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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