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This is what holding power accountable looks like.

Flatwater Free Press reporter Yanqi Xu kept digging, kept asking questions and kept pursuing the story of immigrant hiring at Pillen Family Farms, even as Gov. Jim Pillen publicly pushed back against her reporting.

Then other journalists stepped in.

The New York Times partnered with Flatwater to bring the investigation to a national audience. The Omaha World-Herald helped amplify the story in Nebraska.

It took the tenacity of a reporter, and the willingness of journalists and newsrooms to work together.

That’s journalism.

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What started as investigative reporting in Nebraska is now a national story.

Flatwater Free Press and The New York Times jointly published an investigation into immigrant workers and Gov. Jim Pillen’s family business.

Pillen is pushing back. I sat down with Flatwater reporter Yanqi Xu and Executive Editor Matthew Hansen to talk about what they found, the governor’s response, and why this Nebraska story is now getting national attention.

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Flatwater Free Press reporter Yanqi Xu and executive editor Matthew Hansen join The Dan Parsons Show for a behind-the-scenes conversation about Xu’s reporting on Gov. Jim Pillen, Pillen Family Farms and the use of immigrant labor.

Xu recently tracked down Gov. Pillen after a news conference to ask him directly about her reporting. His response: “That’s an old story” and “It’s not true.” Pillen later accused Flatwater of being a “left-leaning news outlet” attempting to take out conservative leadership.

But this story goes back years.

Dan first met Yanqi when she and Matthew appeared on his radio show to discuss her reporting on nitrate contamination involving Pillen’s hog operations. Days later, Pillen dismissed the reporting in a radio interview and referenced Xu’s Chinese background.

In this episode, Yanqi and Matthew talk about:

• What the latest investigation found
• How Yanqi pursued the governor for answers
• Pillen’s response to the reporting
• What it’s like to become part of the story you’re covering
• The Omaha World-Herald’s coverage of the confrontation
• And what this episode says about journalism, political power and holding public officials accountable

It’s also a story about persistence: asking the question, following the evidence and showing up when the person in power would rather move on.

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Flatwater Festival 2026: https://flatwaterfreepress.org/events/flatwater-festival-2026/

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