about our reporting and how we can best deliver it to you. examination.news/audience-sur...
In Iran, Israel’s strikes hit oil, gas and water systems, homes and hospitals—poisoning air and water, collapsing healthcare, and driving long-term disease. Even after the war ends, the health consequences could last for decades. Read more in our latest newsletter.
Researchers warn nicotine-free vapes and pouches could be even more potent and addictive than actual nicotine. Here’s what we know about the safety of these products and how they’re regulated: www.youtube.com/shorts/4tz-I...
In India, pollution from coal mining is making residents sick. In the Democratic Republic of Congo, mining for cobalt bought by European carmakers has allegedly poisoned workers. The corporations making people sick, covered weekly in our newsletter:
In the east Indian town of Jharia, India’s coal boom is fueling the economy. But families picking coal in the shadow of the mines breathe in toxic dust and fall sick.
Last year, we teamed up @premiumtimes.bsky.social and @nytimes.com to report on how Nigerian battery recycling plants supplying U.S. carmakers poisoned a community in Ogijo. That investigation led to a documentary, which just won an @opcofamerica.bsky.social award!
Watch it here:
In partnership with The Independent, Leslie Liang reports for @theexamination.org, on how the colorful packaging and fruity flavors that make nicotine pouches appealing to adults also make them tempting — and dangerous — for kids
Read here: www.the-independent.com/news/world/a...
Nigeria joins Kenya and Côte d’Ivoire in banning cheap alcohol sold in plastic and foil pouches. Popular among youth, these products can cost less than $1 and contain up to 40% alcohol. That and more in our latest newsletter: examination.news/4boC5UL
Packaged like candy. Flavored like fruit. Enough nicotine to poison a child. Reports of nicotine pouch poisonings nearly doubled to 4,254 from 2024–2025, most involving kids under six. Regulators are struggling to keep up. examination.news/4sHKPMN
Chile’s warning labels cut sugar in packaged foods and drinks, but many companies reduced thesugar and added artificial sweeteners. Now they’re everywhere. Researchers say their long term health effects remain unclear. @willreport.bsky.social reports: examination.news/4stMh5f
Knock-off marijuana products sold in Wisconsin contained mold, pesticides, and illegal amounts of THC — two tested at over 200x the federal legal limit. These unregulated products could cause panic attacks, vomiting and seizures. Read more: www.theexamination.org/newsletter
⚠️ Juul paid an “independent” nicotine expert thousands to lobby the Israeli government against a high‑strength vape ban — raising questions about the integrity of the scientists influencing vaping policy. @mattchapman.bsky.social reports: www.youtube.com/shorts/nf7zL...
Europe’s biggest banana giant exposed its Ivory Coast farmworkers to toxic pesticides that are banned in the EU, and food industry-funded regulators in South Africa weakened a public health warning against sugar. More in this week’s newsletter: www.theexamination.org/newsletter
Barbie on sugary chocolate milk bottles is fine and vape ads can claim products are "less harmful" than cigarettes. Public health experts say SA’s ad industry watchdog has dangerous loopholes. Read more from @theexamination.org. bhekisisa.org/health-news-...
A South African regulator partially funded by Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and KFC blocked an ad warning about sugar’s health risks. Now, a court may decide whether that ruling was fair.
Our latest investigation with @bhekisisa.org ⬇️
Have you or someone you know had a health problem after consuming energy drinks?
Help us report for a @theexamination.org investigation on one of the world's fastest growing beverage markets
Have you or someone you know experienced adverse health effects after consuming energy drinks? Help guide our global health reporters by filling out this survey: www.theexamination.org/articles/hel...
The Examination investigated the global business of recycling car batteries, revealing that communities are being poisoned by toxic dust from unsafe lead smelting. See how our reporting drove real change in Republic of Congo and how you can support this work. www.youtube.com/shorts/cI31C...
The Examination and @nytimes.com have won the Selden Ring Award for Investigative Reporting for exposing Nigerian battery recycling plants that were poisoning communities with lead. Our investigation prompted factory closures and government testing. Read more: bit.ly/4qsz8rw
The EU’s member states are negotiating a proposal to hike tobacco taxes for the first time since 2014. The latest draft weakens earlier proposals — a win for Big Tobacco, which has lobbied for lower taxes on its newest products. Published with @derstandard.at and @genevahealthfiles.bsky.social.
Across the globe, reporters are facing unprecedented threats, warns our Executive Director Ben Hallman. Here’s how you can help journalism in the moment it matters most ⬇️
Courts around the world are still grappling to hold Big Tobacco accountable. The latest ruling comes from South Korea:
Big Tech social media platforms are fighting lawsuits that some compare to those that forced Big Tobacco to pay billions and curb marketing in the U.S.
Here’s how those lawsuits played out 👇
Residents of Gloster, Mississippi, say toxic emissions from a wood pellet factory owned by the U.K. bioenergy giant Drax have made them sick. The facility plans to increase production, despite its neighbors’ objections. Read more: bit.ly/3M2IGLK
Mississippi residents are linking air pollution from a wood pellet factory owned by Drax to illnesses, while the facility plans to emit more toxic chemicals. Plus, the alcohol industry ramps up lobbying as young people back off booze. More in this week’s newsletter: bit.ly/4a2DH5X