Today on “Post Reports,” how forever chemicals upended the lives of farmers in Maine — and just how widespread the contamination might be.

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Adam Nordell and Johanna Davis bought their farm seven years ago. In late 2021, they discovered that their land and water were contaminated with incredibly high levels of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, also known as “forever chemicals” or PFAS. 

After finding out about the contamination, they shut down all of their farm operations.

More than 2,800 sites nationwide are contaminated by forever chemicals, according to the nonprofit Environmental Working Group. “And that’s only what’s documented,” journalist Keith O’Brien wrote for The Washington Post. “The real total is unknown, and possibly much higher.”

Keith O’Brien’s new book is Paradise Falls: The True Story of an Environmental Catastrophe.

If you haven’t voted for Post Reports in the Webby Awards yet - now is the time! We are nominated for best news and politics episode and best business episode. Please support us by voting, and thank you.

Today on “Post Reports,” the battle over misinformation on Facebook in Ukraine. Plus, how TikTok has created an alternative universe, just for Russia. 

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In Ukraine, Facebook fact-checkers are fighting a war on two fronts: racing to debunk propaganda about the war while also trying to survive it. Naomi Nix reports. 

With Russia cracking down on social media, the Chinese-owned company TikTok has managed to stay online there by banning all new content, even as loopholes let Russian propaganda through. Will Oremus says this basically means there’s a special, censored TikTok just for users in Russia.

“Post Reports” is nominated for two Webby Awards! Please help us win by voting for us for best news episode and best business episode. 

If you missed these episodes when they were published and want to check out the work that’s nominated, go back and listen to “Four hours of insurrection” and “A tax haven in America’s heartland.”

Could Macron lose? That’s the question we put to Paris correspondent Rick Noack, who has been on the campaign trail with the incumbent and the far-right candidate, Marine Le Pen. Today on Post Reports, what to know about the French presidential election.

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French President Emmanuel Macron finished ahead of far-right leader Marine Le Pen in the first round of the French presidential election. But far-right leader Le Pen’s close second-place finish set up a competitive runoff election on April 24.

If you love “Post Reports,” help us win a 2022 Webby award by casting your votes here and here! We are nominated for best news and politics individual episode and best business individual episode.

On today’s episode of “Post Reports,” what life without federal student loan payments has meant for Black women. Plus, the double life of a WNBA star.

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Lamesha Brown bought a house. Alphi Coleman feels like she can finally rest. Lisa Jackson says it “almost feels like a raise.” 

For millions of Americans who took out loans to pay for college, the past two years have offered a chance to live without the burden of education debt. But Black women like Brown, Coleman and Jackson shoulder a disproportionate share of the $1.7 trillion student debt burden. 

Reporter Danielle Douglas-Gabriel talked with women about what they have been able to do while federal student loan repayment has been on pause during the pandemic. 

Plus, one more thing. It’s not unusual for retired professional athletes to have a second career in sports broadcasting, but Chiney Ogwumike is doing both at the same time. The WNBA star/NBA analyst spoke to sports reporter Ben Golliver. 

If you love “Post Reports,” help us win a 2022 Webby award by casting your votes here and here! We are nominated for best news and politics individual episode and best business individual episode.

An unusual warrant. A pattern of questionable no-knock raids. A reporting thread that just kept going. 

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No-knock warrants allow police to force their way into people’s homes without warning. What happens when this aggressive police tactic becomes the rule, rather than the exception? 

“Broken Doors” is a new investigative podcast series about how no-knock warrants are deployed in the American justice system — and the consequences for communities when accountability is flawed at every level. Hosted by Jenn Abelson and Nicole Dungca.

In the first episode of this series, sheriff’s deputies burst through the front door of a man’s home as he slept. He said they pointed a gun at his head and ransacked his home in search of drugs and cash. The no-knock search warrant they used was threadbare. But that wasn’t the worst of it.

The next two episodes are out now wherever you get your podcasts. You can email the “Broken Doors” team with any tips or feedback at [email protected]

Why prosecutors decided not to charge Minneapolis police officer Mark Hanneman in the killing of Amir Locke. Plus, Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson gets confirmed to the Supreme Court. 

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On Wednesday, prosecutors announced they would not be filing charges against a Minneapolis police officer in the killing of Amir Locke during a predawn no-knock raid in February. 

In a statement on Wednesday, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison and Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman said they could not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Officer Mark Hanneman, who fatally shot 22-year-old Locke, had violated the state’s use-of-deadly-force statute. 

Reporter Holly Bailey unpacks the decision not to charge Hanneman, and explains how it has deepened the distrust between the Minneapolis police and the community it is intended to serve. 

Plus, on Thursday, the Senate confirmed Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to serve on the Supreme Court. She is expected to be sworn in this summer when Justice Stephen G. Breyer retires.

Enjoy our podcast? Help us win a 2022 Webby award by casting your votes here and here. We are nominated for best news and politics individual episode, and best business individual episode. 

On Tuesday, Oklahoma lawmakers voted overwhelmingly to ban most abortions in the state, passing a Republican bill that would make performing an abortion a felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison. If the law is signed — and not struck down by the courts — it will take effect this summer. 

The state is also weighing two other bills modeled on the restrictive Texas law that has banned most abortions by employing a novel legal strategy that empowers private citizens to enforce the law through civil litigation. Both bills would take effect immediately if signed by the governor. And that could happen within the next few days.

National politics reporter Caroline Kitchener has been reporting on these laws. She and audio producer Rennie Svirnovskiy went to a pair of clinics in Tulsa to see how providers and patients were bracing themselves for what could be the last days of legal abortion in the state.

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Caroline Kitchener breaks down the bill that passed the Oklahoma state legislature in detail.

How Facebook’s parent company Meta paid one of the biggest Republican consulting firms in the country to orchestrate a nationwide PR campaign against TikTok. And, where we stand with booster shots and covid antivirals.

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Meta, Facebook’s parent company, is paying the Republican consulting group Targeted Victory to try to turn the American public against TikTok. They’ve done everything from placing op-eds in major regional news outlets to promoting dubious stories about alleged TikTok trends that are harming kids. Drew Harwell reports on why Facebook is targeting TikTok.

And, an update from science reporter Carolyn Johnson on efforts to get another booster to older adults and expand access to covid antiviral medicines.

On today’s episode of Post Reports, grim scenes from the Ukrainian suburb of Bucha renew calls for investigations into alleged Russian war crimes. 

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On Saturday, Ukrainian forces and journalists found mass graves in Bucha, a suburb northwest of Kyiv, after Russian forces withdrew from the region. Bucha Mayor Anatoly Fedoruk told The Post that about 270 residents had been buried in two graves. He estimated that 40 bodies were left on the street. 

On today’s episode of Post Reports, foreign correspondent Isabelle Khurshudyan reports on the discovery of these civilians’ bodies, and what it has sparked: international condemnation, calls for an investigation into possible Russian war crimes and vows that sanctions are coming.

As we enter Year 3 of the pandemic, we check back in with intensive care unit nurse Jessica Montanaro, whom we first met in 2021. Now sick with covid and facing a ticking clock on her return to work, she reflects on the past year and the present struggles of her profession. 

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Last year we brought you the story of Jessica Montanaro, an intensive care unit nurse from New York City who found herself battling exhaustion and grief as New York became the epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic, and she cared for wave after wave of patients. 

Today, we’re going back to Montanaro. Producer Bishop Sand reached out to her earlier this year to see how she was faring as we approached Year 3 of the pandemic. He discovered that Montanaro was sick with covid. 

Because the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and New York state had shortened their recovery recommendations for health-care workers sick with the coronavirus, Montanaro was expected back at work after just five days — something she was not happy about. 

During her recovery, she talked to Sand daily. She shared stories of her struggles as a nurse over the past year and described her efforts to address the critical staffing shortages that have affected her team and profession as a whole.