Post Reports

Carter, a peanut farmer, Navy veteran and Georgia governor, served just four years in the White House. But his time in office was only part of his legacy. Later in life, he would be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his pursuit of peace and human rights.Elahe Izadi speaks with national political correspondent Dan Balz about the life and legacy of the former president.Today’s show was produced by Ted Muldoon and Arjun Singh. It was edited by Maggie Penman, with help from Reena Flores. It was mixed by Ted Muldoon. Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

It had been five years since Frankie Nole came out from behind prison doors. Now at age 72, Nole shakes his head. He had spent 49 years fighting to get out. He struggled to find work. Managers unfailingly loved his attitude. Then — as always — came the background check and email. “Unfortunately, we have decided to move forward with other candidates …”At a loss for a purpose, two years ago, he started picking up other prisoners on the day they were released. He put out the word to friends on the inside. He persuaded guards to put up notices in prisons across Pennsylvania. Anyone who didn’t have family or friends to get them — he’d be their ride.This story is part of our Deep Reads series, which showcases narrative journalism at The Washington Post. It was written by William Wan. Audio narration comes from our partners at Noa, an app offering curated audio articles.

In 2000, the movie “Erin Brockovich” helped put the small town of Hinkley, California, on the map. The movie stars Julia Roberts as a determined law clerk who takes on the massive utility company Pacific Gas & Electric, which had been dumping chromium-6, the dangerous chemical, in Hinkley's groundwater. Brockovich is depicted gathering evidence and building a legal case against the utility. And she prevails: The movie concludes with a landmark settlement awarded to residents. But that Hollywood ending isn’t the whole story. Many residents say the settlement didn’t go far to cover mounting medical bills and moving costs. And the chromium-6 cleanup proved to be slow. It was stymied by the difficulty of containing widespread contamination and a small local water board lacking the power to enforce stricter standards. Today, Hinkley is a ghost town, and the water there is still contaminated with chromium-6.On the 50th anniversary of the Safe Drinking Water Act, investigative reporter Silvia Foster-Frau has traveled the country reporting on where America has fallen short in its promise of providing clean drinking water. In the final installment in this series, she returns to Hinkley to learn why, even with a massive spotlight, it can be so hard to clean up toxic tap water.Today’s show was produced by Emma Talkoff. It was edited by Monica Campbell and mixed by Sam Bair.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Biologist Daniel Hofstadter and a tiny band of researchers have been carrying out the most expansive barred owl removal effort to date. It’s a project that has killed more than 1,000 owls in Northern California since 2019 across nearly 10 million acres. The biologists believe that their work protecting spotted owls — a species that launched a conservation movement more than three decades ago — will ultimately help safeguard the ecosystem in one of the last old growth forests in the West. Host Martine Powers speaks with national climate reporter Joshua Partlow about the motivation behind the barred owl removal, the brief history of spotted owls in the area, and the ornithologist who carries out the shootings.Today’s show was produced by Bishop Sand. It was edited by Monica Campbell and mixed by Justin Garrish. Subscribe to The Washington Post here.