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Stephen Engelberg

Stephen Engelberg is ProPublica’s editor-in-chief and served as founding managing editor from 2008–2012.

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Stephen Engelberg was the founding managing editor of ProPublica from 2008–2012, and became editor-in-chief on January 1, 2013. He came to ProPublica from The Oregonian in Portland, where he had been a managing editor since 2002. Before joining The Oregonian, Mr. Engelberg worked for The New York Times for 18 years, including stints in Washington, D.C., and Warsaw, Poland, as well as in New York. He is a member of the Pulitzer Prize Board.

Mr. Engelberg’s work since 1996 has focused largely on the editing of investigative projects. He started the Times’s investigative unit in 2000. Projects he supervised at the Times on Mexican corruption (published in 1997) and the rise of Al Qaeda (published beginning in January 2001) were awarded the Pulitzer Prize. During his years at The Oregonian, the paper won the Pulitzer for breaking news and was a finalist for its investigative work on methamphetamines and charities intended to help the disabled. He is the co-author of “Germs: Biological Weapons and America’s Secret War” (2001).

A Closer Look

What to Expect From ProPublica in a Second Trump Administration

We’ll be devoting a significant part of our staff to detailing what are expected to be dramatic changes in the role of the federal government in the lives of Americans.

A Closer Look

How ProPublica Has Covered Abortion Bans, Immigration and More Issues at Stake in the 2024 Election

As investigative journalists, we focus on the substance of issues, the process of elections and the behind-the-scenes forces that stand to benefit from particular outcomes.

A Closer Look

Why ProPublica Focuses on Issues You May Not See on Cable News

ProPublica’s mission statement encourages “using the moral force of investigative journalism to spur reform through the sustained spotlighting of wrongdoing.” Recently, that impact has been significant — and a bright spot in a dark media landscape.

A Closer Look

El presidente mexicano López Obrador atacó nuestro artículo como “una calumnia” y a nuestro reportero como “un peón.” Aquí presentamos algunos hechos.

Después de que escribimos sobre una supuesta donación de un cártel a la campaña de 2006 del presidente mexicano, López Obrador ha atacado a nuestro reportero Tim Golden. Golden no va a contestar preguntas en una conferencia de prensa de AMLO, pero aquí respondemos a algunas.

A Closer Look

Mexican President López Obrador Called Our Story “Slander” and Our Reporter a “Pawn.” Here Are Some Facts.

After we wrote about a suspected cartel donation to the Mexican president’s 2006 campaign, he’s gone on the attack against reporter Tim Golden. Golden won’t be attending AMLO’s press conferences, but here, we respond to some of his questions.

A Closer Look

Behind the Scenes of Justice Alito’s Unprecedented Wall Street Journal Pre-buttal

The Journal editorial page accused ProPublica of misleading readers in a story that hadn’t yet been published.

A Closer Look

The Origins of Our Investigation Into Clarence Thomas’ Relationship With Harlan Crow

The lavish travel, real estate deal and tuition arrangements have set off a frenzy. Here’s where our reporting started and how we got the story.

Editor’s Note: A Review of Criticisms of a ProPublica-Vanity Fair Story on a COVID Origins Report

A Closer Look

Will the Jan. 6 Hearings Change Anyone’s Mind?

The 1973 Watergate hearings changed popular opinion after Richard Nixon’s landslide win. Here’s what is — and isn’t — different today.

A Closer Look

How Reporters Reconstructed a Deadly Evacuation From Kabul

ProPublica Editor-in-Chief Stephen Engelberg on the challenges and urgency of examining the final days of the war in Afghanistan, even as new conflicts demand our attention.