Dusty Christensen
Indy journalist | Investigations editor at The Shoestring | Contributor
at New England Public Media | Teaching future muckrakers
at UMass Amherst and Smith College
first dot last @ protonmail dot com
- Reposted by Dusty ChristensenOn May Day, teachers staged “walk-ins,” nurses picketed in front of Baystate Medical Center, peace activists protested, and hundreds took to the streets of Springfield. Reporting by @dustyc123.bsky.social and photos by @shelbyyy-xo.bsky.social
- Reposted by Dusty ChristensenMy photo journalism coverage from yesterday of International Workers’ Day in Springfield, Ma with reporting by my colleague @dustyc123.bsky.social
- On May Day, teachers staged “walk-ins,” nurses picketed in front of Baystate Medical Center, peace activists protested, and hundreds took to the streets of Springfield. Reporting by @dustyc123.bsky.social and photos by @shelbyyy-xo.bsky.social
- Reposted by Dusty Christensen“Are you worth only 3%?” Springfield teachers’ union organizing for better conditions. The Springfield Education Association is asking for pay raises, more sick days, and parental leave. They say they’re organizing so educators feel they have a future in the district. Reporting by Sam Spratford
- Reposted by Dusty ChristensenDespite recent attempts to boost the state’s education funding, some western Mass cities and towns are facing big school-budget crunches. Local activists have started to fight for stronger local funding. Reporter divina cordeiro brings us a dispatch from some of those growing movements.
- Reposted by Dusty ChristensenDumb journalists think being a tough interviewer requires writing down gotcha questions in advance. Smart journalists know that the trick is just listening and sometimes going, ‘how so?’
- Reposted by Dusty Christensenmy latest education and environment reporting for western Mass @theshoestring.bsky.social
- Starry skies, natural darkness: Fighting light pollution in Western Mass. Northampton Night Fest aims to celebrate dark skies and join advocates calls for responsible light use. Reporting by Shelby Lee @shelbyyy-xo.bsky.social
- Reposted by Dusty Christensen
- Reposted by Dusty Christensenmy photo essay from yesterday’s demonstrations / protest yesterday with additional reporting provided by @dustyc123.bsky.social Some of my favorite photos from yesterday
- Photo Essay: “Hands Off” protesters rally in Northampton. Well over 1,000 demonstrators gathered Saturday in protest of the Trump administration’s assault on the federal government, immigrants, free speech, and much more. Reporting by Shelby Lee @shelbyyy-xo.bsky.social and @dustyc123.bsky.social
- Reposted by Dusty ChristensenFive international students enrolled at the University of Massachusetts Amherst had their visas revoked and student status terminated by the federal government this week, according to a statement issued by the school Friday night. Reporting by Jonathan Gerhardson @jongerhardson.bsky.social
- Reposted by Dusty ChristensenLet’s support shoestring who says they are paywall free!
- @theshoestring.bsky.social is paywall free and just published a piece I wrote which is in some ways the culmination of 27 separate records request appeals filed over the course of a year. (opinions expressed here exclusively my own) theshoestring.org/2025/04/05/f...
- Reposted by Dusty ChristensenSuch an honor and a pleasure to talk about journalists and their bullshit at the THE STRIKE conference this past weekend with @kimkelly.bsky.social @dustyc123.bsky.social and Sierra Dickey !!
- Reposted by Dusty ChristensenEarlier this month, Northampton settled Eric Matlock’s civil rights lawsuit against city police for $100,000. But that's not the only payout the city has made in recent years. @dustyc123.bsky.social investigates the civil rights lawsuits against the NPD in recent years:
- Must-read reporting from @shelbyyy-xo.bsky.social:
- Massachusetts residents and lawmakers are in a state of limbo waiting for updates on proposed federal cuts to Medicaid. They say the effects of those cuts would be devastating. Those cuts threaten healthcare for 2 million Massachusetts residents. Reporting by Shelby Lee @shelbyyy-xo.bsky.social
- Reposted by Dusty ChristensenMassachusetts residents and lawmakers are in a state of limbo waiting for updates on proposed federal cuts to Medicaid. They say the effects of those cuts would be devastating. Those cuts threaten healthcare for 2 million Massachusetts residents. Reporting by Shelby Lee @shelbyyy-xo.bsky.social
- As the Trump administration slashes funding for climate-change adaptation, green energy, and supports for vulnerable communities, I wrote about the "hydroclimate volatility" in western Mass and worldwide. My latest:
- Reposted by Dusty ChristensenThe city’s payroll data show, out of its top 100 earners, 91 worked for the Boston police and each made more than $380,000 when combining their base pay, overtime, retroactive pay and other compensation. www.wbur.org/news/2025/03...
- For at least the second time in two years, Northampton has settled a civil rights lawsuit against its police department. And there's another civil rights suit still pending in federal court, too. My latest for @theshoestring.bsky.social:
- Five years after Eric Matlock sued over his 2017 arrest on City Hall’s steps, Northampton has agreed to settle. But for how much? City officials won’t say. Our latest from Shoestring investigative editor Dusty Christensen: theshoestring.org/2025/03/12/n...
- Reposted by Dusty ChristensenBehind the scenes of the state’s recent announcement that some marijuana products sold at local dispensaries could be contaminated with yeast and mold, is a legal battle between laboratories fighting over testing methods and standards. Reporting by Sarah Robertson.
- Reposted by Dusty ChristensenEarlier this year, UMass Amherst's Political Economy Research Institute released a database outlining “air toxic” exposures for schools nationwide. Of the 13 schools in the first percentile for highest toxic hazards in Massachusetts, eight are in Hampden County. Reporter divina cordeiro's latest:
- Reposted by Dusty ChristensenBrave to @jeffstein.bsky.social, WaPo's chief economics correspondent, for not wasting any time in stating what must be stated. Hopefully the first of many.
- Reposted by Dusty ChristensenFollowing a dress code crackdown in November and the firing of a unionized staff member in January, the River Valley Co-op union has moved into bargaining, where workers say they have been met with contention. By R. Nicholas and @shelbyyy-xo.bsky.social theshoestring.org/2025/02/16/r...
- Reposted by Dusty ChristensenFor more than a decade, Springfield residents and local environmentalists resisted efforts to build a wood-burning “biomass” power plant in their city. In this deep-dive piece, Regine Spector and Irina Costache look back at the battle against what some critics came to refer to as the “Zombie plant.”
- Reposted by Dusty ChristensenLockheed Martin’s CEO sits on the board of Mass General Brigham, which owns Northampton’s Cooley Dickinson Hospital. That’s a “profound conflict of interest,” local peace activists told The Shoestring’s Dan McGlynn: theshoestring.org/2025/02/12/p...
- At least 593 western Mass workers unionized in 2024, according to federal data — everyone from cannabis dispensary workers in Whatley to Smith College student workers and the staff of the transgender health-care center Transhealth. Now, Starbucks workers hope to continue the wave. My latest:
- Two western Mass Starbucks stores are seeking to unionize with @sbworkersunited.org. The Shoestring's Dusty Christensen found that more western Mass workers unionized in 2024 than in any previous year since at least 2019. The Northampton and Westfield Starbucks workers say that they’re next:
- Public health experts and those in #harmreduction have concerns about the opioid reversal agent Opvee. But the company that makes it, Indivior, has found a vocal ally in its marketing of the drug: police. My latest investigation for @theshoestring.bsky.social and New England Public Media:
- Reposted by Dusty Christensen[This post could not be retrieved]
- Reposted by Dusty ChristensenPublic health experts have concerns about the opioid reversal agent Opvee. But the company that makes it, Indivior, has found a vocal ally in its marketing of the drug: police. Check out @dustyc123.bsky.social's joint investigation w/ New England Public Media: theshoestring.org/2025/02/03/h...
- Reposted by Dusty ChristensenNew F-35 jets are coming to Westfield — a decision the federal government announced last month. The military planes have generated significant noise complaints in other places they're stationed. They'll soon be roaring over the 413, too. Jonathan Gerhardson reports. theshoestring.org/2025/01/14/d...
- Reposted by Dusty ChristensenEasthampton is again in the headlines amid discord on its governing bodies. At a City Council meeting this week, details from a year’s worth of conflicts bubbled to the surface. But the story goes back further than that. A weekend deep dive for you from Shelby Lee: theshoestring.org/2025/01/25/s...
- Reposted by Dusty ChristensenPolice threatening to break a protester's ankle, bragging about punching an arrestee, putting hands on protesters’ necks. That's some of what reporter divina cordeiro has discovered in newly obtained body-camera footage from the state's 2024 crackdown on a pro-Palestine encampment at UMass Amherst:
- So many stunning details in these videos that The Republican's Greta Jochem spent months fighting for. Accountability reporting at its finest: www.masslive.com/westernmass/...
- Reposted by Dusty ChristensenIt is truly wild that it is estimated that more than 20 million people died of Covid and the prevailing vibe is that the world overreacted. That is an astonishing toll! More people died of Covid in the US than in the Civil War. www.pbs.org/newshour/hea...
- In Massachusetts, it's easier for police to seize ppl's cash, cars, etc than in any other state. And they often get to keep it. For @nepublicmedia.bsky.social & @masslive.bsky.social, Greta Jochem & I probed how police & prosecutors seize & spend money in western Mass. www.nepm.org/regional-new...
- New The Shoestring swag! Want one of these comfy t-shirts? Give a one-time $75 donation, or $5/month, today on #GivingTuesday to support local investigative journalism in western Massachusetts. More info here: fundrazr.com/shoestringdo...
- Reposted by Dusty ChristensenNEW: UnitedHealth is the nation’s largest health insurance conglomerate. ProPublica obtained what is effectively the company’s internal playbook for limiting and cutting therapy costs. Here’s what we found.
