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Josh Kaplan

@josh-kaplan.bsky.social
37K followers 175 following 65 posts

ProPublica reporter | Email me at joshua.kaplan@propublica.org | Contact info & stories here: propublica.org/people/joshua-kaplan

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Reposted by Josh Kaplan
ProPublica @propublica.org · 26/09/2026
Hey, ProPublica reporter Jake Pearson here. I’m taking over the account to tell you about my new story. For months, I posed as a problem gambler on DraftKings to test the company's "responsible gaming" safeguards. Spoiler alert: They made me a VIP — and I lost $10K. Here's how it all went down. 🧵
Selfie taken by ProPublica reporter Jake Pearson, a man wearing a backwards baseball cap and an orange T-shirt.
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Blockbuster story about Susan Collins — a shocking, detailed window into the dark side of money in politics.
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Updates on our Don Jr/Russian oligarch story, with Oversight Dem launching an investigation and President Trump weighing in www.propublica.org/article/dona...
propublica.org
Top Oversight Dem Opens Investigation of Donald Trump Jr.’s Russian Oligarch-Funded Wedding
Rep. Robert Garcia said the revelations that Umar Kremlev had bankrolled the wedding raise “serious national security and public corruption concerns” and requested the president’s son provide financia...
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
NEW: Don Trump Jr’s luxurious wedding was secretly bankrolled by a Russian oligarch close to Putin. A saga involving private islands, the Olympics, and a Russian government-backed biker gang: www.propublica.org/article/dona...
propublica.org
Donald Trump Jr.’s Wedding Bankrolled by Putin-Linked Russian Oligarch
The oligarch, Umar Kremlev, spent hundreds of thousands on expenses like renting out a private island. He appears to have met Trump Jr. only recently, but he attended the intimate wedding with a large...
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Charles Ornstein @charlesornstein.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth Cut Civilian Protections Over the Objection of Top Commanders
propublica.org
Top Commanders Told Hegseth Not to Cut Civilian Protection Program, Poll Showed. He Did It Anyway.
The U.S. military has killed hundreds of noncombatants since gutting its Civilian Harm Mitigation and Response mission last year. After significant blowback, the Defense Department is considering part...
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Reposted by Josh Kaplan
ProPublica @propublica.org · 13/08/2026
NEW: The AAU, one of the country's largest youth sports organizations, is failing on nearly every level to adequately protect children in its care from sexual abuse, a ProPublica and @washingtonpost.com investigation found.
propublica.org
This National Youth Sports Organization Is Failing to Protect Kids From Sexual Abuse
More than a decade after the Amateur Athletic Union promised to implement “historic child protection measures,” it still hasn’t done so, leaving hundreds of thousands of kids at risk. Some AAU athlete...
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Reposted by Josh Kaplan
Jesse Coburn @jessecoburn.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
NEW: Flaming robots. Haywire Turkish machines. An actual dumpster fire. General Dynamics received $533 million from the Army to produce artillery but hasn’t made a single usable shell. ProPublica got the inside story of what went wrong. It’s a wild ride: www.propublica.org/article/gene...
propublica.org
Fiasco in the Factory: Taxpayers Funded a $533 Million Artillery Plant That Made Nothing
General Dynamics opened a Texas factory to churn out artillery shells for Ukraine, but the machines kept breaking. Robot arms smashed into things. Hunks of metal crashed to the floor. There was even a...
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Joaquin Sapien @jbsapien.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
A few weeks ago, after two years of work, I published a story unlike any I’d encountered in my 18 years at ProPublica. I’ve been off social media for a while, but I felt compelled to share some of my reporting journey here. 🧵
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T. Christian Miller @tchristianmiller.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
Alice Sebold, the Lovely Bones author, accused the wrong man of rape years ago. @propublica.org asks the question: so who did it? The answer is an amazing work of journalism, truly stunning in the writing and reporting. Put aside some time. It's a must read must read. By Joaquin Sapien.
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Reposted by Josh Kaplan
Charles Ornstein @charlesornstein.bsky.social · 25/06/2026
“Chaps, I have had a go at rewriting the paper.” -Chris Mottershead, BP climate adviser Beyond Denial: How Oil Execs Shaped a Landmark Climate Study @themadstone.bsky.social @amywestervelt.bsky.social @katieworth.bsky.social @drilledmedia.bsky.social @propublica.org
propublica.org
Beyond Denial: How Oil Execs Shaped a Landmark Climate Study
BP sponsored an elite Princeton research center to address the climate problem without getting off fossil fuels. Its key work, a paper known as “Wedges,” guided climate discourse for a generation.
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
NEW: We got a private SpaceX investor list, from way before the IPO. It's a rare window into a particularly delicate issue for Musk: which investors in countries like China got stakes in SpaceX, and how. One investor has ties to Chinese military contractors. www.propublica.org/article/spac...
propublica.org
Before SpaceX IPO, Investors in China Secretly Acquired Stakes
One previously unreported SpaceX investor has ties to Chinese military contractors. The information was revealed only after ProPublica went to court to obtain it.
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Reposted by Josh Kaplan
Chris Morran @themorrancave.bsky.social · 17/06/2026
Imagine if France said they'd help the US with urgently needed medical aid and relief after a disaster, but only if we turned over sensitive medical data for millions of Americans. That's what Trump's State Dept. is doing across Africa. By @fastlerner.bsky.social @annamaria.bsky.social
propublica.org
“Digital Colonialism”: U.S. Demands to Access Africans’ Data Raise Privacy, Sovereignty Concerns
The United States is requiring access to health data as part of lifesaving aid deals with African countries. The U.S. says the data will be aggregated and anonymized, but privacy experts fear the info...
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
Trump Jr’s lawyer, John Willding, said in an email that there was “no transaction in India or with an Indian company that I was ever involved with.” In response to ProPublica’s questions, the White House said that “there are no conflicts of interest.”
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
Reliance also said in its statement: “The investment was evaluated and approved on its commercial merits, strategic fit and long-term value creation potential.”
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
Reliance said it did not receive “any unique or preferential treatment” from the U.S. government. “There is no connection between Reliance’s investment in AFR and any unique measures associated with general U.S. trade, tariff, sanctions or licensing outcomes," it said.
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
In response to detailed questions, a spokesperson for America First Refining said, “The claims in this story are false,” but declined to specify what they were referring to.
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
“The entire premise of this story relating to Don is false,” the Trump Jr. spokesperson said, adding, “Don does not interface with the Federal Government on behalf of any company that he invests in or advises.”
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
A Trump Jr spokesperson said Trump Jr. “has no operational involvement in AFR and is simply a passive minority investor in an American company that aligns with his worldview.”
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
There’s much, much more in the full story. Read it here: www.propublica.org/article/trum...
propublica.org
An Indian Billionaire Was Targeted by Trump. Then He Poured Money Into a Startup Secretly Backed by Donald Trump Jr.
An obscure Texas firm secretly connected to the president’s son said it received at least $100 million from Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries. At the same time, the Ambani family secured major polic...
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
Soon, the Ambanis’ company made its investment in the Trump Jr-backed startup. The investment coincided with the family’s securing major U.S. policy wins that their company had been lobbying for.
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
Amid this tension, Trump Jr visited one of the Ambanis in India. The men danced together and toured the family’s giant private zoo. At the end of the trip, Jr’s lawyer said at a conference: “I had a nice closing this morning with Don Trump Jr, who’s flying back from India today.”
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
Last year, the Ambanis came under fire from the Trump admin, with a senior White House official attacking “India’s politically connected energy titans” for “funding Putin’s war machine.” The family found themselves at the center of an escalating tariff campaign against India.
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
But the big break came from the Ambani family in India, who run a sprawling energy conglomerate called Reliance. Since the Ukraine invasion, their company had reportedly made billions in profits by buying Russian oil at a discount.
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
AFR has flexed its Trump Jr. connections as it’s tried to raise money from overseas. One foreign government official who was pitched told us the company’s team emphasized they had backing from the Trump family and suggested that an investment would help with White House access.
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
The Texas energy startup — recently rebranded as America First Refining — had been struggling for years. The unexpected breakthrough came after it forged a previously unreported relationship with Trump Jr., who secretly acquired a stake in the firm. www.propublica.org/article/trum...
propublica.org
An Indian Billionaire Was Targeted by Trump. Then He Poured Money Into a Startup Secretly Backed by Donald Trump Jr.
An obscure Texas firm secretly connected to the president’s son said it received at least $100 million from Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries. At the same time, the Ambani family secured major polic...
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
NEW: Earlier this year, an obscure startup in Texas announced that it had received at least $100 mil from one of the richest men in Asia. We dug into the backstory. We discovered a saga involving Donald Trump Jr., Russian oil, and an Indian billionaire family’s private zoo.
Donald Trump Jr and Anant Ambani talking to each other in front of an elephant
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
NEW: An Indian billionaire was in Trump’s crosshairs. Then he poured millions into an obscure startup secretly backed by Donald Trump Jr. www.propublica.org/article/trum... w/ @justinelliott.bsky.social @amierjeski.bsky.social
propublica.org
An Indian Billionaire Was Targeted by Trump. Then He Poured Money Into a Startup Secretly Backed by Donald Trump Jr.
An obscure Texas firm secretly connected to the president’s son said it received at least $100 million from Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries. At the same time, the Ambani family secured major polic...
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 20/03/2026
Wild story: DOGE meets nuclear reactor safety
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 04/03/2026
NEW: Kristi Noem Misled Congress About Top Aide’s Role in DHS Contracts, Internal Agency Records Show www.propublica.org/article/kris...
propublica.org
Kristi Noem Misled Congress About Top Aide’s Role in DHS Contracts
Testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Noem denied that Corey Lewandowski had any role in approving contracts. But internal DHS records and interviews with current and former agency staffer...
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Reposted by Josh Kaplan
Jesse Coburn @jessecoburn.bsky.social · 26/01/2026
NEW: The Trump administration is planning to use AI to write federal regulations despite the risk of hallucinations. “We don't even need a very good rule,” the Transportation Department’s top lawyer said of the plan, per meeting notes reviewed by ProPublica. “We want good enough.”🧵
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Pamela Colloff @pamelacolloff.bsky.social · 15/12/2025
Look at the lengths that my incredible @propublica.org colleagues @annamaria.bsky.social and Brett Murphy went to in order to report this story. Please take a moment to read what they found about the effect of USAID cuts on the world's most vulnerable people: www.propublica.org/article/usai...
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Justin Elliott @justinelliott.bsky.social · 08/12/2025
NEW: Trump’s Own Mortgages Match His Description of Mortgage Fraud, Records Reveal www.propublica.org/article/trum... w/ @robert-faturechi.bsky.social @amierjeski.bsky.social
propublica.org
Trump’s Own Mortgages Match His Description of Mortgage Fraud, Records Reveal
The Trump administration has argued that Fed board member Lisa Cook may have committed mortgage fraud by declaring more than one primary residence on her loans. We found Trump once did the very thing ...
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Reposted by Josh Kaplan
ProPublica @propublica.org · 24/11/2025
NEW: Senators have called for an investigation after a ProPublica story revealed that Kristi Noem-connected firm the Strategy Group was secretly hired as a subcontractor on a $220 million DHS ad campaign.
propublica.org
Lawmakers Call for Probe of How Firm Tied to Kristi Noem Got Piece of $220 Million DHS Ad Contracts
The demands for an investigation come after a ProPublica story revealed that the Noem-connected Strategy Group was secretly a subcontractor on the ad campaign.
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ProPublica @propublica.org · 14/11/2025
NEW: FBI Director Kash Patel granted waivers to Deputy Director Dan Bongino and two newly hired senior FBI staff, exempting them from polygraph exams normally required to gain access to America’s most sensitive classified information, officials said.
propublica.org
FBI Director Kash Patel Waived Polygraph Security Screening for Dan Bongino, Two Other Senior Staff
As the FBI’s deputy director, Bongino receives some of the country’s most sensitive secrets, including the President’s Daily Brief. His ascent to that position without passing a standard bureau backgr...
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 14/11/2025
In a statement, DHS said, “DHS has no involvement with the selection of subcontractors.” They said the agency does its contracting “by the book” and the process is run by career officials. “It is very sad that Pro Publica would seek to defame these public servants,” DHS added.
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 14/11/2025
McLaughlin’s husband, Strategy Group CEO Ben Yoho, didn’t respond to questions. It’s not clear how much his company has been paid. Sheahan also didn’t respond to questions.
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 14/11/2025
Asked about the firm’s work for DHS, DHS spox Tricia McLaughlin said, “We don’t have visibility into why they were chosen.” “I don’t know who they’re a subcontractor with, but I don’t work with them because I have a conflict of interest and I fully recused myself," she said.
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 14/11/2025
We’re still reporting on Kristi Noem, contracts at DHS, and the ad deal. If you have any information we should know, my email is joshua.kaplan@propublica.org and I’m on the encrypted messaging app Signal (you can message me at js_kaplan.85)
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 14/11/2025
Read the full story here: www.propublica.org/article/kris...
propublica.org
Firm Tied to Kristi Noem Secretly Got Money From $220 Million DHS Ad Contracts
The company is run by the husband of Noem’s chief DHS spokesperson and has personal and business ties to Noem and her aides. DHS invoked the “emergency” at the border to skirt competitive bidding rule...
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 14/11/2025
The same year the company got that big South Dakota ad contract, it sent up to $25k to one of Noem’s closest aides. That aide, 28-year-old Madison Sheahan, now second-in-command at ICE.
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 14/11/2025
This isn’t the first time the firm has gotten public money through a Noem contract. When she was governor of SD, the company got $8.5M in state funds for another ad campaign (starring her). A former Noem admin official told us that Noem quietly intervened to push the deal.
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 14/11/2025
This is the latest ad in the campaign, made by the Strategy Group at Mount Rushmore. Noem filmed it on the second day of the government shutdown. It’s aired in recent days on “Fox & Friends.”
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 14/11/2025
The consulting firm, the Ohio-based Strategy Group, has longstanding personal and business ties to Noem and her senior aides at DHS. It played a central role in Noem’s 2022 reelection campaign. And the company’s CEO is married to Noem’s chief spokesperson at DHS.
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 14/11/2025
Where that $220M ended up has been unknown. The main recipient listed on public docs was a Delaware LLC created days before the deal was signed. We found there's been a secret beneficiary: a GOP consulting firm with a much longer — & more interesting — track record.
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 14/11/2025
First, let's back up. Noem has starred in a sprawling ad campaign she’s said is a crucial tool to stem illegal immigration—so crucial that DHS bypassed the normal competitive bidding process, designed to prevent waste & corruption in federal contracts www.propublica.org/article/kris...
propublica.org
Firm Tied to Kristi Noem Secretly Got Money From $220 Million DHS Ad Contracts
The company is run by the husband of Noem’s chief DHS spokesperson and has personal and business ties to Noem and her aides. DHS invoked the “emergency” at the border to skirt competitive bidding rule...
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 14/11/2025
NEW: We’ve uncovered the first known example of taxpayer money flowing from DHS to businesses controlled by Kristi Noem’s allies and friends. It’s part of a money trail that’s been shrouded in secrecy—and involves $220 million, a mysterious Delaware LLC & a horse named Gill.
Kristi Noem sits on a horse wearing a cowboy hat. In the background is Mount Rushmore.
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Jesse Eisinger @jeisinger.bsky.social · 12/11/2025
JOB ALERT! We are hiring a business editor. You have an unerring instinct for the jugular of the wealthy & powerful? Build a team with me and we’ll get after it! job-boards.greenhouse.io/propublica/j... You can email me or on Signal at 718-496-5233
job-boards.greenhouse.io
Senior Editor, Business
New York City, United States
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Reposted by Josh Kaplan
Nicole Foy @nicolefoy.bsky.social · 18/10/2025
Hi, I'm the ProPublica reporter who's been tracking an unusual stat: U.S. citizens grabbed by immigration agents. I did it because the government isn’t. This is what I found.
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Immigration agents have the authority to detain whom they reasonably suspect are in the country illegally. We found more than 50 Americans who were held after agents questioned their citizenship. They were almost all Latino.

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Agents also can arrest citizens who allegedly interfered with or assaulted officers. We compiled cases of about 130 Americans, including a dozen elected officials, accused of assaulting or impeding officers. 

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Among the citizens detained are nearly 20 children, including two with cancer.
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Josh Kaplan @josh-kaplan.bsky.social · 02/10/2025
NEW: Elon Musk’s SpaceX has taken money directly from Chinese investors, according to newly unsealed testimony. It's the first time direct Chinese investment in the defense contractor has been disclosed. www.propublica.org/article/elon...
propublica.org
Elon Musk’s SpaceX Took Money Directly From Chinese Investors, Company Insider Testifies
The newly unsealed testimony marks the first time direct Chinese investment in the company has been disclosed, raising new questions about foreign ownership interests in one of America’s most importan...
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ProPublica @propublica.org · 27/09/2025
NEW: Income isn’t supposed to play a role in how much housing assistance FEMA gives families. But in some North Carolina counties, the highest-income homeowners received two to three times as much money after Hurricane Helene as those with lower incomes. With @theassemblync.bsky.social
propublica.org
Arduous and Unequal: The Fight to Get FEMA Housing Assistance After Helene
An analysis by ProPublica and The Assembly of the more rural counties in North Carolina hardest hit by Helene shows that the households that got the most aid tended to have the highest incomes.
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