Folo PA

With Immigration and Customs Enforcement pivoting from plans to convert some of its new warehouses to detention facilities, one lingering issue is that local governments have lost millions of dollars in annual revenue because the properties are tax-exempt.  Some officials had been pushing for payments in lieu of taxes from the federal government.   But now, it looks like that won’t happen because,...

Every week, the Pennsylvania Capital-Star recaps our top stories with Natalie Bencivenga's The Week in Focus.  It’s a way to get caught up on some news you might’ve missed in just a few minutes as you head into your weekend. Folo PA features Pennsylvania-focused audio journalism that emphasizes context, accountability and community impact.  The podcast is hosted and produced by the Capital-Star's...

Hazing is a crime in Pennsylvania. It wasn't always that way, but elected officials changed state law after a Penn State student died in 2017 of injuries he suffered at a fraternity party.  Now, the state Attorney General’s Office has used the law for the first time to charge a former Bucknell University football coach in the death of 18-year-old freshman recruit Calvin “C.J.” Dickey Jr.  The Penn...

Data center development recently provoked finger-pointing in the state’s gubernatorial race, with incumbent Democrat Josh Shapiro and challenger Republican state Treasurer Stacy Garrity each accusing the other of flip-flopping on the issue.  The Capital-Star’s Ian Karbal did a deep dive into that dynamic and sat down to talk about it alongside Peter Hall, who’s done extensive reporting on data cen...

Folo PA features Pennsylvania-focused audio journalism that emphasizes context, accountability and community impact.  The podcast is hosted and produced by Pennsylvania Capital-Star Audio Reporter Emily Previti, with editing by PCS Editor-in-Chief Tim Lambert. Episodes are reported by Emily, Tim and their colleagues Peter Hall, Ian Karbal and Whitney Downard.  Listeners also will hear content from...

As with any reporting project, some information gets left on the cutting room floor.  So, what we'd like to do is pull back the curtain a bit on what went into the ICEd Out limited series from Folo PA, the Pennsylvania Capital-Star’s podcast, produced by Emily Previti and edited by Tim Lambert.  Tim and Emily's conversation also provides more context for the immigration detention facility proposed...

Immigration and Customs Enforcement coming into Schuylkill County seems familiar to some people there – and not in a good way.  They say it continues a pattern that dates back hundreds of years – to the beginning of the coal mining industry – of outsiders exploiting the community. ICEd Out is a limited series from Folo PA, the Pennsylvania Capital-Star’s podcast, produced by Emily Previti and edit...

Those who've been most vocal about the plans for an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Tremont Township agree that the rural area cannot support the operation that the federal government has in mind – and that it will only exacerbate the community’s economic and environmental issues.  Others, however, see an opportunity to address them. ICEd Out is a limited series from Folo PA, the P...

Joyce Wetzel owns the daycare center right next door to the former Big Lots warehouse in Tremont Township, Schuylkill County, poised to become an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility. In trying to navigate the uncertainty she's facing, Joyce - who's been in business for more than four decades and lived in the adjacent borough her entire life - has met mainly indifference from her elected r...

Pennsylvania Capital-Star audio reporter Emily Previti introduces this series about the impact on a community poised to host an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility as part of the federal government’s mass deportation initiative.