Miami Herald Watchdog

It's about time. The Miami Herald has started its own 'Watchdog' page, with links to all its Pulitzer-prize winning investigations. There's also a database where you can search local crime, death records, and home sales (but only by address.) Further links find a political contributions search too.

It's a start (still in beta). The Herald has a ways to go before it matches other papers' database pages but it's been a long time coming so anything is an improvement. Executive Editor Anders Gyllenhaal explains the release, in time for Sunshine Week.

The Herald has a long record of great investigative reporting using public records. Nice to know there's finally a move to share them with readers. And nice to see an effort, too, to make the great work of the past -- back to Gene Miller's groundbreaking coverage of the Pitts and Lee case -- available for the future.