To read about our year-end Best of The Florida Independent series, click here. For complete coverage, click here.

The story:

Just days before the 2010 elections, we posted a feature by Florida Independent contributer Luke Johnson that took a hard look at one of the most famous addresses in Florida politics: 610 South Blvd., Tampa. The accounting firm located there, Robert Watkins and Co., managed the finances for dozens of conservative political action committees — including one comparing Obama to Castro — and candidates for higher office during the 2010 cycle.

Almost a year later, we decided to revisit the topic, and our Ashley Lopez published a lengthy followup on the firm, specifically examining the company’s work in the context of the emergence of “Super PACs,” a new type of organization that arose from a controversial Supreme Court decision opening up elections to greater corporate influence.

The impact:

The day Lopez’s story was posted, a member of Occupy Tampa posted the item on Facebook, asking, “Why are we not Occupying this place?” Weeks later, they did.

About two dozen protesters marched on the sidewalk outside the Watkins office, holding signs with slogans such as “Unlimited Corp. $ in Politics Makes it Easier to Lie to Us” and brandishing brooms “to sweep up the laundered money.” Protesters also dropped off satirical oversized checks, asking for help on projects like one “to mislead the public to make them think that public employees are draining all our resources instead of helping them out.”

To read about our year-end Best of The Florida Independent series, click here. For complete coverage, click here.