Journalist Khadija Ismayilova, a Radio Free Europe/OCCRP reporter, was taken into custody yesterday in Baku, Azerbaijan, in the latest of a series of legal moves to put pressure on her. Ismayilova, known for her investigations into the business interests of the family of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, is charged in the latest case of inciting a man to commit suicide
The majority of the Arab press — whether available in print or online — depends largely for their news on what national or international press agencies produce. The only real investment is placed in supporting columnists whose opinions and analysis reflect the particular editorial line of the publisher and the owners of that outlet. This disproportionate support for columnists rather than reporters can best be seen when you ask any follower of Arab media to name a particular news reporter or investigative journalist connected with a particular journal.
New corruption rankings were released this week by Transparency International, and they find the world steeped in corrupt practices, regardless of economic growth. More than two thirds of the 175 countries ranked scored under 50, on a scale from 0 (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean). Denmark grabbed the top score, with 92, while North Korea and Somalia notched last, with an 8 score.
The lights of free speech are being steadily extinguished across the Arab world, heralding a new era of ignorance, intolerance, and repression. Saddest of all, the majority of Arabs — who saw free speech as the only gain from the Arab Spring upheavals – now seem willing to accept the loss of this universal human right, in return for promises of stability and economic prosperity.
What does it mean to be a professional journalist in a Syria fragmented by Syrian President Bashar Assad’s regime, the interim Syrian government and Syrian Opposition Coalition groups, not to mention being under the mercy of the so-called Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and its likes. The straight answer is: “An assumed agent”, “traitor,” or “spy for the crusaders” and deserving death, whether the journalist is Arab or foreign.
Journalists from 14 countries in West Africa have called for creation of a regional Centre for Investigative Journalism and for African media to use investigative techniques to expose corruption and illicit trafficking, which they say are impeding human development and worsening security. The declaration came after a one-week conference organized by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
Twenty-five years ago, the term “investigative reporting” was little known in Asia. The media landscape was dominated by pliant newspapers, insipid TV news programs, and journalists who saw themselves as mouthpieces of government. Today journalists throughout Asia are using freedom-of-information laws, data analysis, social media, collaborative tools, and the latest in digital technology. They are writing about corruption, human slavery, dirty money, and environmental problems. We’ve come a long way.
With robust data journalism hands-on training and many presentations focusing on covering mining and oil issues, the 2014 Power Reporting Conference in Johannesburg drew over 350 participants from 19 African countries.
What’s the data driven journalism (#ddj) crowd tweeting about? Here are the week’s Top Data Journalism Links on Twitter (for November 7-15), including items from Data Le Temps, Morgenpost, and Open Data City, among others.
In 2009 the European Parliament proposed to start a research grant scheme for investigative journalists who plan to investigate cases that affect at least two member states, or the EU as whole. EUR 1.5 million was allocated for this purpose in the EU’s 2010 budget. In 2010 a pilot project defaulted due to an unresolved administrative issue. Then, from 2012 on, the pilot project was turned into a preparatory action and an external consultant was hired for about a quarter of a million euros to figure out how the administrative problem could be solved. The feasibility study was drafted in 2013, yet the Commission felt it could not implement the program in 2014, because the necessary legislation would not go through, they said, due to administrative difficulties. So they didn’t do anything.
At the Google Investigathon on Nov.12, GIJN premiered its latest project, Investigative Impact: How Investigative Journalism Fights Corruption, Promotes Accountability, and Fosters Transparency around the World. GIJN director David Kaplan and board chair Brant Houston showcased the project before nearly 100 people at the New York event, demonstrating through video, graphics, data, and a new website the extraordinary global impact of investigative reporting. The project includes case studies of high-impact reports, video interviews with journalists in 20 countries, infographics, and a resource library.
What’s the data driven journalism (#ddj) crowd tweeting about? Here are the week’s Top Data Journalism Links on Twitter (for October 30- November 7), including items from Zeit Online, PBS Media Shift, and CORRECT!V, among others.
In just over two weeks we’ll convene Uncovering Asia, the region’s first investigative journalism conference. We’ve got an extraordinary array of the best journalists from Japan to Pakistan heading to Manila for what will be a World’s Fair of muckraking from Nov. 22-24. So why is GIJN heading to Asia? That’s easy. It’s where 60% of humanity lives, and the demand for watchdog reporting is enormous. The region has long been the weak link in our global community of investigative journalists — but that’s changing quickly.
Governments may have begun Open Data, but the next wave is People Data. Any group in any part of the world can self-organize to collect data about their community and publish it on the cloud to effect change. This is an incredibly powerful development.
What’s the data driven journalism (#ddj) crowd tweeting about? A politician and his shadow (data, that is), New York City taxis, DataFest, and more! Here are the week’s Top Ten Data Journalism Links on Twitter (for October 24-30), with items from Der Spiegel, the Guardian, and the Financial Times.
GIJN member Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism (ARIJ) will host its seventh annual forum for Arab investigative journalists in Amman in December. The conference, whose theme is “Arab Media: The Battle for Independence,” will feature 30 + panels and trainings with speakers like Sy Hersh, Marwan Muashar, Tim Sebastian, and more.
What’s the data driven journalism (#ddj) crowd tweeting about? Moving maps, corruption in banks, life on earth (again), and more! Here are the week’s Top Data Journalism Links on Twitter (for October 16-24), including items from Mapacino, NiemanLab, and Simon Rogers.
At long last we can retire Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein as the icons of investigative reporting. With his second book probing the dark tunnels of the so-called war on terror, James Risen has established himself as the finest national security reporter of this generation… Although parts of Risen’s new revelations have been published in the Times or elsewhere, here they are fleshed out in richly reported chapters studded with eye-popping new charges.
What’s the data driven journalism (#ddj) crowd tweeting about? Here are the week’s Top Data Journalism Links on Twitter (for October 10-16), including items from the Washington Post, Herodote, the BBC and more.
Getting hassled by authorities is nothing new for investigative journalists. But two recent incidents serve notice that some countries are cracking down with a tried-and-true technique to stop pesky foreign reporters: prosecuting them for visa technicalities. In Indonesia and Russia this week, authorities are trying to stop coverage and even training by investigative journalists.
Exposés of questionable financial transactions in Argentina, Trinidad, and Mexico led the 2014 Latin American Investigative Journalism Awards, announced over the weekend in Mexico City. Judging by the strength and breadth of the 14 finalists, investigative journalism is alive and well across Latin America. First prize went to “El señor de los hoteles y el socio de la Presidenta” (“The Lord of the Hotels and the President’s Partner”) by Hugo Alconada and Mariela Arias of Argentina’s La Nación.
What’s the data driven journalism (#ddj) crowd tweeting about? Here are the week’s Top Data Journalism Links on Twitter (for October 3-9), including items from Forbes, Visualising Data, Le Temps, and more.
I was on a call recently with some CIO’s and CTO’s from different American cities who were lamenting about the lack of political interest in open data. They complained that hackathons and data jams are succeeding in building vibrant communities of developers in their cities but that politicians just aren’t into this. They don’t see the value and they rarely show up to participate. I’ve seen the same trend in Europe, Asia, and Africa.
What’s the data driven journalism (#ddj) crowd tweeting about? Here are the week’s Top Data Journalism Links on Twitter (for September 26-October 2), including items from Zeit Online, CPJ, OUseful.info, and more.
Paper trails have always been of great interest to investigative journalists. Digging into documents can tell a great deal about people, organizations, and what they’re up to. Here’s today’s Doc of the Day, a contract recently filled by the U.S. Secret Service, the law enforcement group charged with protecting the president and other political VIPs. It’s for “Dark Web Data Subscription.” More than 90% of the Web is thought to be unsearchable by Google and other common search engines. This is often called the dark or deep Web, and it includes sites behind firewalls and passwords, unusual formats, criminal and other hidden networks, and lots and lots of databases.
