The Better Government Association (BGA) is a

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

-based investigative journalism non-profit organization.

History

The BGA was established in 1923 to increase voter participation in

elections, and was originally intended to serve as a non-partisan guide to better government. This was also part of an effort to thwart

Al Capone Alphonse Gabriel Capone ( ; ; January 17, 1899 – January 25, 1947), sometimes known by the nickname "Scarface", was an American organized crime, gangster and businessman who attained notoriety during the Prohibition era as the co-foun ...

's influence from local politics during the

Prohibition era Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacturing, manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption ...

. However, the organization started to focus more on

watchdog journalism Watchdog journalism is a form of investigative journalism where journalists, authors or publishers of a News, news publication fact-checking, fact-check and Interviewing, interview political figure, political and Public figure, public figures t ...

during the 10-year tenure of George E. Mahin as executive director. Under Mahin's leadership, the BGA began investigating the administration of Chicago Mayor Richard J. Daley. The BGA has also developed a strong relationship with the media, often working together with journalists on investigations. This was especially apparent during the tenure of George William Bliss as the BGA's chief investigator from 1968 to 1971. Bliss had previously worked for the ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...

'', and would later return to the ''Tribune'' as an investigator in 1971. Even when the BGA conducts its investigations on its own, a press conference is usually called to discuss the results. One of the BGA's most famous investigations took place in 1977 when it worked with the ''

Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily nonprofit newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has long held the second largest circulation among Chicago newspaper ...

'' to open and operate a fake bar called Mirage Tavern. The investigators uncovered widespread corruption, including tax skimming and kickbacks, among Chicago officials, and led to a 25-part series on the ''Sun-Times''. The sting led to numerous terminations and reforms in the city. However, the investigation was denied a

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prizes () are 23 annual awards given by Columbia University in New York City for achievements in the United States in "journalism, arts and letters". They were established in 1917 by the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made his fo ...

due to concerns that the ''Sun-Times'' had engaged in unethical deception to get the story.

Organization

The BGA has roughly nine investigators (as of 2014) on its Investigations team, which has always partnered with media organizations on reporting and monitoring government bodies. Over a five-year period, the team has produced 290 investigations, about 90 of which have resulted in "tangible reforms". The BGA's Policy and Civic Engagement teams focus on advocacy that promote good government. The Investigations and Policy teams operate autonomously, to ensure a separation between the BGA's reporting and advocacy. In addition to partnerships with traditional media outlets like the ''

'', the BGA has also looked into forming relationships with online and niche publications, including ''

Crain's Chicago Business ''Crain's Chicago Business'' is a weekly business newspaper in Chicago, IL. It is owned by Detroit-based Crain Communications. History The first issue of ''Crain's Chicago Business'' is dated April 17, 1978. In 1977, when Crain Communicati ...

'', '' Catalyst Chicago'', and the '' Chicago News Cooperative''. The BGA maintains an Illinois Public Salaries Database, which allows the public to research the compensation for employees in all levels of state government. The BGA submitted nearly 1,000 Freedom of Information Act requests to update the database in 2020. The database separates bonus pay and overtime from base salaries, and also allows users to track the work histories for individual employees.

Awards and notable achievements

The BGA and the Center on Wrongful Convictions won the Edward R. Murrow Award for a June 2011 investigation into the high cost of wrongful convictions. The investigation documented the human and financial toll of alleged government and police misconduct that led to 85 people wrongfully incarcerated for violent crimes they did not commit. The BGA was awarded the Eugene S. Pulliam First Amendment Award, presented by Sigma Delta Chi and the

Society of Professional Journalists The Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ), formerly known as Sigma Delta Chi, is the oldest organization representing journalists in the United States. It was established on April 17, 1909, at DePauw University,2009 SPJ Annual Report, lette ...

, in 2017 for their work that led Chicago Mayor

Rahm Emanuel Rahm Israel Emanuel (; born November 29, 1959) is an American politician, advisor, diplomat, and former investment banker who most recently served as List of ambassadors of the United States to Japan, United States ambassador to Japan from 2022 ...

to acknowledge he had been conducting government business using private email accounts to circumvent public records laws. In 2018, BGA reporters won the Thomas L. Stokes Award for Best Energy Writing from the National Press Foundation for a series on lax nuclear oversight. The BGA shared the 2022 Pulitzer Prize for Local Reporting with the

for its investigation into Chicago's long history of failed building- and fire-safety code enforcement.

References

External links

''Richard H. Driehaus Awards for Investigative Reporting 2020''
YouTube {{Authority control Non-profit organizations based in Chicago American journalism organizations Investigative journalism Organizations established in 1923 Government watchdog groups in the United States