Impact journalism: Tribune stories that made a difference in 2023

For more than 150 years, The Tribune has taken pride in journalism that makes a difference in the lives of our readers, of holding the powerful to account on behalf of our neighbors.

That devotion to journalism never wavered, and in 2023 we went to great lengths to bring you more local stories that matter and ensure our coverage reflects the community. In this report, I will review some of the stories that made a difference here in the South Bend region.

Local journalism is a community's most trusted source because it helps residents understand various issues affecting them; it keeps government officials accountable, encourages debate and political participation; and it can lead to social change. Local journalism matters more now than perhaps any time in our nation's history.

So, in 2023, the USA TODAY NETWORK, the Tribune's parent company, created the Center for Community Journalism, a division that's focused primarily on local news. The CCJ consists of more than 150 community papers ― including The Tribune ― across the country. Its mission is to deliver content closest to our readers' lives by channeling all available resources into exclusive coverage of communities like South Bend.

In addition, The Tribune formed a partnership with WNDU-TV with a goal of widening our reach and bringing you more local news. We collaborated on a few projects in 2023, and that relationship continues to grow.

As part of our goal to increase community engagement, we started Tribune Talks, a virtual forum where we discussed important issues in our community. Our topics last year included gun violence, affirmative action, coping during the holidays, how the GM-Samsung multi-billion-dollar electric vehicle battery plant will impact the region's economy, and we hosted a conversation between the two South Bend mayoral candidates.

Our journalists also covered some controversial topics and did some solution-based reporting. When St. Joseph County commissioners voted to cut funding for a much-needed behavioral crisis center after more than two years of planning, our investigation uncovered how poor communication delayed the project. We also wrote an editorial that questioned the commissioners' decision to "pause" the center's construction.

In addition, we covered rallies and spoke with various community groups who opposed the decision. Ultimately, the commissioners expressed support for the center in public statements and gave $600,000 of opioid settlement money. But South Bend Mayor James Mueller provided the $2.66 million to pay for the center, and with the help of various other partners, the center opened Sept. 29.

The South Bend Community School Corp. finished a two-year process of studying its enrollment and programs before voting to reorganize the district, including closing Clay High School and Warren Elementary at the end of this academic year. Early in that process, The Tribune successfully petitioned Indiana Public Access Counselor Luke Britt to tell the school corporation it was legally required to open up to the public the meetings of an advisory task force administrators formed to discuss building use options. Those meetings had been taking place in secret.

Throughout last year, we collected and shared how the plans would specifically affect families across the district, examined the options for a proposed county career center, and followed the opposition from Clay families, including through the courts and most recently through the possible opening of a new charter school.

In October, the second of two former Elkhart police officers was sentenced to prison after The Tribune in 2018 obtained video of the pair beating a handcuffed suspect.

U.S. District Court Judge Philip P. Simon called the footage "one of the most shocking things I've seen on video, and I've seen a lot."

The former officer himself told the judge the fallout from that incident helped him accept responsibility and become a better person and helped the Elkhart Police Department build a better culture.

Early last year, we brought attention to a Three Percenters tattoo prominently displayed on the hand of a retiring South Bend police officer. We gave voice to community members concerned about the possible implications of a local officer showing allegiance to an extremist group with members convicted of involvement in the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol and in the plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

In a year that saw St. Joseph County Commissioners and the county council vote to close Portage Manor, the county home for people with mental illness and other disabilities, The Tribune kept shining light on the process. Urging transparency in the deliberations was only part of the job, as much reporting still needed to be done after the votes to close became final.

We explored the options available to residents and the challenges they faced, including a few residents who moved to a facility in Gary where someone had recently been shot. We also accompanied the last resident to leave and told the story of them and their loved ones.

We helped the community to follow the multiple political changes in the St. Joseph County Department of Health, including changes in the health officer, in board members and in the departure of several employees as new members of the county council exerted their influence.

Our reporting uncovered problems in the city of South Bend's Human Right Commission's office. Michael Patton, the city's diversity, compliance and inclusion officer, later resigned, although he declined to say why.

There were several high-profile fatal shootings in South Bend in 2023, but the murders of 12-year-old Josiah Small and 11-year-old T'yon Horston gripped the community. Tribune reporters covered the stories with care, as we helped the community understand who the young men were. We talked with authorities, community leaders and residents to learn about how such shootings impact a community, including the families.

Also, The Tribune explained how Beacon Health System was shedding hundreds of Medicaid patients in St. Joseph, Elkhart and LaPorte counties as it tries to rein in costs that spiked in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. We learned that many of the patients were being referred to doctors at clinics outside of Beacon, including the nonprofit HealthLinc and Heart City Health.

In addition, we brought you the latest development at Praxis addictions rehabilitation center in Mishawaka, where three patients died in early July. The facility's license was later revoked and nine patients sued Landmark Recovery, Praxis' parent company.

Other coverage that made a difference in area residents' lives included stories about the city of South Bend's program to install solar-powered lampposts in neighborhoods, curb and sidewalk repair, and furnace and roof repair and replacement. We published a monthly listing of food pantries and giveaways for the needy, a weekly list of health events and support groups, and many other activities to improve and enrich our lives.

We are excited about 2024 as we look to expand our coverage of issues that affect you and your families. But we can't do this work without your support. Some of you have given us feedback; please continue to do so, as I expect you to hold us accountable. I also urge you to call us with news tips and story suggestions. And, please, subscribe; that's the only way The Tribune will remain in this community for another 150 years.

Ismail Turay Jr. is The Tribune's executive editor and Midwest Group editor of the Center for Community Journalism. He can be reached at ituray@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: These are the most impactful Tribune stories of 2023