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WELCOME TO MATTER OF FACT TODAY TELLING THE STORIES OF THE VOICELESS AND THE FORGOTTEN OVER MATTER OF FACTS. TEN YEARS, WE’VE MADE A POINT TO FEATURE THOSE WHO OFTEN GET OVERLOOKED, OR WHOSE STORIES HAVE BEEN LOST TO TIME. I HAD TO WORK A LOT FROM 7 P.M. TO FIVE IN THE MORNING. HIS CHILDHOOD WAS CUT SHORT BY WORK. AS STATES CONFRONT A NATIONAL WORKER SHORTAGE, WE EXPLORE WHETHER MORE KIDS COULD END UP WORKING AT TOO YOUNG AN AGE AND IN DANGEROUS CONDITIONS. PLUS, A TRULY INSPIRATIONAL BUT LITTLE KNOWN STORY A BATTALION OF ALL BLACK WOMEN IN WORLD WAR TWO SENT OVERSEAS TO MAKE SURE THAT SOLDIERS AND THEIR FAMILIES STAYED CONNECTED THROUGH THE MAIL. THEY WERE SET UP TO FAIL, BUT THEY STOOD UP AND DELIVERED. WE’LL SHARE THE HISTORY OF THE 6888, AND I’M JOINED BY THE CORRESPONDENTS WHO DID THIS REPORTING. I MEAN, IT WAS UNHEARD OF. WHY UNCOVERING STORIES LIKE THESE REQUIRES MORE THAN JUST RESEARCH. ALL THAT RIGHT NOW ON MATTER OF FACT. YOU HAVE TO BE 18 YEARS OLD TO VOTE, BUT YOU CAN LEGALLY WORK WELL BEFORE THAT. THE FAIR LABOR STANDARDS ACT SETS THE MINIMUM AGE FOR EMPLOYMENT IN NONAGRICULTURAL JOBS AT 14 YEARS OLD. SPECIFIC RULES, THOUGH, ARE LARGELY SET AT THE STATE LEVEL. IN 2023, FACING A GROWING NEED FOR WORKERS, SEVERAL STATES PUSHED TO LOWER AGE REQUIREMENTS. OUR CORRESPONDENT DAN LIEBERMAN TOOK US TO ONE OF THOSE STATES, IOWA, FOR A LOOK AT THE DEMAND, THE LAW, AND THOSE WHO ARE CAUGHT IN BETWEEN. I HAD TO WORK A LOT FROM 7:00 PM TO 5:00 IN THE MORNING. THE WORK WAS HARD, SO I WOULD GET TIRED AND THEN I WOULD FALL ASLEEP AND MISS SCHOOL. THIS IOWA TEENAGER SAYS HE WAS TRAFFICKED FROM GUATEMALA TO THE U.S. TWO YEARS AGO, AND AT AGE 15, WAS IMMEDIATELY PUT TO WORK FOR HIS OWN PROTECTION. HIS FACE AND VOICE ARE CONCEALED AND WERE USING THE PSEUDONYM PEDRO. WHEN THE. WHEN I ARRIVED IN VIRGINIA, I WORKED IN CONSTRUCTION FOR ABOUT FIVE MONTHS. THEY BROUGHT ME HERE TO IOWA. I WORKED IN THE PLANTS WHERE THEY PACK EGGS. HE’S NO LONGER WORKING AND IS NOW A FULL TIME STUDENT, THANKS TO A MAN NAMED JOSE WHO TOOK HIM IN AND BECAME HIS LEGAL GUARDIAN. HE WAS HOMELESS, AND THROUGH SOME FRIENDS OF MINE THEY SAID, DO YOU MIND TALKING TO HIM IN THIS RURAL AGRICULTURAL COMMUNITY 90 MILES FROM DES MOINES? CHILD LABOR IS ALREADY A PART OF DAILY LIFE. PEOPLE KNOW IT’S HAPPENING, BUT THEY DON’T REALLY TALK ABOUT IT. THEY WORK 12, 13, 14 HOURS A DAY. AS SOON AS THEY GET OUT OF SCHOOL, CONTRACTORS PICK THEM UP AND THEY’RE OFF TO WORK. FEDERAL LAW MANDATES THAT 14 AND 15 YEAR OLDS NOT WORK MORE THAN THREE HOURS ON A SCHOOL DAY, OR 18 HOURS PER WEEK. IN IOWA, A NEW STATE LAW ALLOWS 14 AND 15 YEAR OLDS TO WORK LATER AND LONGER LETS TEENS AS YOUNG AS 16 SERVE ALCOHOL IN RESTAURANTS, AND PERMITS STATE AGENCIES TO WAIVE RESTRICTIONS ON HAZARDOUS WORK FOR 16 AND 17 YEAR OLDS IN A RANGE OF DANGEROUS OCCUPATIONS. JOBS LIKE INDUSTRIAL LAUNDRIES, FOUNDRIES AND IN DEMOLITION. JOBS THAT ARE EXPRESSLY PROHIBITED BY FEDERAL REGULATIONS. ROBIN CLARK BENNETT IS THE DIRECTOR OF THE LABOR CENTER AT THE UNIVERSITY OF IOWA. IT IS AN EFFORT THAT’S BEING PUSHED BY A SPECIFIC INDUSTRIES, SUCH AS THE FOOD INDUSTRY, THE HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY, THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY. WE’VE GOT TO FIGURE OUT A WAY TO EMPLOY AS MANY PEOPLE AS WE CAN. TIM RUTH RUNS A CONSTRUCTION COMPANY IN RIVERSIDE, IOWA, AND SERVES AS AREA CHAIRMAN OF THE NATIONAL HOME BUILDERS ASSOCIATION, WHICH LOBBIED IN FAVOR OF THE BILL. WE NEED AT LEAST 5 TO 7 CARPENTERS, AND WE NEED A REALLY GOOD LEAD PERSON, AND THEY’RE JUST THEY’RE NOT OUT THERE TO HIRE WHEN IT COMES TO THIS LEGISLATION. WHY DID YOU SUPPORT IT? ANYTHING WE CAN DO TO GET THE YOUNG PEOPLE THE OPPORTUNITY TO WORK IS VERY IMPORTANT TO ME. IF THEY’RE OLD ENOUGH TO DRIVE, THEY’RE OLD ENOUGH, IN MY OPINION, TO WORK IN A LIMITED CAPACITY. WHAT DO YOU SAY TO SOME OF THE CRITICS OF THIS LEGISLATION WHO SAY THAT THE KIDS WHO ARE REALLY GOING TO SUFFER UNDER THIS ARE KIDS FROM POORER BACKGROUNDS, MIGRANT CHILDREN, UNACCOMPANIED MINORS, ANYBODY THAT’S AGAINST GETTING MORE WORKERS IS I JUST I DISAGREE WITH THEM. I ALSO THINK THAT THE BILL SHOULD HAVE CONSEQUENCES IF I GET CAUGHT USING 14 YEAR OLD STUDENTS UP ON A ROOF, THERE SHOULD BE A SEVERE PENALTY FOR JOSE. HIS CONCERN REMAINS THE NEW LAW HARMS KIDS LIKE PEDRO. WE DON’T HAVE TO. STEP ON THE LOWEST OF OUR POPULATION. THESE ARE OUR VULNERABLES. THESE ARE THE PEOPLE THAT WE FORGET WHEN THERE’S POLITICAL BATTLES. THESE ARE THE PEOPLE THAT ARE THE MOST AFFECTED WITH THIS NEW LAW. IT’S NOW NORMALIZING THE FACES OF THE YOUNG PEOPLE IN THE WORKFORCE. AND NOBODY’S GOING TO ASK QUESTIONS ANYMORE. AND SAY, YOU KNOW, ARE YOU ARE YOU OKAY? FOR MATTER OF FACT, I’M DAN LIEBERMAN IN IOWA. WHEN WE COME BACK, DAN LIEBERMAN JOINS ME TO TALK ABOUT THE CHALLENGES OF REPORTING ON SUCH A SENSITIVE TOPIC AND WHERE CHILD LABOR LAWS STAND NOW. AND LATER ON. MATTER OF FACT, I’M JUST SO HAPPY THAT SOMEBODY IS FINALLY FINDING OUT THAT THERE WERE BLACK WOMEN IN THE MILITARY, THE ARMY BATTALION IN WORLD WAR TWO THAT SUCCEEDED AT A MISSION THAT OTHERS FAILED. YOU’RE WATCHING, MATTER OF FACT, AMERICA’S NUMBER ONE NATIONALLY SYNDICATED PUBLIC AFFAIRS NEWS MAGAZINE. BEFORE THE BREAK, WE WATCHED CORRESPONDENT DAN LIEBERMAN’S 2023 STORY ABOUT EFFORTS TO LOWER WORKER AGE REQUIREMENTS. AND IN THAT STORY, WE HEARD FROM A MIGRANT CHILD WHO HAD BEEN TRAFFICKED TO WORK IN IOWA. DAN, NICE TO SEE YOU. AN EXCELLENT REPORTING. I KNOW, OBVIOUSLY, YOU HAD TO FIND A YOUNG PERSON TO REALLY PUT A FACE TO THIS STORY, BUT AT THE SAME TIME, IT JUST FELT LIKE SUCH A SENSITIVE POSITION FOR THIS YOUNG MAN TO BE IN. CAN YOU TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT HOW YOU WEIGH THOSE THINGS WHEN YOU’RE REPORTING? IT’S NOT EASY. I MEAN, WE REALLY HAD TO BUILD TRUST WITH COMMUNITY ADVOCATES, BUT WITH THE HELP OF ADVOCATES IN IOWA, TEACHERS IN A RURAL SCHOOL DISTRICT CONNECTED ME TO THIS YOUNG MAN. WE CHANGED HIS NAME. WE USED A PSEUDONYM. WE PUT HIM IN THE SHADOWS TO PROTECT HIS IDENTITY, TO HELP HIM FEEL COMFORTABLE. BUT HEARING WHAT IT WAS LIKE FOR HIM IN HIS EARLY TEENS, WORKING AS A MIGRANT WORKER IN THE U.S. REALLY HUMANIZED THIS ISSUE AND REALLY PUT IT IN CONTEXT IN A STATE WHERE WE’VE SEEN THE LOOSENING OF CHILD LABOR PROTECTIONS. CAN YOU TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT? WHAT’S HAPPENING NATIONALLY, LIKE WHAT’S THE CURRENT STATUS OF THE EFFORTS TO LOWER THOSE CHILD WORK AGE REQUIREMENTS? WELL, THERE’S MANY EFFORTS HAPPENING ACROSS THE COUNTRY SINCE 2021, 17 STATES HAVE ACTUALLY ENACTED ROLLBACKS OF PROTECTIONS FOR CHILDREN. BUT AT THE SAME TIME, 16 OTHER STATES ACTUALLY STRENGTHENED LAWS TO PROTECT KIDS. SO YOU REALLY SEE THAT IT’S A PIECEMEAL APPROACH, STATE BY STATE, BUT IT JUST SHOWS YOU THAT THERE’S THIS TENSION IN THE ECONOMY AROUND SOME BUSINESSES THAT RELY SO HEAVILY ON CHILD LABOR, LIKE THE FOOD INDUSTRY, FOOD PROCESSING, CONSTRUCTION, AND THEN FAMILIES. I THINK ONE OF YOUR MANY STRENGTHS IS THAT YOU DO A REALLY GOOD DEEP DIVE INTO INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING, WHICH IS ALWAYS HARD AND VERY DATA AND FACT DRIVEN. CAN YOU TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT YOUR STRATEGY AND WHY YOU LIKE THIS KIND OF REPORTING? ABSOLUTELY. I MEAN, I LOVE STORIES THAT ARE NOT BLACK AND WHITE. I LOVE THE NUANCE. I LOVE LIVING IN THE GRAY AREA, AND I WANT TO BE ABLE TO HAVE THE AUDIENCE AND MYSELF GO INTO A REPORTING PROJECT AND COME AWAY SAYING, OH, I NEVER THOUGHT ABOUT IT THAT WAY. I LEARNED SOMETHING NEW. I THINK ABOUT THIS COMPLEX ISSUE DIFFERENTLY. IT’S NOT SO CLEAR MAYBE HOW I FEEL ABOUT THIS VERY COMPLEX TOPIC. AND YOU’RE RIGHT, DATA IS SO IMPORTANT. AND THIS PUSH TO GET IT RIGHT, PEOPLE ARE SO DESPERATE AND HUNGRY FOR THE FACTS. AND WHAT I LOVE ABOUT THIS SHOW AND SO APPRECIATIVE OF THIS OPPORTUNITY WITH YOU IN THESE RECENT SEASONS, HAS BEEN TO BE ABLE TO REALLY PRESENT THESE COMPLEX STORIES WITH A 360 DEGREE APPROACH. THEY ALSO SAY THAT I THINK AS JOURNALISTS, WE HAVE THIS RESPONSIBILITY TO HOLD CORPORATIONS ACCOUNTABLE, LAWMAKERS ACCOUNTABLE FOR THE IMPACT THAT THEIR POLICIES AND PRACTICES HAVE ON PEOPLE’S DAILY LIVES. AND THAT’S WHAT THIS SHOW HAS BEEN ABOUT. AND SO I’VE LOVED THIS OPPORTUNITY WITH YOU FOR SO MANY SEASONS. WELL, WE HAVE APPRECIATED YOU VERY MUCH. THIS REPORTING, OF COURSE, REALLY INDICATIVE OF ALL THE GREAT REPORTING THAT YOU’VE DONE FOR US. THANK YOU. DAN DAN LIEBERMAN APPRECIATE IT. COMING UP, THEY HAD TO WORK IN BLACKOUT CONDITIONS. THE STORY OF THE SIX TRIPLE EIGHTS, HISTORIC M O R’S. OVER THE PAST DECADE, THIS SHOW HAS OFTEN TURNED TO HISTORY TO GIVE CONTEXT TO CURRENT EVENTS OR PROVIDE BACKGROUND ON ISSUES. WE ASKED QUESTIONS LIKE WHAT SYSTEMS HAVE SHAPED OUR COUNTRY AND GOVERNMENT? HOW DID OUR ANCESTORS WORK TO MAKE US A BETTER NATION, AND WHERE DID THEY FALL SHORT? ALEXIS CLARK ISN’T JUST A CORRESPONDENT FOR OUR SHOW. SHE’S ALSO AN ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF JOURNALISM AT COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY. SHE WRITES ABOUT HISTORY WITH A FOCUS ON RACE, CULTURE AND POLITICS. IN 2023, SHE BROUGHT US THE STORY OF A BLACK FEMALE ARMY BATTALION, THE 6888, DISPATCHED OVERSEAS IN WORLD WAR TWO. LET’S TAKE A LOOK BACK AT THAT STORY NOW. NIGHT AND DAY, THE VAST BUSINESS OF ASSEMBLY WENT ON IN PREPARATION FOR THE COMING ATTACK. THE MASSIVE INVASION OF WESTERN EUROPE, KNOWN AS D-DAY, WAS COVERTLY PLANNED BY THE ALLIES FOR MORE THAN TWO YEARS. ALL COMMUNICATION ABOUT TROOPS AND TROOP MOVEMENTS WERE CLOSELY MONITORED. THE D-DAY PREPARATIONS WAS THE CATALYST FOR THE BACKLOG BECAUSE MAIL CONTAINED SENSITIVE INFORMATION. SO THE MAIL HAD TO BE CENSORED. IT SOMETIMES WAS STOPPED. COLONEL EDNA CUMMINGS, A CAREER ARMY OFFICER, CAME ACROSS THE STORY OF THE 6888 ABOUT EIGHT YEARS AGO. THE TASK OF SORTING THE MAIL. OTHER UNITS HAD TRIED AND FAILED. THE MAIL BACKLOG TOTALED NEARLY 17 MILLION PIECES. FILLING WAREHOUSES IN ENGLAND. WHEN THE 6888 ARRIVED IN 1945. THEY HAD TO WORK IN BLACKOUT CONDITIONS BECAUSE THE WAR WASN’T OVER. SO THE. WOMEN HEARD BOMBINGS OR ARTILLERY. THEY WORKED EIGHT HOUR SHIFTS AROUND THE CLOCK IN DARK, DAMP BUILDINGS, AND MAIL WASN’T ALWAYS LABELED CORRECTLY BECAUSE OF THE LITERACY LEVELS IN THE U.S. AT THE TIME. SOME OF THE LETTERS WERE JUST ADDRESSED TO BUSTER OR JUNIOR. BUT THE 6888 UNDERTOOK THE TASK OF CREATING A LOCATOR SYSTEM WITH SERIAL NUMBERS FOR ALL THE SERVICE MEMBERS. YOU HAD ONE SHIFT THAT WAS SLEEPING AND ONE THAT WAS WORKING. THEY PROCESSED UPWARDS OF 65,000 PIECES OF MAIL AND PACKAGES PER SHIFT, NONSTOP. SO IT WAS GRUELING, HARD WORK. THE 6888 CLEARED THE BACKLOG IN THREE MONTHS. IT HAS REALLY BEEN A GREAT JOURNEY FINDING OUT ABOUT WHO MY MOM WAS, OTHER THAN JUST BEING MY MOM. JANIS MARTIN HAS A BOX OF MEMORABILIA FROM HER MOTHER, INDIANA HUNT MARTIN, WHO SERVED IN THE 6888. I THINK IT WAS A REAL LIBERATING EXPERIENCE FOR THEM, COMING FROM A PLACE WHERE JIM CROW LAWS WERE BEING ENFORCED. THEY WERE ABLE TO GO INTO RESTAURANTS, GO TO PEOPLE’S HOMES. NO ONE MADE A FUSS ABOUT ANYTHING. INDIANA. HUNT MARTIN PASSED AWAY IN 2020. I’M JUST SO HAPPY THAT SOMEBODY IS FINALLY FINDING OUT THAT THERE WERE BLACK WOMEN IN THE MILITARY. WE ARE VERY INTENTIONAL ABOUT PRESERVING OUR ARCHIVES. THE AFRO NEWS, HEADQUARTERED IN BALTIMORE, IS ONE OF THE REASONS THE 6888 STORY WAS SAVED. FRANCES MURPHY DRAPER IS THE CEO. WE HAVE 3 MILLION PHOTOGRAPHS. WE HAVE AUDIO RECORDINGS. WE HAVE PICTURES. THE AFRO PRINTED THE NAMES AND ADDRESSES OF SERVICE MEMBERS IN EUROPE, INCLUDING THOSE OF THE 6888. IT BECAME A HISTORICAL RECORD TO CELEBRATE THE PASSAGE OF THE 6888 CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL ACT. A HISTORICAL RECORD THAT CAME IN HANDY IN 2022, WHEN THE BATTALION RECEIVED THE CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL, THE HIGHEST CIVILIAN AWARD, IN LARGE PART DUE TO AN EFFORT BY COLONEL CUMMINGS. THE 6888 RECEIVED THE CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL NOT BECAUSE THEY WERE BLACK WOMEN, NOT BECAUSE THEY WERE WOMEN, BECAUSE THEY ACCOMPLISHED SOMETHING THAT NO OTHER UNIT COULD ACCOMPLISH. WHAT DID IT MEAN FOR BLACK WOMEN AT THAT TIME TO WEAR UNITED STATES MILITARY UNIFORM? I THINK IT SYMBOLIZED REBELLION BECAUSE IT DEFIED SOCIAL NORMS. FOR A WOMAN TO BE IN THE MILITARY, LET ALONE A BLACK WOMAN. I HEARD SOMEONE SAY THEY WERE SET UP TO FAIL, BUT THEY STOOD UP AND DELIVERED. I’M ALEXIS CLARK, FOR MATTER OF FACT. WHEN WE COME BACK, CORRESPONDENT ALEXIS CLARK JOINS ME TO TALK ABOUT HOW SHE DISCOVERED THIS INCREDIBLE STORY, TO STAY UP TO DATE WITH. MATTER OF FACT, SIGN UP FOR OUR NEWSLETTER AT MATTEROFFACTTV. WELCOME BACK TO MATTER OF FACT. BEFORE THE BREAK, WE WATCHED CORRESPONDENT ALEXIS CLARK’S PIECE ON THE 6888, A BLACK FEMALE ARMY BATTALION IN WORLD WAR TWO. ALEXIS, GREAT TO SEE YOU. NOW, WHEN YOU FIRST CAME ON OUR PROGRAM, YOU ACTUALLY CAME ON AS A GUEST, NOT AS A CORRESPONDENT. YOU HAD WRITTEN A BOOK CALLED ENEMIES IN LOVE, WHICH WAS ABOUT BLACK NURSES IN WORLD WAR TWO. AND THEN, OF COURSE, WE GOT YOU TO CONTRIBUTE AS A CORRESPONDENT. TELL ME A LITTLE BIT ABOUT HOW YOU FOUND THE STORY OF THE 6888. YES. I WAS RESEARCHING BLACK WOMEN WHO SERVED IN WORLD WAR TWO. AND SO WHEN I WAS READING ABOUT THE NURSES, I LEARNED ABOUT THIS BATTALION OF WOMEN, THE SIX EIGHT. I MEAN, IT WAS UNHEARD OF. FOR ONE, IT WAS A SEGREGATED UNIT OF BLACK WOMEN. AND THIS WAS A TIME WHERE PEOPLE WERE DISCRIMINATED AGAINST, BUT THEY DIDN’T LET THAT GET IN THE WAY. AND SO HERE THEY ARE SORTING THROUGH WHAT NO UNIT COULD DO BEFORE THEY CLEARED THAT BACKLOG IN THREE MONTHS. IN THE PIECE YOU MENTION A NEWSPAPER, THE AFRO, WHICH I THINK A LOT OF PEOPLE HAVEN’T HEARD OF. IT’S A BLACK NEWSPAPER FROM BALTIMORE BASED OUT OF BALTIMORE. IT HAS AN INCREDIBLE HISTORY AS WELL. IT CERTAINLY DOES. IT’S ONE OF THE OLDEST BLACK NEWSPAPERS IN THE UNITED STATES. AND IT WAS INSTRUMENTAL IN HELPING TO TELL THE STORY OF THE 6888. BASICALLY, THE AFRO STARTED AS A PUBLICATION THAT COVERED THE BLACK COMMUNITY WHEN MAINSTREAM NEWSPAPERS DIDN’T. AND SO THEY SENT THEIR OWN WAR CORRESPONDENTS TO EUROPE TO COVER BLACK SERVICE MEMBERS. THEY WROTE ABOUT THE WOMEN OF THE 6888 AND WHERE THEY WERE FROM. SO FAST FORWARD DECADES LATER. ADVOCATES WERE ABLE TO TRACK DOWN WHO THESE WOMEN WERE AND HELP TO TELL THEIR STORY BASED ON THOSE ARCHIVAL ARTICLES. A LOT OF THE WORK THAT YOU’VE DONE FOR US HAS REALLY BEEN CENTERED IN HISTORY, AND I THINK IT’S ADDED TREMENDOUS VALUE TO OUR PROGRAM OVER THE YEARS. TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT YOUR PROCESS AND HOW YOU THINK ABOUT FINDING STORIES. THE WAY I APPROACH IT IS THERE’S ALWAYS A BACK STORY WHEN YOU’RE LOOKING AT A COMMUNITY OR A NEIGHBORHOOD. YOU REALLY ASK WHY, WHAT HAPPENED? WHY IS IT LIKE THIS? AND SO I BELIEVE IN LOOKING AT THE HISTORICAL RECORD TO HELP EXPLAIN OUR CURRENT CIRCUMSTANCES. AND WHAT I LOVE SO MUCH ABOUT THE 6888 STORY IS THAT YOU REALLY DIDN’T HEAR ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF BLACK WOMEN IN WORLD WAR TWO. AND HERE WAS A BATTALION THAT PLAYED SUCH AN IMPORTANT ROLE BECAUSE MORALE WAS SO LOW, PARTICULARLY THAT LAST YEAR OF WORLD WAR TWO, AND YOU HAD SERVICE MEMBERS WHO HADN’T HEARD FROM THEIR FAMILY IN MONTHS, EVEN SOME YEARS. SO THE FACT THAT THESE WOMEN WERE ABLE TO RECONNECT THEM WITH THEIR FAMILIES WAS REALLY VITAL AND RAISED THE MORALE OF THE SOLDIERS ON THE FRONT LINES. AN EXCELLENT PIECE. ALEXIS CLARK, FANTASTIC. AS IS ALL YOUR REPORTING, WE APPRECIATE YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU SO MUCH. IT’S BEEN A PLEASURE AND AN HONOR TO BE ON THIS PLATFORM. STILL AHEAD ON MATTER OF FACT. SOLEDAD EXPLAINS WHY SHE THINKS OF JOURNALISM AS A KIND OF ARCHEOLOGICALFINALLY, I’D LIKE T MOMENT TO REFLECT ON THE REPORTING BY OUR CORRESPONDENT STAN LIEBERMAN AND ALEXIS CLARK. THE PIECES WE SHARED TODAY ARE EXAMPLES OF THE IMPORTANCE OF NUANCE AND CONTEXT IN OUR WORK. THE ISSUES FACING OUR NATION, THE ISSUES WE COVER ARE COMPLEX, AND REPORTING ON THEM CAN BE COMPLICATED. AND THAT’S WHY THE BEST JOURNALISTS APPROACH THE WORK AS A PROCESS OF DISCOVERY AND REFUSED TO VIEW ISSUES OR SITUATIONS OR PEOPLE THROUGH A SINGULAR LENS. DAN AND ALEXIS ARE DRAWN TO DIFFERENT KINDS OF STORIES. HOWEVER, THEY BOTH GROUND THEIR REPORTING IN SOUND RESEARCH. THEY LOOK AT THE RECORDS, FIND FACT PATTERNS, EXPLORE MULTIPLE PERSPECTIVES. THEY ENCOURAGE THE PEOPLE IN THEIR STORIES TO THINK OUT LOUD, SHARING THEIR VIEWPOINTS AS WELL AS THEIR INNER DEBATES, UNCERTAINTIES AND QUESTIONS. AND THAT’S WHAT CREATES NUANCE. AND NUANCE CREATES STORIES THAT ARE MORE AUTHENTIC, MORE COMPLETE, MORE ACCURATE. SO A BIG THANK YOU TO DAN AND ALEXIS FOR BRINGING YOUR IMPRESSIVE REPORTING TO OUR VIEWERS. GATHERED AND DELIVERED WITH INTEGRITY. THAT’S IT FOR THIS EDITION OF MATTER OF FACT, I’M SOLEDAD O’BRIEN, AND I’LL SEE YOU BACK HERE NEXT WEEK. TO WATCH MORE STORIES LIKE THIS ANYTIME, HEAD TO MATTER OF FACT.