OUR TEAM

504-289-8212
grussell@theadvocate.com

Gordon RussellManaging Editor for Investigations
Gordon Russell is managing editor of investigations. He has been reporting in southeast Louisiana since 1999, when he joined the Picayune’s River Parishes bureau. The stories he has covered since then have included Hurricane Katrina and its grim aftermath; the downfall of former Mayor Ray Nagin; the brazen self-dealing in Louisiana’s prison system; and the online-commenting scandal at the U.S. Attorney’s Office. He was part of the team that produced “Tilting the Scales,” which won the Pulitzer Prize for local reporting in 2019. Before moving to Louisiana, he worked as a reporter at The Herald-Tribune in Sarasota, Fla., and at The Dominion Post in Morgantown, W.Va.

504-636-7416
jadelson@theadvocate.com

Jeff AdelsonData Journalist
Jeff Adelson is a data journalist based in New Orleans who uses statistics and cartography to shine light on trends, probe into injustices and provide context for the issues facing Louisiana. He was the lead data analyst on The Advocate’s 2018 Pulitzer Prize-winning series, “Tilting the Scales,” which used thousands of court records to show the racial disparities that resulted from convictions by non-unanimous juries. He has also used data and public records to investigate natural disasters, police responsiveness and other topics. Jeff has covered a variety of beats at The Times-Picayune and The New Orleans Advocate, including City Hall, the Legislature and governor’s office, hurricane and flood defenses and criminal justice in St. Tammany Parish. When not sifting through spreadsheets, searching Python scripts for syntax errors or grousing under his breath about agencies that send data in PDF format, Jeff can usually be found posting pictures of his cats on Twitter.

215-285-9083
jcranney@theadvocate.com

Joseph CranneyInvestigative Reporter
Joseph Cranney is an investigative reporter based in New Orleans. He’s often digging for stories that expose corrupt government officials or injustices within the legal system, but is interested in shining a light on misconduct no matter where it’s hidden. In South Carolina, he spent a year investigating the state’s judges and revealed many examples of incompetence or abuse. He also wrote stories that prompted the convictions of a sheriff and an elected prosecutor. He is the founder of Local Matters, a weekly newsletter that compiles strong examples of local watchdog reporting from around the country.

225-388-0372
agallo@theadvocate.com

Andrea GalloInvestigative Reporter
Andrea Gallo has been on the investigative team since 2018. She loves investigative reporting, narrative storytelling, public records battles and finding good verbs. She is open to telling stories of all kinds, but is particularly drawn to those that focus on abuses of power. Her past reporting has prompted the state’s Supreme Court to refashion its system for investigating judges, exposed sexual harassment allegations against an LSU football coach and forced the Louisiana Attorney General’s office to release documents about sexual misconduct. Whether she is gearing up to write a story or filing a public records request, Taylor Swift is usually blaring in the background. Few of the stories she writes are uplifting, but she still believes in happy endings.

913-626-2024
skarlin@theadvocate.com

Sam KarlinInvestigative Reporter
Sam Karlin joined the investigative team in 2021, following a stint at the state Capitol bureau where he covered the 2019 governor’s race, the Legislature and state politics. His work focuses on state government, including contracting, campaign finance and ethics. Before working at the Capitol bureau, he covered business for The Advocate, chronicling the shortcomings of Louisiana’s tax incentive programs. He is a 2017 graduate of LSU and is a native of Lafayette, Colorado.

504-343-9307
jsimerman@theadvocate.com

John SimermanInvestigative Reporter
John Simerman is an investigative reporter based in New Orleans, but his beat is Louisiana and the injustice, corrupt leaders and legal drama that flourish here. He has reported on the courts since 2011, and was the lead reporter on the “Tilting the Scales” project. He enjoys holding power accountable to the public, and he holds dear the trust that sources place in him. He loves tips, especially when they come with documents. Also, a good yarn. Before arriving in Louisiana, John reported the news in the East Bay of San Francisco for 16 years.

OUR WORK

In this Louisiana town, racist policing, bogus arrests and the story of a community’s eroding trust

READ STORY

‘Tilting the Scales’ series:
10 key stories about Louisiana’s split-jury law

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Looking East: New Orleans East lacks retail, even as population has rebounded
LSU Health: Nepotism, favoritism and retaliation
Jeff Landry spent $420K+ from campaign donors on his own staffing company
After botched Hurricane Ida evacuation, Bob Dean’s nursing home empire crumbles
‘Spreading like wildfire’: Rural Louisiana, with lowest vaccination rates, confronts Delta surge
Mom sues over son’s death from smoking roach killer in private Louisiana jail: ‘Going to haunt me’
A declining force: NOPD hampered by retirements, officers seeking greener pastures
Where do all of New Orleans’ carjacked vehicles wind up? Most don’t go far
Collapsed: An insurance market in crisis

EDITORIAL POLICY – NONPROFIT FUNDING

The Times-Picayune, The Advocate, The Acadiana Advocate and The Shreveport-Bossier City Advocate maintain full editorial control over the stories and other content paid for by the Louisiana Investigative Journalism Fund. Funders do not have special access to the newsroom or input into what investigations are pursued.

Donors are not informed about the reporting process, nor are they allowed to review content prior to publication.

The Louisiana Investigative Journalism Fund is a component fund of the Greater New Orleans Foundation, a Section 501(c)(3) organization. GNOF has exclusive legal control over all funds received. Accordingly, contributions to the Fund are treated for tax purposes as gifts to a Section 501(c)(3) public charity and are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.