Author: William H. Freivogel

The end of December is the season for newspapers to unveil big projects aimed at changing public policy – and, not incidentally, winning prizes. (I know. I’ve done it.) This year, the Kansas City Star printed an unappetizing but provocative series on meat production showing that modern industry methods may be harmful for people’s health. Across the state, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch ran a series on pedestrians killed on railroad tracks and what it saw at the weak industry response. The reader reaction was quite different.

As predicted, the much-maligned Citizens United Supreme Court decision helped unlock hundreds of millions of dollars in unlimited campaign spending in the 2012 election, much of it in support of former Michigan Gov. Mitt Romney and Republican Senate candidates. But contrary to expectations, the money almost entirely failed to elect candidates it supported.