Marian Wang
Marian Wang was a reporter for ProPublica, covering education and college debt.
Marian Wang was a reporter for ProPublica, covering education and college debt. She joined ProPublica in 2010, first blogging about a variety of accountability issues. Her later stories focused on how rising college costs and the complexity of the student loan system affect students and their families. Prior to coming to ProPublica, she worked at Mother Jones magazine in San Francisco and freelanced for a number of Chicago-based publications, including The Chicago Reporter, an investigative magazine focused on issues of race and poverty.
As Oil Plumes Are Confirmed, Scientist Calculating Flow Rate Blasts BP
The U.S. has confirmed the existence of giant underwater oil plumes emanating from the BP spill, though at low concentrations, even as scientists remained frustrated at not being able to measure how much oil is still flowing.
by Marian Wang,
Read Documents Showing BP's Pattern of Neglecting Its Own Safety Policies
Documents detailing BP's internal reports on safety problems show how pervasive the problems were in its operations in Alaska, California and Texas.
by Marian Wang,
Gulf Judges' Oil Ties May Present Conflicts of Interest
Finding a judge to hear federal cases against BP could be daunting because of conflicts of interest. More than half of the senior judges in the Gulf districts have ties to the oil industry, AP reports.
by Marian Wang,
Four Reasons Why Measuring Flow in BP's Spill Matters
Having a lower estimate for the amount of oil that has flowed into the Gulf could mean BP would be subject to fewer financial penalties, from royalties on the lost oil to fines for spilling it, as well as helping its public image.
by Marian Wang,
Former Valdez Cleanup Worker Warns of Toxic Dangers in the Gulf
Workers cleaning up the Exxon Valdez spill in 1989 reported the same health problems the workers in the Gulf are now reporting, and oil company officials are making the same excuses about why those problems aren’t important.
by Marian Wang,
BP, Prior to Gulf Accident, Said Measuring Oil Flow Was 'Critical' to Effective Response
BP has resisted efforts to reassess the flow of oil into the Gulf of Mexico, saying more accurate measurements would be irrelevant to fixing the problem. That contradicts a spill response plan prepared by the company before the disaster.
by Marian Wang,
Inspectors Fault Beryllium Safety at Hanford Nuclear Reservation
A program to protect workers from beryllium while cleaning up the Hanford nuclear site in Washington may have exposed them to avoidable risk, according to a new report by the Department of Energy.The report cites "management weaknesses."
by Marian Wang,
Under Cheney’s Influence, Wyoming’s Oil Ties Flooded MMS
A report details the cozy connection between the energy industry and political figures in Wyoming -- especially during the Bush years, when Vice President Dick Cheney placed several allies in important jobs at the Interior Department.
by Marian Wang,
Air Sampling Finds a Compound in Toxic Dispersant Is Also in the Air
Air samples taken near workers in the Gulf of Mexico oil spill have indicated the presence of butoxyethanol, a component in the dispersant used by BP, known as Corexit. Though no causal relationship has been made, some workers have reported symptoms similar to those caused by 2-butoxyethanol.
by Marian Wang,
A Mystery: When Did Gov’t Exempt Gulf Drilling from Detailed Enviro Reviews?
The Minerals Management Service waives environmental studies for oil drilling in much of the Gulf of Mexico. But even the government seems unsure how that decision came about.
by Marian Wang and Ryan Knutson,