Brad Racino

Multimedia-Based Investigative Reporter - Contributor through

Brad Racino is a senior reporter and assistant director at inewsource, as well as a photographer, videographer and editor. He has produced work for print, radio and TV on a variety of topics including political corruption, transportation, health, trade, surveillance and maritime.

His cross-platform reporting has earned more than 40 local awards and several national awards, including back-to-back medals from Investigative Reporters and Editors, a national Emmy nomination and the Sol Price Award for Responsible Journalism.

Racino has worked as a reporter and database analyst for News21; as a photographer, videographer and reporter for the Columbia Missourian; a project coordinator for the National Freedom of Information Coalition and as a videographer and editor for Verizon Fios1 TV in New York.

He received his master’s degree in journalism from the University of Missouri in 2012.

Recent Stories by Brad Racino

Navy veteran Larry McMinn is pictured at the Ka...

Veterans Voices: Navy Vet’s ‘Unbearable’ Situation With The San Diego VA

Sept. 10: By Brad Racino / inewsource, Zoë Meyers / inewsource

Navy veteran Larry McMinn shares how ketamine treatments affect his depression and what it’s like to fight for health care under the VA.

Army veteran AJ Williams does her hair before l...

Veterans Voices: Army Veteran AJ Williams Tells Of Struggle With Depression

Aug. 18: By Brad Racino / inewsource

inewsource’s Veterans Voices series features first-person accounts from veterans suffering from depression who are being taken off an effective drug treatment by the San Diego VA. This post was written by Army veteran AJ Williams and lightly edited by inewsource.

Dr. Kevin Murphy, an oncologist and founder of ...

Investigation Of Prominent UCSD Doctor Finds Multiple Violations Of University Rules

Aug. 17: By Brad Racino / inewsource, Jill Castellano / inewsource

A UC San Diego doctor — who was the centerpiece of an inewsource investigation this year — violated a litany of university policies while developing and researching his experimental brain treatment, according to a recently concluded UCSD and UC Office of the President inquiry.

Army veteran Joel Andrews is shown outside of h...

Veterans Voices: Army Vet Joel Andrews' Fight With Depression

Aug. 10: By Brad Racino / inewsource

Marine veteran Kiaya Bender is shown at his hom...

Veterans Voices: San Diego County Veterans Share Their Healthcare Struggles

Aug. 5: By Brad Racino / inewsource, Zoë Meyers / inewsource

The San Diego VA has for years referred veterans suffering from depression and suicidal thoughts for ketamine treatment. Despite the treatment's success, the VA is ending the program and switching patients to a different drug treatment.

The Shiley Eye Institute, which houses the UC S...

Audits Find Repeat Problems At UC San Diego’s Shiley Eye Institute

July 13: By Brad Racino / inewsource, Jill Castellano / inewsource

Two internal audits found fault with the Shiley Eye Institute’s spending, research awards, clinical operations, inventory maintenance and policies about staff activities outside of the office.

Air Force veteran Tom Johan is shown at his hom...

San Diego VA Offers Conflicting, Untrue Statements About Drug Treatment For Suicidal Vets

June 26: By Brad Racino / inewsource

More suicidal and depressed veterans are coming forward to share their anger and desperation over the San Diego VA’s decision to take them off a drug treatment they say helped them.

Army veteran AJ Williams of El Cajon becomes em...

House Panel Investigates San Diego VA Decision To Stop Treatment That Helps Suicidal Vets

June 17: By Brad Racino / inewsource

Following an inewsource report that the VA San Diego Healthcare System has stopped paying for a drug treatment that helps suicidal veterans, a panel of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs has begun investigating the decision.

Navy veteran Larry McMinn relaxes before receiv...

'A Train Wreck In Slow Motion': San Diego VA Takes Suicidal Vets Off Treatment

June 4: By Brad Racino / inewsource

Ketamine has shown promise in derailing suicidal thoughts among patients resistant to other treatments. The San Diego VA has started pulling veterans off the drug to treat them instead with a controversial nasal spray promoted by President Trump.

Respiratory therapist Gus Naranjo, left, adjust...

Health Experts, Residents Worry South Bay Not Ready To Reopen As COVID-19 Worsens

May 11: By Brad Racino / inewsource, Jill Castellano / inewsource

Sharp Chula Vista Medical Center is the epicenter of the COVID-19 fight in San Diego County. The hospital is caring for more coronavirus patients than anywhere else in the county.

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