The French investigative journalism outlet Disclose made waves in 2019 by revealing the shocking extent of pedophilia in amateur sports and the widespread use of French-manufactured arms in the Yemen conflict. One of its founders tells GIJN why a reader-supported model is allowing it to exist “halfway between the media and an NGO.”
Citizen Matters is the flagship publication of the Bengaluru-based Oorvani Foundation, a nonprofit working on open knowledge platforms that help develop better cities. Today, it has successfully transitioned to become an online-only news site, and has been expanding its reach to other cities, writes Amruta Byatnal for GIJN.
The South African investigative site Oxpeckers uses a combination of data analysis, collaboration, and interactive data visualization tools to tell the most compelling stories about the land and those accused of damaging it. From mining to environmental crimes and wildlife trafficking, it has brought investigative techniques to beats like mining that were once the preserve of business reporters.
Following the 2011 Tunisian revolution, the loosening of free speech created a vibrant marketplace of ideas but investigative reporting still lagged. A group of Tunisian journalists set out to change this by founding independent media outlet Inkyfada, which has experimented with data and audio storytelling and worked hard to diversify its revenue in order to guard its independence. Layli Foroudi profiled Inkyfada for GIJN.
International organized crime received little scrutiny in the Czech press until the Czech Centre for Investigative Journalism was founded in 2013. They work with media partners across the region on collaborative projects that have helped bring down senior officials and expose the activities of mafia bosses, including an investigation with Slovak reporter Ján Kuciak, who was killed in 2018. Ian Willoughby profiles the Czech nonprofit for GIJN.
It’s what readers want, it’s what funders want, it’s what editors want, it’s even what reporters want: The elusive yet ever-important impact that hopefully comes after reporting a story. Here’s a look into the new role of impact editor at the UK’s Bureau of Investigative Journalism.
The South Korean nonprofit investigative newsroom Newstapa was founded in 2012 by a group of journalists who had been either dismissed or marginalized in their newsrooms for demanding editorial independence. Since then, much has changed in the country’s political and media landscapes. Searching for sustainability in the midst of these upheavals has been a wild ride, writes Lee Taehoon for GIJN.
Re:Baltica, a nonprofit newsroom based in Riga, has experimented with different forms of storytelling and types of funding to sustain its work over the past eight years. Its co-founder Inga Springe shares what she’s learned along the way.
When reporters for Puerto Rico’s Centro de Periodismo Investigativo — its Center for Investigative Journalism — first published hundreds of pages of a leaked Telegram chat involving high-ranking officials, they had no idea this would lead to massive street protests and end in the governor’s resignation. This huge story followed the Center’s award-winning work exposing how the death toll from Hurricane Maria in 2017 was far in excess of what officials admitted. GIJN’s Gaelle Faure spoke to CPI’s executive editor Carla Minet to find out what’s next for her team.
Two investigative editors took huge pay cuts to launch Botswana’s first nonprofit newsroom. A year later, they took another, temporary cut just to pay for a single satellite image that proved that the country’s president had abused state funds to build a private lodge. Here’s Rowan Philp on the INK Centre for Investigative Journalism for GIJN’s member series.
Venezuelan investigative website Armando.info, which is a member of GIJN, is going through difficult times. Its core team has been working in exile for more than a year, and their staff continue to receive serious threats — not only against their reporters working in Venezuela, but also against those who have found refuge in neighboring Colombia.
A small nonprofit investigative newsroom played an outsized role in the removal of South Africa’s president and his corrupt inner circle last year. Now, amaBhungane is building a separate hub to help new investigative start-ups throughout southern Africa. Rowan Philp writes about the newsroom and its latest initiative for GIJN’s new series about its members.
Public records sometimes say the darnedest things. One example: A declassified memo from 1977 shows that the NSA wondered if psychics could nuke cities so that they became lost in time and space (yes, like in the post-apocalyptic anime Akira). Other times, it’s what they don’t say — like when the FBI found it necessary to redact the name of Superman’s alter-ego, Clark Kent.
Journalism has taken Bektour Iskender through revolutions, death threats and even a crowdfunded space venture. Along the way, he’s trained dozens of teenage investigative journalists in Kyrgyzstan.
More and more power in the hands of President Aleksandar Vučić, mainstream press too friendly with power, growing difficulties for independent journalism. This is what Serbia’s media looks like today, according to Stevan Dojčinović, the editor-in-chief of the country’s KRIK investigative group.
Eliot Higgins, the founder of Bellingcat, was recently named one of Foreign Policy’s Global Thinkers for 2019. The New Arab recently talked to Higgins about what motivated him to start the website and the role of developing technology in countering disinformation and fake news.
Two French investigative journalists are launching Disclose, a nonprofit newsroom which plans to produce investigative reports free of commercial pressures – and generate the impetus for meaningful change. Olivier Holmey writes about the new media group on the block for GIJN.
Syria is one of the most dangerous countries in the world. But that didn’t stop three Syrian reporters from launching the first investigative journalism organization in the country. They spoke with GIJN Arabic editor Majdoleen Hasan about their work.
Since its creation five years ago, Agência Pública has promoted a revolution not only in Brazil, but around Latin America. It is one of the main drivers of a regional scene that brings together digital native-media founded and led by journalists.
Doing good journalism in the Middle East and North African region is no easy feat. But since 2014, the journalists at Tunisia’s Inkyfada have been doing crucial investigative stories, supported by compelling visual storytelling and interactive reading experiences.
While traditional news outlets are migrating to digital platforms, Peru’s Ojo Público is taking the opposite path to reach its goal. It’s utilizing print to grow beyond its digital audience and appeal to people who read physical newspapers, as well as those who like special editions, providing a complementary product to their online publication.
With trust and interest in journalism declining among millennials around the globe, Taiwan’s Reporter is taking a gamble. Its mission: to re-engage the younger generation with in-depth journalism. Will it work?
Yong Jin Kim started up the first investigative unit at the Korean Broadcasting System, the biggest media group in South Korea. In 2013, frustrated by the constant need to fight the muzzles put on investigative journalism in mainstream news media, Kim co-founded the Korea Center for Investigative Journalism.
The dependence of Mexican media on official advertising, reductions in newsrooms and the search by media outlets to “fill spaces,” meant that investigative journalism is increasingly forgotten, and the little that is done is failing to create the impact it should. In order to rectify this, reporters Alexandra Xanic, Daniel Lizárraga, Ignacio Rodríguez Reyna and Marcela Turati set up Quinto Elemento Lab – to work with and mentor investigative journalists through the progress of investigations.
For Ojo Público, the search for new narratives and formats to tell a story is constant. The Peruvian investigative outlet believes in experimenting and betting on new formats to reach new audiences. With this mindset and commitment to innovation, the team has produced stories in an interactive comic format, created an award-winning database and is looking to develop news games this year.
Non-transparent media ownership in Hungary has created a government-friendly and controlled media environment, but investigative journalists such as Hungarian-born Tamás Bodoky are increasingly going online to report on “sensitive” topics including corruption. Small investigative outlets in the country have so far survived with crowdfunding campaigns and institutional grants.
Access to public information, accountability and participatory democracy may have been a reality in many countries for some time — but in Spain they sounded like a utopia. Entrepreneur Jacobo Elosua and computer technician David Cabo decided that this had to change. Their brainchild, Civio, was just recognized with the Gabriel Garcia Marquez award in innovative journalism for its Medicamentalia investigation.
Pioneering British journalist David Leigh, former Guardian investigative editor, shares his insights on story-led investigations, defending your work from lawsuits, dealing with donors, and lifelong learning in journalism.
