Flint was a wake-up call about access to clean water. Since that crisis, numerous new threats have emerged to Michigan’s waterways, from PFAS to corporate extractions.
Joel Kurth
As executive editor of impact, Joel Kurth oversees newsgathering, investigations, and coverage strategy at Bridge Michigan. He joined Bridge in 2017 after 17 years as an investigative reporter and editor at The Detroit News, where he led investigations that drove policy changes on water shutoffs and surgical instrument sterilization and resulted in criminal charges against government officials. He and his teams have won more than 60 state and national awards across a 30-year career in Michigan that has also included stints at newspapers in the Upper Peninsula and Saginaw. Joel also authors Bridge's popular weekly News Quiz.
Joel lives in West Bloomfield with his wife and two children.
Posted inSpecial report
Michigan roads are infamously bad. But sewers and dams are in rough shape too
Even with new funding to pay for roads, Michigan’s infrastructure is aging rapidly. Solutions are not only expensive but politically divisive in an era of divided government.
Posted inSpecial report
Michigan doles out more in tax breaks than it spends on schools
More than $25 billion in tax breaks go to businesses and Michigan is considered the nation’s 12th most business-friendly tax state. And even though tax bills increase, the amount of money flowing into state coffers is restricted.
Posted inSpecial report
Michigan employs 48K people. A quarter of them work in prisons.
The average Michigan state government worker is a woman who makes $64,000 and works in either corrections or health and human services. That’s just one takeaway from a vast enterprise with a $60B budget.
Posted inSpecial report
Nearly 200 Michigan communities are financially distressed, despite economy
Michigan municipalities cut staff big-time to get through the last 20 years, including 22,000 fewer law-enforcement positions. And while municipalities most have recovered, the state still considers 139 cities, 36 townships and 15 villages financially distressed.
Posted inMichigan Politics Watch
Bridge is doubling down on politics and changing how we fact-check claims
With Michigan expected to play a crucial role in national election politics, Bridge is launching weekly coverage of issues in the race. We also are launching the Michigan Fact Squad to scrutinize political ads.
Posted inMichigan Politics Watch
Michigan wants drivers to learn to love roundabouts. It’s been a slow go.
Michigan is the birthplace of the three-signal traffic light. But roads engineers increasingly are dumping them for roundabouts, which are safer, improve traffic flows and drive motorists nuts.
Posted inMichigan Politics Watch
How to safely navigate roundabouts in Michigan
Tips and facts about roundabouts, which are becoming more common in Michigan. Here’s what you need to know to stay safe.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
As surging Great Lakes threaten Michigan, homeowners beg Canada for help
As Gov. Gretchen Whitmer weighs an emergency declaration for towns besieged by rising waters, a movement is growing to ask Canada to stop dumping millions of gallons of water per day into the Great Lakes through dams in northern Ontario.
Posted inMichigan Politics Watch
John Conyers Jr., champion of Detroit and civil rights, dies at 90
John Conyers Jr. served 53 years in Congress as a representative from Detroit, pursuing progressive causes long before they became popular. He died at his home.