"The White House blocked efforts by federal scientists to tell the public just how bad the Gulf oil spill could have been, according to a panel appointed by President Barack Obama to investigate the worst offshore oil spill in U.S. history."

That's the lead of an Oct. 6 story by AP reporter Dina Cappiello.

The White House denies it. Commission Co-chair William Reilly says the panel stands by its reports.

• "Panel: Government Blocked Worst-Case Oil Spill Figures," [2] Associated Press, October 6, 2010.
• "White House Denies Blocking Gulf Spill Info," [3] Voice of America (with wires), October 7, 2010.
• "Oil Spill Commission Co-Chair Defends Panel's Reports," [4] Washington Independent, October 13, 2010, by Andrew Restuccia.
• "The Amount and Fate of the Oil," [5] Draft Staff Working Paper No. 3, National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Oil Drilling.
• Previous Stories: WatchDogs of October 6, 2010 [6] and August 25, 2010 [7].