Investigative journalism has to compete in a crowded media landscape, in constant competition with other forms of creative content. At GIJC21, investigative reporters who have innovated with innovative storytelling formats shared tips for other outlets interested in using music, theatre, and comics to reach new audiences.
From investigating the US Capitol rioters to creating a database of the deaths of the homeless in the UK, to uncovering mistreatment in nursing homes in Australia, crowdsourcing and community-based reporting are changing how investigative journalists across the globe do their work. In this GIJC21 session, journalists share how they did it.
Among five leading environmental journalists who covered COP26, there is cautious optimism, but also a recognition that there is still much to be done. Speaking at the GIJC21, they highlighted a wide range of topics related to climate change that are still underreported by newsrooms around the world.
Indigenous communities are often under siege by dominant cultures, and suffer the consequences of colonialism. Their resources stolen, and their people subjected to discrimination and abuse. Indigenous journalists from Australia, Canada, and the United States talk about their award-winning investigations, ranging from forced displacement to fake tribes, and deaths in custody.
At GIJC21, hard-hitting investigations journalists shared some great story ideas that could be replicated by reporters across the globe to bring about changes in their society.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, journalists worldwide were suddenly thrown into the public health beat, trying to make sense of competing claims, and a science that seemed to change by the day. A session at the GIJC21 walked reporters through the COVID-19 pandemic, offering tips on covering the drug development and approval processes, evaluating scientific studies, unearthing conflicts of interest, and exposing fraud and malpractice.
In an expert panel on visual investigations at #GIJC21, three members of the New York Times’ pioneering team showed that it is now possible to report exactly who did what, and when, at various incidents.
After 80 panels and workshops — presented by 200 speakers and attended by close to 1700 editors and reporters from 148 countries — the 12th Global Investigative Journalism Conference closed with renewed resolve for innovative investigations, and a broad invitation to an in-person conference in Sydney in 2022.
In a GIJC21 session that focused on stories across the Asia/Pacific region, investigative journalists discussed best reporting best practices and how telling great investigative stories requires a range of skills and determination to uncover the truth.
Despite China’s growing secrecy and media crackdown, the country’s global footprint opens new ways to report on Chinese affairs, according to panelists at a Nov. 4 session at the 12th Global Investigative Journalism Conference (#GIJC21).
Data journalism has evolved from simple spreadsheet analysis of local government data to the spectacular tracking of the hidden wealth of oligarchs, autocrats, and corporate leaders from gigantic datasets. In a session at GIJC21, leading data journalists looked at this transition but also, at what is next.
When the Taliban seized control of Kabul, international news outlets focused their attention on what was happening at the airport. But experts told the GIJC21 this was symptomatic of how the West failed to understand – and report – the real story during the 20-year conflict in Afghanistan.
In a GIJC21 session on business models for investigative journalism, panelist Claudia Urquieta from Chile’s CIPER shared how the investigative outlet started a membership program from scratch, what it takes to make this model work, and how its partners saved CIPER from an uncertain future.
Cross-border collaborations allow newsrooms to pool resources and overcome financial hurdles. On the fourth day of GIJC21, journalists based in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Indonesia, Singapore, South Korea, and Malaysia offered tips for conducting successful collaborative reporting projects.
A panel of Asia experts at GIJC21 unanimously agreed that press freedom in the region faces a bleak future, as governments increasingly use digital platforms to manipulate communities and increase hostility towards journalists.
Wildlife crime doesn’t just impact wildlife, it undermines security, promotes corruption and other illegal cross-border activities, but it remains under-covered. In a session at the GIJC21, a team of experienced wildlife crime journalists explained why more focus should be given to these crimes, and offered tips on how to go beyond the stories on iconic species such as elephants.
It is vital for journalists to shield their sources, and at a dedicated workshop at GIJC21, two security experts gave practical examples of how reporters can reach out to sources in a way that protects the individuals and wins trust for both journalists and their organization.
Spending time with vulnerable communities and focusing on systems of exploitation were the central takeaways from a #GICJ21 panel on covering inequality, in which journalists based in three of the world’s most unequal societies — Brazil, South Africa, and the United States — shared tips on how to tackle this global crisis.
At GIJC21, Washington DC-based nonprofit C4ADS introduced Icarus Flights, a comprehensive new system that helps journalists track and investigate nearly any aircraft around the world.
From the Pandora Papers to massive “laundromat” exposes, we are witnessing the era of massive leaks exposing financial corruption. But how do you go from a leaked thumb drive to a global exposé of shadowy money? Three of the best sleuths at tracking businesses and investments hidden around the world — who were all part of the Pandora Papers team — offered lessons at GIJC21.
Longform video investigations are increasingly seen as a significant vehicle for investigative journalism, and in a GIJC21 session on “Breaking into Documentaries,” a team of award-winning filmmakers and commissioning editors shared tips on how journalists can break into the field.
In a GIJC21 session on using maps and satellite imagery for investigations, three experts explained their approaches to analyzing satellite and drone images, and using open source tools. One of the innovative techniques described led to a Pulitzer Prize this year — for exposing China’s network of Muslim detention centers — while another exposed government deception about fires in the Amazon, and a third literally put a vulnerable community in Africa on the map.
Three experts who contributed to GIJN’s new organized crime reporting guide have shared insights into the modus operandi of criminal syndicates and how journalists can deploy cross-border collaborations to expose their illicit activities.
On the second day of GIJC21, journalists from Brazil, Indonesia, and The Netherlands offer tips and tools on how to cover what may be the most important story we ever dig into: how humanity copes with the unprecedented challenge of climate change.
Marking the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists, a panel of experts at GIJC21 revealed that investigating journalist murders can not only turn impunity into justice, but can also deter ruthless actors from potential future violence.
Attendees to GIJC21’s plenary session were asked three questions about the challenges to democracy in their countries, and the role of journalism in upholding or weakening democratic values and institutions. The poll results reflect the threats faced by reporters around the world, from disinformation, fake news, and extremism.
At the plenary session of GIJC21, an all-star team of five watchdog editors defined the front lines of a battle among investigative journalists for both democratic ideals and the survival of an independent press. The conference brings together 1,800 editors, reporters, and civil society leaders from 148 countries for an online, five-day event.
In concert with GIJC21’s panel on the “New Organized Crime,” GIJN has released a comprehensive, multi-part reporting guide to investigating organized crime around the world, looking at nine key areas: criminal finance, narcotics, arms trade, environmental crime, forced disappearances, cybercrime, mafia states, human trafficking, and art and antiquities.
