Bob Ortega

I'm a senior writer for CNN Investigates covering border and immigration issues from Phoenix, Arizona. Before that, I served as managing editor of the Honolulu Civil Beat. I was also senior reporter at the Arizona Republic and azcentral.com, which I joined in 2011 and where I participated in the Center for Health Journalism's National Fellowship.

I began my journalism career as the news department of a radio station in Anchorage, Alaska, that went belly up after three months. I have worked in TV, and have reported for the Wall Street Journal and the Seattle Times, among other publications.

I've served as a Knight International Journalism Fellow in Paraguay, led media-training projects in Georgia, Ukraine and Belarus, and trained journalists in 17 other countries. From 2006 until 2009, I taught journalism at Ryerson University, in Toronto.

I'm the author of “In Sam We Trust: The Untold Story of Sam Walton and Wal-Mart, the World’s Most Powerful Retailer,” Times Books, 1998.

Articles

In wake of reporting, Arizona boosts funding for child car seat safety

The funds came after an August 2015 series in The Arizona Republic showed that Latino and Native American children were being disproportionately killed and injured in vehicle accidents across Arizona.

Race and Equity

How one ambitious reporting campaign worked to get Latino children into car seats

It started as a series of reports on the dangers Latino children face when they're not placed in car seats. It bloomed into a full-scale public awareness campaign. Here’s how one dogged reporter made it happen.

Community & Public Health

Seat them safely: Car-seat check events

This series, originally published by the Arizona Republic, was produced by the Dennis A. Hunt Fund for Health Journalism and the National Health Journalism Fellowship, programs of the University of Southern California's Annenberg School of Journalism. Other pieces in this series include:...

Augustine Lopez with the Tuscon Police Department with a child’s car seat at a Child Passenger Safety car seat check in June. (Photo: Rachael Le Goubin/The Republic)

Community & Public Health

Health Equity & Social Justice

Children & Families

Seat Them Safely: Reporting spurs community project

The Arizona Republic highlights reporter Bob Ortega's investigation into car seat safety, which found a glaring need for more information, particularly in Spanish-speaking communities. But beyond merely reporting the issue, Ortega's series led to a widespread project to boost awareness.

Environmental Health

Community & Public Health

How to donate to the seat them safely campaign

Community & Public Health

Health Equity & Social Justice

Children & Families

Majority of parents don't install car seats correctly

Roughly four out of five parents don't install car seats correctly, and the results can be disastrous. A new investigative series by The Arizona Republic finds that Hispanic and Native American children were from two times to as much as 10 times likelier not to be properly restrained.

Environmental Health

Community Safety

Children & Families