📺ICYMI: Opioid Settlement Watchdog Reporting Tips & Tricks Fireside Chat

Watch our 45-minute discussion with journalists Emily Bader & Adam Smith-Perez

Jonathan JK Stoltman

26 Mar 2026 — 2 min read

Join us as we check in with Reporting on Addiction Opioid Settlement Microgrant awardees Emily Bader (The Maine Monitor - Maine) & Adam Smith-Perez (Investigative Post - Buffalo, NY) to hear about their essential opioid settlement reporting over the last year.

This 45-minute conversation includes tips and tricks for how to get started (and keep going) when the topic is huge, both in size and importance! Whether you're just getting started or deep into your opioid settlement reporting, this session offers practical tips to report on opioid settlement spending in your community.

We hear first from Adam Smith-Perez of the Investigative Post (Buffalo, NY) and their many stories about the tragic waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement of opioid settlement money in Erie County and Buffalo. He provides practical tips for how to figure out where the spending is going and how to create a database to keep all the information straight.

Next we hear from Emily Bader of The Maine Monitor (Maine) and their deep reporting on opioid settlement spending across the state. When the data was lacking, Emily created her own survey and database to track spending. She also used Freedom of Information Act requests to break the news on how the money is being spent across Maine.

Both Adam and Emily emphasize why this reporting is essential and how to do it with limited resources. At Reporting on Addiction, we're here to help you approach these stories, from pitch-to-publication. Thank you for being part of our community.

Enjoy!

Speaker Bios

Emily Bader

Emily Bader is a health care and general assignment reporter for The Maine Monitor where she covers substance use, mental health and access to care. She is particularly interested in exploring how these issues affect Mainers’ everyday lives, how communities are seeking solutions and in serving as a watchdog on decision-makers. Prior to joining The Monitor, Emily was a reporter for three years at local Maine papers. She has earned recognition from a number of state and national press associations.

Reporting on Addiction Microgrant Stories:
https://themainemonitor.org/local-governments-spent-3m-opioid-settlement-funds/; https://themainemonitor.org/local-government-opioid-settlement-2025-charts/

All of The Maine Monitor's Opioid Coverage:
https://themainemonitor.org/opioids/

Adam Smith-Perez

Adam Smith-Perez is an investigative journalist and producer based in Buffalo, NY. He is a Report for America corps member and the urban affairs reporter at Investigative Post, Buffalo’s only nonprofit watchdog newsroom.

He has reported extensively on the overdose crisis since 2023 for outlets including The Nation and VICE News, and more recently covered oversight issues surrounding opioid settlement funds at Investigative Post. In covering urban affairs in Buffalo, Adam has also reported on police misconduct, immigration enforcement, and affordable housing.

Select Investigative Post's Opioid Coverage:
https://investigativepost.org/2025/12/02/buffalos-indifferent-response-to-opioid-overdoses/

https://investigativepost.org/2026/02/17/525215/

https://investigativepost.org/2026/02/25/the-trouble-with-save-the-michaels/