The hottest Public records Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
Category
Top News Topics

From the Old Editor: "We Care If It's True. We Don't Care Why."

TK News by Matt Taibbi • 10503 implied HN points • 09 Feb 26
đź“° News Public records
  1. Racket is relaunching as a bigger investigative newsroom with a new editor-in-chief and more staff, aiming to produce more long-form reporting while still responding to the news cycle.
  2. The editorial philosophy emphasizes rigorous verification and truth over partisan takes or forcing staff onto ideological slates, encouraging reporters to follow stories wherever they lead.
  3. They plan to rebuild FOIA capabilities, try new formats (timelines, glossaries, a Monday 'Swamp Log'), and ask readers for patience and feedback as they find a steady rhythm.

WATCH: The Epstein Tapes, Part II: The Eye of the Law

Common Sense with Bari Weiss • 190 implied HN points • 26 Feb 26
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Public records
  1. Twelve hours of footage from Data Set 9 show a yearslong cat-and-mouse between Epstein and investigators, including police searches, depositions, and an FBI sting to recover his “little black book.”
  2. Where earlier videos focused on Epstein’s private world, this batch centers on how law enforcement worked over many years to investigate and dismantle his network.
  3. The files were unusually hard to access because the DOJ site lacked easy browsing and the batch was partially pulled after complaints that some files contained unredacted child pornography, limiting public availability.

Today's Epstein’s Records Destroy Official Narratives

QTR’s Fringe Finance • 64 implied HN points • 10 Feb 26
đź“° News Public records
  1. Camera footage from the jail around Epstein’s death was deliberately removed, with documents saying an FBI agent physically took a hard drive so the key recordings are gone.
  2. Epstein ordered 55 gallons of sulfuric acid the same day a federal child‑sex trafficking probe began, a quantity that strongly suggests intent to destroy large amounts of material rather than any ordinary use.
  3. A federal record mentions a decoy dead body, and the files that survived redactions and delays collectively undermine the official account and point toward possible coordinated cover‑ups.

40 Months? The Eternal FOIA Backlog

OpenTheBooks Substack • 137 implied HN points • 17 Jul 25
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Public records
  1. FOIA requests are taking way too long to process, with some taking up to 40 months. This makes it hard for the public to hold the government accountable.
  2. Many government agencies are not responding to FOIA requests on time, often claiming backlog issues. This lack of transparency is harmful to public trust.
  3. There are calls for better management of FOIA processes, including higher staffing and better training, to ensure public records are accessible in a timely manner.
Get a weekly roundup of the best Substack posts, by hacker news affinity: