Al Shaw
Al Shaw is a Senior News Application Developer at ProPublica.
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Al Shaw is a Senior News Application Developer at ProPublica. He uses data and interactive graphics to cover environmental issues, natural disasters and politics.
A year before Hurricane Harvey devastated Houston, Shaw was part of a team that produced “Hell and High Water,” which warned of the region's vulnerability to coastal storms. The project won a Peabody Award in 2017. Shaw's project, “Losing Ground,” about the century-long erosion of Louisiana's coast won a Gold Medal from the Society for News Design. His interactive maps surrounding FEMA's response to Hurricane Sandy were honored with the Society of Professional Journalists’ Sigma Delta Chi award. Before joining ProPublica, Shaw was a designer/developer at the political news website Talking Points Memo.
How Disaster Aid Recipients Voted on Sandy Relief
Though the Sandy relief bill passed both the Senate and the House, many members of Congress voted no despite their own states receiving millions of dollars in federal disaster assistance in 2012.
What Kind of Body Scanner Does Your Airport Have?
Nearly 100 backscatter scanners were removed from major airports recently to speed up lines. See if they're still in use at your airport.
How Much Did Independent Groups Spend Per Vote?
Although an unprecedented amount was spent by outside groups in an effort to influence the 2012 campaign, the candidates with the most super PAC funding were defeated Tuesday. Here's a look at how much outside groups spent per vote in a few of the notable races.
Introducing a Free the Files API
Today we're opening a Free The Files API which will offer developers access to markets, stations, committees and filings data from our crowdsourced app
Free the Files: Help ProPublica Unlock Political Ad Spending
Outside groups are spending millions of dollars hoping to influence political campaigns – but they're hard to track down. Detailed information about spending is locked in documents filed at TV stations across the country. Help us uncover this spending by reviewing documents.
How Some Nonprofit Groups Funnel Dark Money Into Campaigns
Explore how tax-exempt groups active in the 2010 election spent millions of dollars on campaigns, sometimes reporting less political spending to the Internal Revenue Service than they did to election officials.
Graphic: Who are the Super PACs' Biggest Donors?
An interactive chart showing the share of all contributions given by the top ten donors to each of the 12 largest super PACs.