Every year South African investigative journalists are recognized for their hard work when the winners of the Taco Kuiper Award for Investigative Journalism are announced. This year has provided a chance to assess the highs and the lows of our investigative reporting after an extraordinary year.
The Choqueyapu River investigation was initially intended for the Bolivian newspaper, Página Siete. A three-month reporting project resulted in the publication of two 16-page newspaper specials. But the challenge was to transform it into an innovative digital story.
Last May, Direkt36 published its first story about how the companies of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s family were secretly benefiting from projects funded by the government – often paid from the European Union’s budget. Here the reporters break down the five most interesting parts of their reporting.
What’s the global data journalism community tweeting about this week? Our NodeXL #ddj mapping from March 5 to 11 finds everyone keenly sharing data tipsheets from @IRE_NICAR’s NICAR18 conference, @texifter discussing how to identify bots versus humans online and @EdjNet talking to @culukaya about the shocking rates of femicide in Turkey.
Late last year, the number of official deaths during Hurricane Maria were at a surprising low. That’s when the journalists at Puerto Rico’s Centre de Periodismo Investigativo kicked into high gear, forcing government to be more transparent and accountable.
The recently published paper, Bridging the Gap, Rebuilding Citizen Trust in Media, probably offers the most complete list of the current projects around media and trust. But those interviewed for the project viewed trust — and the way publications can gain and sustain it — differently. However, all initiatives seem to rely on two principles to optimize trust: transparency and participation.
The murder of Slovakian journalist Ján Kuciak and his fiancee, Martina Kušnírová, both 27, have sparked protests since the killings on February 25. On Friday, tens of thousands gathered at the Slovak National Uprising Square in Bratislava to demand the resignation of Prime Minister Robert Fico’s government and a thorough investigation of Kuciak’s death. Feature image by Tomáš Benedikovič.
More than 30 journalists set out to film and observe every foot of the border with Mexico, from Texas to California. The result was a fully interactive map with about 20 hours of aerial footage of the border, a seven-chapter story about the journey, 14 additional stories about the consequences of the wall, 14 mini-documentaries and an explanation of the history of the border itself. Here’s how they did it.
What’s the global data journalism community tweeting about this week? Our NodeXL #ddj mapping from February 26 to March 4 finds @morgenpost setting Germany’s poll data to music, @A_agadjanian showing Google Trends data on people’s general interest in gun control a week after deadly shootings in the US and @puntofisso rounding up an interesting list of #ddj and #opendata newsletters.
Bellingcat, a UK-based open source and social media investigation site, put together a seriously impressive comprehensive list of open source verification and research tools. It includes satellite and mapping services, tools for verifying photos and videos, websites to archive hyperlinks and much more. Dig in!
