Matthew Russell

Matthew Russell

Matthew Russell is a West Michigan native and with a background in journalism, data analysis, cartography and design thinking. He likes to learn new things and solve old problems whenever possible, and enjoys bicycling, spending time with his daughters, and coffee.

Articles by Matthew Russell

A Police Bloodhound Named Blue Joined the Force as a Puppy and Died In His Handler's Car

A Police Bloodhound Named Blue Joined the Force as a Puppy and Died In His Handler's Car

K-9 Blue arrived at the Charlottesville Police Department as a four-month-old puppy and spent a year in dedicated training before earning the right to answer calls. He was found unresponsive...

A Police Bloodhound Named Blue Joined the Force as a Puppy and Died In His Handler's Car

K-9 Blue arrived at the Charlottesville Police Department as a four-month-old puppy and spent a year in dedicated training before earning the right to answer calls. He was found unresponsive...

On the left, a man in a butterfly-patterned shirt sings into a microphone on a lit stage; on the right, a man in a dark jacket grips a metal pole.

Robbie Williams Says His Autism Diagnosis Finally Explains a Lifetime of Feeling Desperately Uncomfortable in His Own Skin

Robbie Williams spent decades unable to explain why the world felt so persistently uncomfortable — even as millions of fans adored him from stadium floors. A new autism diagnosis, he...

Robbie Williams Says His Autism Diagnosis Finally Explains a Lifetime of Feeling Desperately Uncomfortable in His Own Skin

Robbie Williams spent decades unable to explain why the world felt so persistently uncomfortable — even as millions of fans adored him from stadium floors. A new autism diagnosis, he...

On the left, a gray and white Boston Terrier puppy peers through metal cage bars; on the right, several gray and brown pit bull puppies crowd together inside a black.

Puppy Mills Keep Breaking the Rules While Dogs Pay the Price

Federal inspectors have documented the same violations — overcrowding, untreated injuries, filthy conditions — at the same commercial breeding facilities, year after year.

Puppy Mills Keep Breaking the Rules While Dogs Pay the Price

Federal inspectors have documented the same violations — overcrowding, untreated injuries, filthy conditions — at the same commercial breeding facilities, year after year.

On the left, a worker in red gloves harvests fish from a crowded net at a fish farm; on the right, a dead fish lies tangled in fishing nets and.

Industrial Fish Farms Are Coming to US Waters and Experts Say Wild Oceans Could Pay

The federal government is designating new offshore zones where industrial-scale fish farms could operate in U.S. waters. 

Industrial Fish Farms Are Coming to US Waters and Experts Say Wild Oceans Could Pay

The federal government is designating new offshore zones where industrial-scale fish farms could operate in U.S. waters. 

On the left, a person in a wheelchair moves down a hospital corridor; on the right, a U. S.

Federal Inspectors Keep Finding the Same VA Safety Failures and Nothing Changes

Federal inspectors have repeatedly flagged the same safety failures at VA medical centers — infection control lapses, improperly stored equipment, patients sent home without understanding their own care.

Federal Inspectors Keep Finding the Same VA Safety Failures and Nothing Changes

Federal inspectors have repeatedly flagged the same safety failures at VA medical centers — infection control lapses, improperly stored equipment, patients sent home without understanding their own care.

On the left, a gloved hand holds an MMR vaccine vial and syringe in a clinical setting; on the right, a sick child with a measles rash rests in bed.

Debunked Myths Behind Federal Medical Guidance Are Putting Children at Risk

A federal executive order is calling for childhood vaccines to be spaced out — a move that directly contradicts decades of research and the guidance of every major medical organization...

Debunked Myths Behind Federal Medical Guidance Are Putting Children at Risk

A federal executive order is calling for childhood vaccines to be spaced out — a move that directly contradicts decades of research and the guidance of every major medical organization...