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News & Analysis
Editor’s Pick: 2021’s Best Investigative and Data Stories from Turkey
The Turkish press is enduring a period when the most basic journalism practices are hindered due to the state of emergency, the pandemic, and other issues. Despite this, GIJN Turkish found several praiseworthy stories produced by independent journalists this past year. Here we highlight eight stories chosen for their significance, public interest, their use of investigative tools, data sources and techniques, and their commitment to social accountability.
You Can Help GIJN Support Global Investigative Reporting
We’re entering the season of celebration—but also a time of great concern. Threats to democratic values, human rights, and the rule of law continue to spread, as kleptocrats and autocrats take advantage of a world made weary by pandemic. Despite all this, investigative journalists are on the job around the world, working overtime to dig out the truth and report it accurately. But we can’t do this alone. Please consider donating to GIJN so that we can support the world’s watchdog reporters with training, tools, and resources.
News & Analysis
From Paraguay to Palestine: 16 New Journalism Groups Join GIJN
GIJN’s latest membership class includes its first two members from Francophone Africa and three new members in the Middle East/North Africa. They range from investigative newsrooms and media development groups to university-based centers and cross-border networks. GIJN also welcomed members from six previously unrepresented countries: Cameroon, Malta, Paraguay, Palestine, Senegal, and the Slovak Republic.
Case Studies Sustainability
‘Illuminate the Darkness’: Creating an Independent News Site in Crisis-Hit Venezuela
The “dream” of Efecto Cocuyo began mid-2014, initially a discussion in cafes with colleagues and friends Laura Weffer and Josefina Ruggiero, as well as three young journalists. An incubator programme helped the team design an operational and business model and in January 2015 Efecto Cocuyo was born, launching first on Twitter and gaining 18,000 followers in its first week. At the time of writing, it had more than 724,000.
News & Analysis
A Curated List of GIJN’s Top Stories from 2021
One of our core missions at GIJN is providing journalists in the field with the latest tools and techniques. To do that, we work hard to find original stories that will be of immediate, practical help for watchdog reporters around the world. Here is a curated list of 10 of the notable stories we’ve published this year, reflecting our most popular articles, groundbreaking discoveries, topical issues, and stories you just shouldn’t miss.
Data Journalism
GIJN’s Top 10 Data Journalism Projects of 2021
Throughout 2021, journalists have used data projects to interrogate the coronavirus pandemic, climate change, conflict, and tax evasion. Here we select our top 10 data journalism projects of the year, rounding up projects that gave a different perspective on global events and helped readers grasp complex matters through interactive storytelling.
News & Analysis
Nobel Winner Muratov: Be an Investigative Reporter, and Fight for a Better World
In his acceptance speech for the Nobel Peace Prize, Dmitry Muratov, editor-in-chief of Russia’s leading independent media outlet, Novaya Gazeta, said: “The award today goes to the entire community of investigative journalists.” Four days later — in a webinar interview with GIJN — Muratov set out the true stakes for investigative journalists who now share that high honor.
News & Analysis
Latin America’s Best Investigative Journalism Featured at COLPIN 2021
COLPIN is the most prestigious investigative journalism gathering in Latin America, and is organized by the Institute for Press and Society. On December 4 the winners of the Javier Valdez Latin American Prize for Investigative Journalism, named in honor of the Mexican journalist killed in 2017, were announced.
Case Studies News & Analysis
Editor’s Pick: 2021’s Best Investigative Stories in French
The year 2021 was a “grand cru” for the French-speaking investigative world. To make our selection of the top 12 investigations published in French in the past 12 months, we examined the techniques used, the stories’ impact in society, the risks taken, and geographic diversity. For sure — from Algeria to Canada, from the Comoros to Belgium — the journalists working on these investigations have shown courage and perseverance.
News & Analysis Press Freedom
Watch: Ressa, Muratov Defend Independent Journalism as Antidote to Misinformation and Tyranny in Nobel Speeches
In their acceptance speeches in Oslo, Norway, 2021 Nobel Peace Prize winners Maria Ressa and Dmitry Muratov issued a clarion call to the world to support and defend independent journalism in an era awash in misinformation, propaganda, and rising authoritarianism.
Data Journalism
Data Journalism Top 10: Rise of Omicron, Africa’s Growing Cities, Tech’s Glass Ceiling, and Honeybees Self-Quarantining
Our weekly analysis of the most popular data journalism stories on Twitter highlights a story by Spanish newspaper El País analyzing early data on the omicron variant, plus stories on fake news and disinformation in Thailand, climate data, and a story on how artificial intelligence can judge your music taste.
News & Analysis Press Freedom
Reporting Facts to Power: What the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize Means for Journalism
Fact-based journalism has been under siege as newsrooms worldwide struggle against the onslaught of misinformation, disinformation, and falling revenues. But the awarding of the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize to Maria Ressa and Dmitry Muratov, two renowned investigative journalists, is a boost to reporters and highlights the importance of quality journalism for democracy.
News & Analysis Reporting Tools & Tips
Using Snapchat as an Investigative Tool: Q & A with Paul Bradshaw
Can Snapchat, an outlet famous for avatars and disappearing videos, be used by investigative journalists as a reporting tool or as a publishing outlet? How can they use it? And what are the best ways to approach it?
News & Analysis
Document of the Day: US Global Anti-Corruption Plan Spotlights Value of Investigative Journalism
The Biden White House spotlighted its support for investigative journalism as part of a new strategy for fighting corruption around the world. To strengthen the investigative capacity of journalists, it is funding the USAID’s PROSAFE project, helping to “create a regional clearinghouse for investigative journalism that provides a publishing outlet for stories too dangerous to be published with an individual byline, and providing an umbrella organization for security, mentoring, and collaboration among journalists.”
Case Studies News & Analysis
Editor’s Pick: 2021’s Best Investigative Stories from Latin America
Despite a backlash against the media in Latin America, investigative journalists have refused to stay silent. Here we highlight eight of the best investigative stories published in Spanish in the region this year, selecting those that prioritized collaboration, used innovative investigative methods and tools, and those that reached new audiences.
GIJN Webinar: A Conversation with Nobel Laureate Dmitry Muratov
GIJN is pleased to announce an in-depth interview with 2021’s Nobel Peace Prize laureate Dmitry Muratov. Muratov is editor in chief of Russia’s Novaya Gazeta, the nation’s leading independent newspaper.
News & Analysis Press Freedom Sustainability
Amid a Press Crackdown in Myanmar, One News Site Survives on Reader Revenue
Even after the coup in Myanmar, Frontier Myanmar has continued reporting on socio-economic issues. Publishing deeply reported pieces has made them popular among their readers. However, the entire website is now behind a paywall and available only to paying members — rates that are high for an average news consumer within a country where roughly 37% of the people live below the poverty line.
Data Journalism
Data Journalism Top 10: Bird Hierarchy, European Trains, Combating Big Tech, Amazon Exports
In the US, lifestyle shifts set in motion by the coronavirus outbreak have led people to relocate. Our weekly analysis of the most popular data journalism stories on Twitter highlights a story by The New York Times looking at the best places to live, an examination of the pecking order of different birds, an investigation into the problems of European rail, and a survey on the state of data journalism.
News & Analysis
Making Your Mark: Tips for Up-and-Coming Investigative Journalists
It’s never been easy to find a job as an investigative journalist, but here six award-winning reporters based in countries from India to Peru give their tips for breaking into the industry.
Reporting on Migration in the Gulf: A Revised and Expanded GIJN Guide
There are 23 million migrant workers in the Gulf, but reporting in this region presents a series of unique and often difficult challenges for investigative journalists due to widespread restrictions on press freedom and threats to reporters’ security. GIJN and Migrants-Rights.org have collaborated to update this bilingual guide to educate journalists on best practices, tools, and country-specific resources for covering the subject, all against the backdrop of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
News & Analysis Press Freedom Sustainability
Independent Media Plays a Critical Role in Meeting Humanity’s Greatest Challenges
Press freedom – as exercised by independent news organizations free from the control of governments, political parties and other partisan interests – is fundamental to the development of peaceful, just and democratic societies. These organizations foster dialogue, respect for individual rights and good governance.
Reporting Tools & Tips
Key Tools and Datasets for Unearthing Hard-to-Find Information
In a lightning round session at #GIJC21, a panel of leading reporters and editors needed just five minutes each to outline new tools and databases that any reporter can use to gather hard-to-find facts.
Methodology
Expert Tips for Digging Out the Roots of Disinformation
At GIJC21, two investigative journalists who have used their cutting-edge expertise in media manipulation to expose scamsters, far-right propagandists, and secret troll farms discussed tracking digital footprints, free resources for content verification — and the kind of tips that might just break a big story.
Reporting Tools & Tips
Tips for Investigating When Governments Shield Crime and Corruption
In a session on high-level corruption at #GIJC21, a panel of reporters from Liberia, Ukraine, Sudan, Russia, and Lebanon suggested a series of strategies that can pry facts from obstinate government agencies, find whistleblowers, and deliver alternate forms of accountability for officials seemingly above the law.
Data Journalism
Data Journalism Top 10: Toxic Air, Hidden Emissions, Twitter’s Algorithm, Can Data Die?
Our weekly analysis of the most popular data journalism stories on Twitter highlights a story by the Financial Times into how Europe gets its natural gas and the geopolitics of this industry. In this edition, we also feature major investigations into poisonous air and underreported methane emissions by ProPublica and The Washington Post as well as eight must-read newsletters curated by DataJournalism.com.
News & Analysis
9 Leadership Tips for Women in Investigative Journalism
At GIJC21, a panel of editors and newsroom leaders currently at the helm of leading investigative journalism organizations around the world detailed how they had risen to the top despite the challenges facing women in many newsrooms, and gave tips for female investigative reporters.