Rebecca Ostriker
@rebeccaostriker.bsky.social
Deputy Op-Ed Page Editor at the Boston Globe. Former Spotlight Team investigative reporter, Arts Editor at the Globe.
Pinned
House of cards: How a real estate firm and Steward Health Care grew in tandem, in part by keeping Steward’s shaky finances secret
The Boston Globe Spotlight Team has spent months investigating this unusual partnership to lay bare another critical piece of the Steward saga.
apps.bostonglobe.com
"It very much is all smoke and mirrors.” House of cards: How an Alabama real estate firm enabled Steward Health Care to grow and helped keep its shaky finances secret. A Boston Globe Spotlight report: apps.bostonglobe.com/metro/invest...
He’s been buying up Massachusetts nursing homes, squeezing them for all they’re worth, and driving top-rated facilities into the lowest ranks. State regulators keep signing off.
apps.bostonglobe.com/2026/09/spot... @bostonglobe.com @globespotlight.bsky.social @kaylazar.bsky.social
apps.bostonglobe.com/2026/09/spot... @bostonglobe.com @globespotlight.bsky.social @kaylazar.bsky.social
Outside chains like RegalCare transformed Mass. nursing homes. Quality fell.
RegalCare and other nursing home chains have rapidly expanded in Massachusetts. The Globe Spotlight Team found widespread problems and little state intervention.
apps.bostonglobe.com
September 28, 2026 at 1:25 PM
He’s been buying up Massachusetts nursing homes, squeezing them for all they’re worth, and driving top-rated facilities into the lowest ranks. State regulators keep signing off.
apps.bostonglobe.com/2026/09/spot... @bostonglobe.com @globespotlight.bsky.social @kaylazar.bsky.social
apps.bostonglobe.com/2026/09/spot... @bostonglobe.com @globespotlight.bsky.social @kaylazar.bsky.social
Heat-pump contractor accused of ‘staggering fraud’ of nearly $8 million from Mass Save www.bostonglobe.com/2026/09/22/m... @bostonglobe.com @stephanieebbert.bsky.social
Heat-pump contractor accused of ‘staggering fraud’ of nearly $8 million from Mass Save - The Boston Globe
A total of 220 jobs performed by the South Shore firm are being reviewed. So far, less than 10 percent of the work inspected was done correctly, according to a lawsuit.
www.bostonglobe.com
September 22, 2026 at 10:53 PM
Heat-pump contractor accused of ‘staggering fraud’ of nearly $8 million from Mass Save www.bostonglobe.com/2026/09/22/m... @bostonglobe.com @stephanieebbert.bsky.social
MassHousing report confirms fraud findings in @bostonglobe.com Spotlight Team investigation, says exec lied about conflict www.bostonglobe.com/2026/08/27/m... @globespotlight.bsky.social @joeflech.bsky.social
MassHousing report confirms fraud findings in Spotlight investigation, says exec lied about conflict - The Boston Globe
The quasi-state agency released the results of an internal investigation triggered by reporting by the Globe that uncovered fraud and ethical lapses in a grant program.
www.bostonglobe.com
August 27, 2026 at 9:33 PM
MassHousing report confirms fraud findings in @bostonglobe.com Spotlight Team investigation, says exec lied about conflict www.bostonglobe.com/2026/08/27/m... @globespotlight.bsky.social @joeflech.bsky.social
If the BSO protest movement that launched thousands of red rose pins had a Thomas Paine, it would be Thomas W. Dinsmore — a chronicler who can also analyze the bejesus out of a tax filing, writes Rachelle G. Cohen. @globeopinion.bsky.social www.bostonglobe.com/2026/08/21/o...
BSO’s War of the Roses gets an unlikely hero - The Boston Globe
A retired corporate exec and classically trained musician crunches the orchestra's numbers.
www.bostonglobe.com
August 21, 2026 at 2:30 PM
If the BSO protest movement that launched thousands of red rose pins had a Thomas Paine, it would be Thomas W. Dinsmore — a chronicler who can also analyze the bejesus out of a tax filing, writes Rachelle G. Cohen. @globeopinion.bsky.social www.bostonglobe.com/2026/08/21/o...
A second grant program overseen by MassHousing is a focus of fraud allegations and state investigation, per Globe Spotlight Team www.bostonglobe.com/2026/08/03/m... @bostonglobe.com @globespotlight.bsky.social
A second grant program overseen by MassHousing is a focus of fraud allegations and state investigation - The Boston Globe
An effort to install fire sprinklers in sober homes led to the agency paying out hundreds of thousands of dollars for work that had not been done, officials later determined.
www.bostonglobe.com
August 3, 2026 at 11:50 AM
A second grant program overseen by MassHousing is a focus of fraud allegations and state investigation, per Globe Spotlight Team www.bostonglobe.com/2026/08/03/m... @bostonglobe.com @globespotlight.bsky.social
Cerberus, former Steward Health Care private-equity owner, settles with creditors -- but settlement is cloaked in secrecy. “Steward is the legal and financial equivalent of a Superfund site. It’s financially and ethically toxic,” says prof. www.bostonglobe.com/2026/07/30/b... @bostonglobe.com
Cerberus, former Steward Health Care private equity owner, settles with creditors - The Boston Globe
A company that tripled its investment in Steward will provide some compensation for the damages wrought by the hospital chain's collapse.
www.bostonglobe.com
July 31, 2026 at 11:25 AM
Cerberus, former Steward Health Care private-equity owner, settles with creditors -- but settlement is cloaked in secrecy. “Steward is the legal and financial equivalent of a Superfund site. It’s financially and ethically toxic,” says prof. www.bostonglobe.com/2026/07/30/b... @bostonglobe.com
MassHousing executive resigns after Boston Globe Spotlight Team investigation finds fraud, ethics lapse at program he led www.bostonglobe.com/2026/07/17/m... @globespotlight.bsky.social @bostonglobe.com
MassHousing executive resigns after Spotlight investigation finds fraud, ethics lapse at program he led - The Boston Globe
Tony Richards II failed to disclose that he had purchased a house from two developers whom he awarded $1.4 million in grants. The Globe found that the developers went on to submit a series of bogus in...
www.bostonglobe.com
July 17, 2026 at 11:36 PM
MassHousing executive resigns after Boston Globe Spotlight Team investigation finds fraud, ethics lapse at program he led www.bostonglobe.com/2026/07/17/m... @globespotlight.bsky.social @bostonglobe.com
Fantastic time-warp wrap on today’s @bostonglobe.com as if back in 1776, covering the signing of the Declaration of Independence and more: “The Freshest News & Occurrences of This Glorious Day, Humbly Deliver’d” apps.bostonglobe.com/2026/07/stor...
July 3, 2026 at 10:57 AM
Fantastic time-warp wrap on today’s @bostonglobe.com as if back in 1776, covering the signing of the Declaration of Independence and more: “The Freshest News & Occurrences of This Glorious Day, Humbly Deliver’d” apps.bostonglobe.com/2026/07/stor...
A Mass. state official gave a grant to two young developers who sold him a house. Then came the shoddy work and fake invoices. Great story from @globespotlight.bsky.social www.bostonglobe.com/2026/06/25/m... @joeflech.bsky.social @bostonglobe.com
A state official gave a grant to two young developers who sold him a house. Then came the shoddy work and fake invoices. - The Boston Globe
The state official in charge of giving out grants gave the largest share of the money to two men who had recently sold him a house.
www.bostonglobe.com
June 25, 2026 at 1:59 PM
A Mass. state official gave a grant to two young developers who sold him a house. Then came the shoddy work and fake invoices. Great story from @globespotlight.bsky.social www.bostonglobe.com/2026/06/25/m... @joeflech.bsky.social @bostonglobe.com
Fascinating: Before “Cheers,” there was the sitcom “Park St. Under,” and Don Aucoin @bostonglobe.com isn't the only one who thought the network show royally ripped off the feisty, Boston-produced WCVB venture. Amazing list of similarities... www.bostonglobe.com/2026/06/22/a...
Before ‘Cheers,’ there was ‘Park St. Under’ - The Boston Globe
The locally produced sitcom had a lot in common with James Burrows’s sitcom classic.
www.bostonglobe.com
June 23, 2026 at 12:15 PM
Fascinating: Before “Cheers,” there was the sitcom “Park St. Under,” and Don Aucoin @bostonglobe.com isn't the only one who thought the network show royally ripped off the feisty, Boston-produced WCVB venture. Amazing list of similarities... www.bostonglobe.com/2026/06/22/a...
Mass General Brigham tried to buy a closed Steward hospital in Norwood, an unfinished skeleton. But owner Medical Properties Trust sought “flagrantly unreasonable” sums, per state rep -- first $250M, then $375M. www.bostonglobe.com/2026/06/15/b... @bostonglobe.com
Mass General Brigham tried to resurrect closed hospital, but ex-Steward partner raised the price even more, lawmaker says - The Boston Globe
Norwood Hospital served an estimated quarter of a million people, and locals have pushed for its reopening.
www.bostonglobe.com
June 15, 2026 at 2:48 PM
Mass General Brigham tried to buy a closed Steward hospital in Norwood, an unfinished skeleton. But owner Medical Properties Trust sought “flagrantly unreasonable” sums, per state rep -- first $250M, then $375M. www.bostonglobe.com/2026/06/15/b... @bostonglobe.com
Marblehead man (“are we kinda being pricks”?) has more to say about his town's “completely farcical and stupid” housing plan. www.bostonglobe.com/2026/05/06/b... @bostonglobe.com @shannonlarson.bsky.social @andrewbrinker.bsky.social
Marblehead man goes viral for his snarky comments on town’s housing plan. ‘Are we trying to do nothing?’ - The Boston Globe
David Modica’s remarks at Town Meeting on Marblehead’s plan to comply with the controversial MBTA Communities Act have exploded online.
www.bostonglobe.com
May 6, 2026 at 11:57 PM
Marblehead man (“are we kinda being pricks”?) has more to say about his town's “completely farcical and stupid” housing plan. www.bostonglobe.com/2026/05/06/b... @bostonglobe.com @shannonlarson.bsky.social @andrewbrinker.bsky.social
"Disgusting and beloved" is right. My old band's last gig at the Rat, not long before it closed, came after a (shall we say) major plumbing problem. Reader, it reeked. www.bostonglobe.com/2026/05/01/a... @bostonglobe.com
Disgusting and beloved: Remembering Boston punk haven The Rat - The Boston Globe
Boston’s punk haven lives on through "Live at the Rat," which turns 50 this year.
www.bostonglobe.com
May 1, 2026 at 6:17 PM
"Disgusting and beloved" is right. My old band's last gig at the Rat, not long before it closed, came after a (shall we say) major plumbing problem. Reader, it reeked. www.bostonglobe.com/2026/05/01/a... @bostonglobe.com
Internal BSO memo obtained by @bostonglobe.com says fund-raising has stalled since Andris Nelsons’ ouster, blames downturn on “BSO personnel and other members of the BSO community” who are “spreading false and misleading rumors.” www.bostonglobe.com/2026/04/29/a... @malcolmgay.bsky.social
Internal BSO memo: ‘Business as usual will no longer suffice’ - The Boston Globe
An internal memo obtained by the Globe offers an extraordinary glimpse into an organization in turmoil and its leaders’ promise for a prosperous future.
www.bostonglobe.com
April 29, 2026 at 12:22 PM
Internal BSO memo obtained by @bostonglobe.com says fund-raising has stalled since Andris Nelsons’ ouster, blames downturn on “BSO personnel and other members of the BSO community” who are “spreading false and misleading rumors.” www.bostonglobe.com/2026/04/29/a... @malcolmgay.bsky.social
The MFA posted pictures of a nude performance artist at work — and suddenly everyone’s an art critic www.bostonglobe.com/2026/04/24/a... @bostonglobe.com
The MFA posted pictures of a nude performance artist at work — and suddenly everyone’s an art critic - The Boston Globe
Museum staff say the controversy is expected — and even welcome — as feminist art continues to challenge audiences and provoke conversation.
www.bostonglobe.com
April 24, 2026 at 1:40 PM
The MFA posted pictures of a nude performance artist at work — and suddenly everyone’s an art critic www.bostonglobe.com/2026/04/24/a... @bostonglobe.com
"Every time I walk through that entrance, my heart races. My hands clench. The muscles in my body contract": The call to dename Harvard's building named after billionaire donor Les Wexner, longtime close associate of Epstein. www.bostonglobe.com/2026/04/14/o... @globeopinion.bsky.social
I am a survivor of sexual abuse. Here’s why Harvard must dename the Wexner building. - The Boston Globe
The billionaire donor was a longtime close associate of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
www.bostonglobe.com
April 14, 2026 at 12:15 PM
"Every time I walk through that entrance, my heart races. My hands clench. The muscles in my body contract": The call to dename Harvard's building named after billionaire donor Les Wexner, longtime close associate of Epstein. www.bostonglobe.com/2026/04/14/o... @globeopinion.bsky.social
Only one man knows how to run the Steamship Authority’s byzantine ticket system for ferries to Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket. And he’s about to retire. www.bostonglobe.com/2026/04/13/m... @bostonglobe.com
Only one person knows how to run the Steamship Authority’s ticketing system. And he’s about to retire. - The Boston Globe
David Cox built the system in 1996 and is the only person on earth who knows all the ins and outs of running it.
www.bostonglobe.com
April 13, 2026 at 3:09 PM
Only one man knows how to run the Steamship Authority’s byzantine ticket system for ferries to Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket. And he’s about to retire. www.bostonglobe.com/2026/04/13/m... @bostonglobe.com
Emily Sweeney and 18 jahs of peanut buttah here www.tiktok.com/@bostonglobe... @emilysweeney22.bsky.social @bostonglobe.com
We’re ready for some good headlines from Emily Sweeney. Video by Maria Pemberton #localnews #usnews #bostontiktok
TikTok video by The Boston Globe
www.tiktok.com
April 11, 2026 at 12:50 PM
Emily Sweeney and 18 jahs of peanut buttah here www.tiktok.com/@bostonglobe... @emilysweeney22.bsky.social @bostonglobe.com
Here's Emily Sweeney's first news report on rollerblades for @bostonglobe.com @emilysweeney22.bsky.social www.instagram.com/p/DWzgFFwEefn/
April 7, 2026 at 1:48 PM
Here's Emily Sweeney's first news report on rollerblades for @bostonglobe.com @emilysweeney22.bsky.social www.instagram.com/p/DWzgFFwEefn/
Guarantee you will not get this commentary on "Real Housewives of Rhode Island" anywhere else www.instagram.com/p/DWrjwy4JAQC/ @bostonglobe.com @globeri.bsky.social @stephmachado.bsky.social
April 5, 2026 at 2:55 PM
Guarantee you will not get this commentary on "Real Housewives of Rhode Island" anywhere else www.instagram.com/p/DWrjwy4JAQC/ @bostonglobe.com @globeri.bsky.social @stephmachado.bsky.social
The great Emily Sweeney bringing you news of narwhal tusks and Fenway Park @bostonglobe.com @emilysweeney22.bsky.social www.instagram.com/p/DWr3zg8ifgB/
April 5, 2026 at 2:44 PM
The great Emily Sweeney bringing you news of narwhal tusks and Fenway Park @bostonglobe.com @emilysweeney22.bsky.social www.instagram.com/p/DWr3zg8ifgB/
OK, here's more Emily Sweeney for you www.instagram.com/reels/DWo7xO... @emilysweeney22.bsky.social @bostonglobe.com
April 3, 2026 at 2:08 PM
OK, here's more Emily Sweeney for you www.instagram.com/reels/DWo7xO... @emilysweeney22.bsky.social @bostonglobe.com
Yes, this is Jill Abramson's self-portrait: "At the end of each three-hour evening class, I was always covered in paint, including my hair. I was a human Jackson Pollock." www.bostonglobe.com/2026/04/02/o... @globeopinion.bsky.social
How I became an artist in my 60s - The Boston Globe
At the end of each three-hour evening class, I was always covered in paint, including my hair. I was a human Jackson Pollock.
www.bostonglobe.com
April 2, 2026 at 4:14 PM
Yes, this is Jill Abramson's self-portrait: "At the end of each three-hour evening class, I was always covered in paint, including my hair. I was a human Jackson Pollock." www.bostonglobe.com/2026/04/02/o... @globeopinion.bsky.social
"Seated in his redecorated office, Smith said the BSO faces daunting financial and demographic challenges." www.bostonglobe.com/2026/03/27/a... @bostonglobe.com
BSO chief Smith admits trust must be rebuilt after Nelsons’ ouster sparks backlash - The Boston Globe
In an interview, Chad Smith sought to provide more specifics on the situation, offering a glimpse of what he hopes a post-Andris Nelsons era might look like.
www.bostonglobe.com
March 28, 2026 at 11:40 AM
"Seated in his redecorated office, Smith said the BSO faces daunting financial and demographic challenges." www.bostonglobe.com/2026/03/27/a... @bostonglobe.com
"Gentile, who owned an auto body shop in South Windsor, ushered him into one of the garage bays and pulled an oil painting of a ship on stormy seas out of a large, oblong cardboard box." Fresh details on the Gardner art heist from @bostonglobe.com www.bostonglobe.com/2026/03/17/m...
A Rembrandt hidden in a chicken truck. An informant named Meatball. Retired FBI agent offers new intel on Gardner Museum heist. - The Boston Globe
Author Geoffrey Kelly led the investigation into the infamous theft for 22 years before he retired two years ago.
www.bostonglobe.com
March 17, 2026 at 4:15 PM
"Gentile, who owned an auto body shop in South Windsor, ushered him into one of the garage bays and pulled an oil painting of a ship on stormy seas out of a large, oblong cardboard box." Fresh details on the Gardner art heist from @bostonglobe.com www.bostonglobe.com/2026/03/17/m...