Monday reading: the best investigative reporting on the Web

By Margaux Stack-Babich and Bill Dedman

Today's reading from the world of investigative reporting.

Story of the day: On Saturday, tens of thousands of Russians took to the streets in what has been acknowledged as "the largest anti-government protests that post-Soviet Russia has ever seenm," demanding regime change and decrying the recent electoral processes and results as falsified. The number and variety of political backgrounds that came together is testament to the vitality of Russia's investigative and anti-corruption bloggers, who have helped to organize outraged Russians into protesters. As the role of Russian bloggers take on a new and potent significance, in the U.S. investigative blogger Crystal Cox finds herself on the end of a $2.5 million dollar fine for defamation after a judge rules she is not a real journalist, and therefore has none of the same legal rights and protections.

Today's links:

• The New York Times: Oscar Griffin Jr., 78, Pulitzer prize winner who brought down scheming Texas tycoon, dies
• Boston Globe: Ventilator errors are linked to 119 deaths. Warnings are often ignored, missed by overtaxed caregivers
• The Los Angeles Times: Unraveling an epidemic: An in-depth look at the soaring rate of autism diagnosis in recent years, and whether the diagnoses speak to more complex problems
• Wisconsin Watchdog: Minor offenders, major consequence – why Wisconsin's justice system treats 17-year-olds as adults
• The Seattle Times: Wash. state pushes methadone as safe pain medication to cut cost, but hundreds die each year — and the poor pay the price
• Center for Public Integrity: An epidemic of expulsion: California's Kern County at leading edge of national debate over costs and benefits of harsh school discipline
• The Center for Investigative Reporting: New sex crime arises after Ariz. sheriff's office fails to investigate
• NaplesNews.com: Florida's recent 'Stand your ground' criminal defense, which permits force to be met with force in cases of bodily harm, due to be employed again in southwest Fla. court
• The Bay Citizen: At Californian vocational schools, complaints mount as oversight lags - at one school, nearly half of nursing graduates failed national licensing exam
• Pro Publica: NY's tax overhaul, said to raise taxes on the rich, actually doesn't
• WisconsinWatch.org: In Haiti, U.S. deportees face illegal detentions and grave health risks
• Center for Public Integrity: Report says a quarter of hospitalized Medicare patients got improper treatment
• The Sun-Sentinel: In tight economic times, domestic violence incidents jump in South Florida

Keep up on the latest investigative reporting with the Twitter feed of the same name.

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Margaux Stack-Babich writes about investigative reporting for msnbc.com. Bill Dedman is an investigative reporter for msnbc.com.