CT Mirror's Long Story Short: Recent Episodes
CT Mirror
Behind the scenes at the home of public policy journalism in Connecticut. Interviews with newsmakers featured in the CT Mirror’s biggest stories and insights from the journalists who cover them. Each week WSHU’s Ebong Udoma joins us to rundown the Sunday Feature with our reporters. We also present specials on the Mirror’s big investigative pieces. Smart conversation about thoughtful journalism. Read our stories at ctmirror.org
Connecticut is home to tens of thousands of three-unit dwellings, many of which are three-story homes in cities. The state mandates they be inspected for fire safety each year, but chronic understaffing at fire marshals' offices means some of the oldest and potentially most dangerous houses are not getting timely inspections.
Two fatal blazes in Waterbury this year highlighted the problem. CT Mirror's investigative reporter Dave Altimari joined host Ebong Udoma to explain what he found when he examined inspection records. You can read his story, written with Andrew Brown and Katy Golvala, here.
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Despite rising rents, skyrocketing home prices and pleas from the Biden administration, Connecticut towns have budgeted just $15 million in federal ARPA funds for housing-related projects.
That represents only around 1% of the $1.5 billion in federal stimulus funding they've received over the past year to help people recover from the pandemic and to allow local leaders to make transformational investments in their communities.
Investigative reporter Andrew Brown joins host Ebong Udoma to explain why housing is so low on the spending list. You can read his story, co-reported with Ginny Monk, here.
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Connecticut's Republican primary voters heeded former President Donald Trump’s call to nominate Leora Levy to run for U.S. Senate, and rejected their party’s convention-endorsed candidate, former house minority leader Themis Klarides. In the aftermath of that vote, CT GOP Chairman Ben Proto’s response to questions about Trump’s influence on the GOP’s identity was to ignore them, repeatedly.
Proto declined to acknowledge even the slightest complication of a win that puts Levy on the same ticket with a gubernatorial nominee, Bob Stefanowski, who has labored to avoid any discussion of the former president.
CT MIrror's capitol bureau chief Mark Pazniokas spoke to host Ebong Udoma about what Levy's win means for her party. You can read his story here.
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One of the states that has scrapped cash bail is New Jersey. The legislature, with the backing of then-Republican Gov. Chris Christie, passed a bill in 2014 that largely eliminated the state’s money bail system. The result: thousands fewer people are held in jail who otherwise might not have been able to purchase their freedom.
Connecticut has been touted as a leader in criminal justice reform, but unlike in New Jersey and several other states, Connecticut has not eliminated its cash bail system — and key members of the criminal justice community are not in favor of uprooting it.
Reporter Kelan Lyons joins host Ebong Udoma to discuss the second in his series of stories on Connecticut's cash bail system.
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According to a CT Mirror analysis, people who are accused but not yet convicted made up about a quarter of those behind bars in June 2013. In January 2022, they made up 42% of those locked up. Many are only awaiting trial in prison because they couldn't afford bail.
Research suggests being jailed pretrial makes people more likely to be convicted and receive harsher sentences than those who remain free until their case is resolved in court.
Reporter Kelan Lyons joins host Ebong Udoma to describe the case of one man left in prison for two months awaiting trial, and how that affected his life. You can read the first of Kelan's three-part series on cash bail here.
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A televised debate Tuesday night will provide the first and only opportunity for a broad audience to see Themis Klarides, the CT GOP’s socially moderate convention choice, engage two Trump loyalists, Leora Levy and Peter Lumaj.
But Republicans say they see little evidence their voters are closely following the mid-summer fight for a spot on the November ballot opposing Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat seeking a third term. The primary is Aug. 9.
Capitol Bureau Chief and CT Mirror co-founder Mark Pazniokas gave host Ebong Udoma the run down on the race so far. You can read his story here.
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In April, when Connecticut's free fare program began, bus ridership was back to 70-75% of pre-COVID levels in Hartford, New Haven and Stamford. By the end of May, weekday ridership in the three cities reached nearly 90% of pre-COVID levels, with weekend numbers even higher, in part due to additional weekend service.
CT Transit officials hope that means more people are now leaving their cars at home, as reporter Tom Condon tells host Ebong Udoma. You can read Tom's story here.
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As of January, hospitals owned 26% of physician practices nationwide, up from 14% a decade ago. An additional 27% of practices were owned by a corporation, such as a health insurer or a private equity firm, leaving fewer than half of physician practices under independent ownership.
As the health care industry becomes more and more concentrated, some small private practices find it difficult to compete with big health care systems. So, instead, they’re joining them. And research shows, that leads to rising healthcare prices.
CT Mirror's Katy Golvala tells host Ebong Udoma why consolidation is concerning for patients. You can read her story here.
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In the fledgling cannabis industry, large companies have quickly risen to dominate the market in states where pot is now legal.
But as regulators begin awarding licenses to select adult-use operators and businesses scramble to build out capacity, cannabis entrepreneurs, customers and communities are increasingly concerned about equity — whether there really is room for everyone.
Massachusetts is ahead of Connecticut -- retail sales began in 2018. CT Mirror's economic development reporter Erica Phillips tells host Ebong Udoma what we can learn from the Bay State's experience. You can read her story here.
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Connecticut lawmakers have agreed to provide a legal “safe harbor” to women from states with restrictive abortion laws who get abortions in Connecticut, as well as the clinicians who provide them.
The law was passed earlier this year, before the Supreme Court voted to overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling.
CT Mirror's Mark Pazniokas spoke with host Ebong Udoma about the reaction to the Roe decision in a strongly pro-choice state like Connecticut. You can read his stories here and here.
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If state officials order tax cuts, campaign on them, then repeal them after Election Day but before taxpayers ever benefit, is that a tax hike? Is it merely annoying but not harmful?
That's the debate underway in this year’s state elections. CT Mirror budget guru Keith Phaneuf joins host Ebong Udoma to explain what's at stake in the Connecticut governor's race.
You can read his story here,
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Public records show that at least five municipalities in Connecticut have allocated millions of dollars provided through the American Rescue Plan Act to equip local police departments with a variety of surveillance technology, which has raised concerns about privacy and civil liberties in the past.
Investigative reporter Dave Altimari tells host Ebong Udoma what supporters and detractors are saying about the tactic. You can read his story, co-reported with Andrew Brown, here.
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During the pandemic, mid-career and older nurses have experienced burnout, left emergency departments and intensive care units for less stressful positions or retired early. Many younger nurses opted for lucrative traveling assignments. Nurses periodically fell ill with COVID and had to stay home, placing further stress on health care facilities.
The approximately 2,000 nurses graduating from Connecticut institutions this year can't fill those gaps in the workforce.
CT MIrror's economic development reporter Erica Phillips talks to host Ebong Udoma about what's being done to plan for the future. You can read her story here.
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In Killingworth, environmentalists and public officials are trying to stop the Boy Scouts of America from selling its wooded 252-acre Deer Lake Scout Reservation to a developer.
The situation, including a lawsuit, is another example of the whack-a-mole approach conservationists are often forced to take to save some of the state’s dwindling supply of open land.
CT Mirror's Tom Condon explains the issues to host Ebong Udoma. You can read his story here.
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In Connecticut, 88% of white parents start off breastfeeding their newborns, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. For Black parents, that number is 84%, and for Hispanic parents, it’s 85%. That means those communities face a disparate impact from the recent baby formula shortage.
Low-income families have also been harder hit. Parents who rely on the federal Women, Infants and Children (WIC) nutrition assistance program face limits on brands and types of formula and the retailers where they can purchase those products.
CT Mirror's health reporter Jenna Carlesso explains what we know about the data to host Ebong Udoma.
You can read her story here.
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Getting food waste — more euphemistically, organics — out of the waste stream won’t solve the state’s waste disposal problems, but it’s widely recognized those problems won’t be solved without doing that.
In reality, many communities and waste operations have been at this for years — some for decades. But they have faced an absence of state policy and little-to-no coordination.
CT Mirror's energy and environment reporter Jan Ellen Spiegel talks to host Ebong Udoma about the logistics of food waste. You can read her story here.
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Is Connecticut really “coming out” of COVID? Is this a “post-pandemic” era?
Last week, amid steadily climbing case rates, Connecticut’s seven-day rolling average topped 13% – a substantial upswing from the end of February, when the first omicron wave subsided and the state’s daily positivity rate hovered around 2% to 3%.
CT Mirror's Jenna Carlesso speaks with host J.D. Allen about how difficult it is for many state residents to adapt to the new "normal."
You can read her story here.
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Across the country, hospital mergers are changing the ways in which people access health care. Most hospitals are no longer independent but instead part of larger health systems that own multiple facilities.
When hospitals merge, they decrease costs by cutting duplicative services. Connecticut's Office of Health Strategy currently has three pending proposals to cut services, including psychiatric services and labor and delivery wards.
Investigative fellow Katy Golvala spoke to host JD Allen about the effect that has on patients. You can read her story here.
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Many small businesses and nonprofits in Connecticut must weigh the solvency of their business against how generous they’d like to be with employee health benefits.
Health insurance premiums are going up largely because health care costs are rising. Over the past two decades, the cost of hospital and medical care has risen faster than inflation.
Academic researchers have also attributed much of the steep rise in hospital costs in recent years to poorly functioning markets; the consolidation of hospital systems through mergers and acquisitions is reducing competition.
CT MIrror's Economic Development reporter Erica Phillips tells host Ebong Udoma what's being done to curb the costs.
You can read her story here.
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For nearly four decades, Malcolm and Margaret Winkley have run a pair of nonprofits in Connecticut that serve individuals with developmental disabilities.
And over the course of those 40 years, the husband and wife used their authority over the two organizations — and the taxpayer money they received — to amass millions of dollars’ worth of real estate.
Now, as Margaret Winkley prepares for retirement, she is looking to cash in on those taxpayer-funded investments by selling off the homes and other related properties.
Reporter Andrew Brown outlines his investigation of the Winkley's finances to host Ebong Udoma.
You can read the story here.
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Konstantinos Diamantis, the former state official under federal investigation, showed a special interest in his daughter’s quest for state employment on a number of occasions in early 2020, according to documents released Friday.
The documents, obtained by The Connecticut Mirror through a Freedom of Information Act request, were compiled in response to a federal subpoena issued in October.
Investigative reporter Dave Altimari tells host Ebong Udoma what the emails reveal.
You can read the story here.
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Activists trying to open Connecticut’s municipal beaches to non-residents have been caught for years in a game of rock-paper-scissors.
Every time they employ a new strategy, the opposition counters.
And while the latest effort — tied to a study of parking rates and local beach budgets — appears to have bogged down, reformers are adjusting again, preparing to make fair beach access a statewide campaign issue this summer.
Reporter Keith Phaneuf joins host Ebong Udoma to explain the ins and outs of a decades-long fight.
You can read Keith's story here.
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Connecticut’s labor force — the portion of the adult population employed or looking for work — contracted sharply at the beginning of the pandemic and has failed to recover to its pre-COVID scale. Economists have attributed much of the persistent workforce deficit to a child care shortage.
The need for investment has only grown more acute over the last two years. About one in four working households in Connecticut have children under the age of 6, and the state was already short 50,000 infant and toddler care slots before the pandemic.
That deficiency has since gotten worse.
CT Mirror's economic development reporter Erica Phillips tells host Ebong Udoma what's being done to look for a fix to this foundational problem for Connecticut's economy.
You can read Erica's story here.
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In September, Gov. Ned Lamont announced that the White House would ask Connecticut to accept “as many as 310 Afghan refugees for resettlement in Connecticut.” The effort has gone better than expected. As of March 18, more than 700 Afghans had come to live in the state, more than double the original target, thanks to a well-coordinated public-private partnership created by Lamont and strong public support. Tom talks to Ebong Udoma about meeting some of the refugees who now call CT home.
Read Tom's story here
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Simply put, is state government too flush with cash? And after two years of a coronavirus pandemic that battered educational and health care systems, businesses and households, should the state be spending more to help? CT Mirror's fiscal expert Keith Phaneuf joins host Ebong Udoma to find out where the extra money may go this election year.
Read Keith's story here
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After walking a budget tightrope with no safety net for most of the past two decades, Connecticut state government has socked away almost $4.8 billion since 2018 and could nearly double that by mid-2023. But while that’s three-and-half times what Connecticut saved in the prior 25 years combined, the state’s debt has somehow gotten worse — by a lot. CT Mirror budget guru Keith Phaneuf breaks it down.
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Last fall Margaret Miner was skimming a New York Times article about how the University of Wisconsin had changed the names of two university theaters, in Madison and Oshkosh, because they had been named for an alumnus associated with the Ku Klux Klan. The name that had been removed from the theaters brought her up short: the renowned actor Fredric March. Reporter Tom Condon tells WSHU's Ebong Udoma what happened next.
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Two companies named in a federal grand jury subpoena investigating former state official Konstantinos Diamantis were the primary beneficiaries of millions of dollars’ worth of hazardous waste abatement work on state buildings since 2017, records show.
An analysis by the CT Mirror shows that the two, AAIS and Bestech, got all but 15 of the 284 purchase orders issued by the state for hazardous waste disposal and demolition from fiscal year 2017 through 2022 — contracts that are paid for by the state and not tied to school construction jobs.
After receiving questions about the arrangement from the Connecticut Mirror, the state abruptly canceled the contract, even though it was supposed to run until April.
Reporter Dave Altimari talks to Ebong Udoma about this CT Mirror investigation.
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For as long as Connecticut's subsidized solar programs have been in place, caps on the number of applicants have frustrated not only businesses and towns that want solar power, but also the state’s solar industry, environmental advocates and many lawmakers. As this legislative session gets underway, a serious effort to raise or even eliminate the caps is emerging. But there is already disagreement over which program caps to alter, how they should be altered, and what, if any, other rules should be overhauled. Reporter Jan Ellen Spiegel talks to host Ebong Udoma to explain what might be on the cards this session.
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As state after state issued lockdown orders, roads across the country emptied. Major highways were eerily deserted, and traffic fell to new lows. But something else started to happen, too. Even though there were fewer cars on the road, more people were dying in car crashes. In 2020, 301 people died in car crashes in Connecticut, according to data tracked by the DOT, a 21% increase over the previous year. Reporter Katy Golvala talks to host Ebong Udoma about why.
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New research over the last few years has helped reduce racial disparities in traffic stops in several communities in Connecticut -- while also improving police effectiveness. That has been accomplished by encouraging police to focus almost entirely on roadway safety and not use traffic stops as a pretext to address other issues. In addition to reducing racial disparities, the system now could lead legislators to consider a significantly different approach to traffic stops. Reporter Tom Condon outlines the proposed changes to host Ebong Udoma.
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Enlisting the help of contractors and his former boss at the state Department of Administrative Services, Konstantinos Diamantis mounted a fast and furious defense in the summer of 2020 against an accusatory memo produced by the building trade unions ahead of a meeting with Gov. Ned Lamont.
The unsigned memo accused Diamantis of using “fear mongering and threats” to engineer an emergency declaration that fast-tracked the replacement of a structurally unsound school in Tolland without competitive bidding — then provided the town with bid specs, a contract and a suggested construction manager.
Reporter Mark Pazniokas talks to host Ebong Udoma about the impact of the memo.
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