I have a lot of respect for this kind of reporting from ProPublica. It's a really good public service to report news that isn't actually new.
In this case, part of the news is that the FDA's 1986 Shelf-Life Extension Program ( https://www.fda.gov/EmergencyPreparedness/Counterterrorism/M... ) has been working fine for decades. This is important for people to know and it's worth re-publishing from time to time as a reminder.
They had another great article like this last month, https://www.propublica.org/article/hundreds-of-judges-new-yo... , which basically reported "local courts in New York state had terrible problems according to an in-depth 2006 New York Times report and are still terrible in 2017". Great stuff.
Likewise a lot of the reporting on "civil forfeiture continues to happen and continues to be unfair, here are more examples" provides a valuable civic service.
I know it can be tough in a news organization to re-report something that everyone already knows is true. It can certainly be tempting to pass over truly important stuff in favor of seeking out brand-new news -- a fair amount of science reporting is driven by "what's in the journals this week" -- but this kind of long-term focus on "what's still true that needs your attention" is equally valuable and great work.
In this case, part of the news is that the FDA's 1986 Shelf-Life Extension Program ( https://www.fda.gov/EmergencyPreparedness/Counterterrorism/M... ) has been working fine for decades. This is important for people to know and it's worth re-publishing from time to time as a reminder.
They had another great article like this last month, https://www.propublica.org/article/hundreds-of-judges-new-yo... , which basically reported "local courts in New York state had terrible problems according to an in-depth 2006 New York Times report and are still terrible in 2017". Great stuff.
Likewise a lot of the reporting on "civil forfeiture continues to happen and continues to be unfair, here are more examples" provides a valuable civic service.
I know it can be tough in a news organization to re-report something that everyone already knows is true. It can certainly be tempting to pass over truly important stuff in favor of seeking out brand-new news -- a fair amount of science reporting is driven by "what's in the journals this week" -- but this kind of long-term focus on "what's still true that needs your attention" is equally valuable and great work.