The perpetrators of violence in South Africa tend to receive little sympathy and sparse coverage in the national press. But when Ruth Hopkins started to explore allegations of wrongdoing inside the country’s prisons, she was inundated by claims of abuse and torture. This story explores her decade-long investigation into incarceration in the country.
In this interview, Amnesty International’s Sam Dubberley discusses how open source techniques can help in the investigation of human rights abuses and gives advice for journalists interested in this type of research.
In this GIJN webinar, we bring together four senior journalists who have investigated the extremist far-right in different parts of the world. They will offer tips and tools on how to track and report on violent organizations and individuals in different contexts, and give guidance on safety.
Development actors often pay media organizations to publish content that often is just PR material in disguise. Journalist and media development expert Prue Clarke writes that it’s time to rethink a practice that undermines both independent journalism and the aid sector’s credibility.
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.”
With countries around the world considering the safest ways to ease lockdown measures, alongside the deployment of COVID-19 vaccines in many places, some are finding reasons to be optimistic about the end of the coronavirus crisis. But returning to once conventional daily activities, such as going to restaurants and sports stadiums, is still a distant prospect. Our NodeXL #ddj mapping from February 1 to 7 found Voxeurop covering the dangers of adopting biometric IDs and health passports, a look at Europe’s COVID-19 divide by Reuters, an analysis of leaked smartphone data by The New York Times, and a Twitter thread collection of archived data visualizations in various languages.
From the story of an 80-year-old spy in a Chilean nursing home to a whole family fighting the criminal justice system in the US state of Louisiana, 15 documentaries produced under tough pandemic conditions will advance in the Documentary Feature category of the 93rd Academy Awards.
Despite its overt political objectives, the research section of FBK — an anti-corruption nonprofit founded by Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny — has emerged as a potent investigative team that recently attracted 110 million YouTube views for a video that exposed massive corruption at a Black Sea palace. FBK’s head of investigations told GIJN about the methods the team uses for these investigations, and what professional journalists can learn from their approach.
In this edition of our “My Favorite Tools” series, GIJN spoke with Mohammed Haddad, who leads Al Jazeera’s interactive team, AJLabs, where he uses data to create compelling visual stories. Haddad explains why he is a fan of RStudio, Nivo, Mapbox, and more.
Our NodeXL #ddj mapping from January 25 to 31 found interactive projects by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and The Guardian analyzing these events. In this edition, we also feature environmental reporting by The New York Times and The Economist, a Wall Street Journal story on the GameStop Reddit mania that shook stock markets, and a visual representation of 2020 using Lego bricks.
Contracts to buy COVID-19 vaccines are being kept largely confidential by the global purchasing entity started by the World Health Organization and by national governments. Here GIJN’s Toby McIntosh offers a guide to reporting on the creation and delivery of COVID-19 vaccines and combating government secrecy at both the international and national levels.
An investigation by The Bureau of Investigative Journalism into phone networks based in the Channel Islands raised questions about the surveillance technology being used by corporate intelligence firms.
Open source reporting expert Henk van Ess has dozens of tricks to find elusive social media information through indirect means, as well as a search app he created. In a recent GIJN webinar on “Investigating Social Media,” Van Ess shared several of these tips.
In this edition of The GIJN Toolbox — which surveys the latest tips and tools for investigative journalists — we’ll take a look at the process of analyzing satellite imagery derived from infrared radiation, a technique The New York Times used to cover a West Coast wildfire. We’ll also explore the controversial practice of using facial recognition technology, how to request NASA satellite data, a new document search tool from Google, and more.
As Joe Biden was sworn in as the 46th president of the United States, much of the international media coverage was focused on an inauguration like no other. Our NodeXL #ddj mapping from January 18 to 24 found a Washington Post analysis of the president’s first address to the nation and a Bloomberg project visualizing the enhanced measures put in place to deal with concerns about security and the coronavirus.
Following a seismic year for accountability journalism in 2020, GIJN asked prominent investigative journalists around the world to share topics that their teams will be looking at in 2021. Feedback from editors in 14 countries indicates an unusual amount of subject overlap for watchdog reporters this year, centered around vaccines, technology, and autocracy.
As the COVID-19 pandemic enters its second year, experts in events, medicine, and fundraising offered advice to nonprofit news leaders on how to plan for another year of uncertainty.
In a recent GIJN webinar, open source reporting expert Henk van Ess shared several online search tricks. But he explains that these work-arounds are merely tools for a new approach to online research that he calls “thinking visual,” which invites reporters to think of keywords like a search engine, rather than a person.
Here’s how reporters from a Honduran investigative newsroom dug into the murders of their colleagues, producing stories and a documentary to explore who is behind growing violence and threats against journalists.
As governments around the world continue vaccination efforts and extend lockdowns, some experts argue that more data is needed to evaluate the effectiveness of immunization campaigns and mobility restrictions. Our NodeXL #ddj mapping from January 11 to 18 found outlets in Germany and the United Kingdom analyzing government measures to reduce the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. In this edition, we also feature an insightful interview with former Washington Post journalist Aaron Williams, an interactive timeline of the US Capitol riot by ProPublica, and a refreshing data visualization project by The Pudding.
In this GIJN webinar, we bring together five investigative journalists from Mexico, France, India and the United States. They will offer tips and tools on how to continue the work of murdered journalists, with a focus on working collaboratively and across borders.
In an ambitious nationwide investigation, Pulitzer-winning journalists served as instructors to 270 students across seven universities who had teamed up to cover homelessness in the United States.
The following stories, selected by GIJN Arabic, are not just a list of impressive investigative reports from 2020. We chose them for their significance, their use of investigative tools and techniques, and their commitment to social accountability.
At the end of the year, GIJN compiles a list of its most viewed stories and resources. Here’s the listing for 2020’s top performing resources, including information on how to find satellite imagery and land ownership records for your investigations, as well as tips and strategies for freelancing during the COVID-19 pandemic, and more.
Open source investigation teams around the world sprang into action as they watched a pro-Trump mob violently storm the US Capitol on January 6. A senior investigator with Bellingcat told GIJN how his team was able to scrape and preserve hundreds of social media videos from the attack, and shared ten tips on how any reporter can grab visual evidence during breaking news events.
Scenes of supporters of outgoing President Donald Trump storming the US Capitol building dominated news headlines and filled social media feeds last week. Our NodeXL #ddj mapping from January 4 to 10 found Reuters producing a play-by-play summary of what happened, and FiveThirtyEight examining the stark difference in reaction by the authorities to the Capitol mob compared to Black Lives Matter protesters. Also in this edition, we feature National Geographic’s cartography archive, Data Crítica’s investigation into under-counting of Indigenous COVID-19 infections, and The Markup’s analysis of the impact of Facebook’s political ads.
A new report maps ambitious COVID-era efforts around the world to save journalism, including ideas from the United States, South Africa, Denmark, and Singapore.
In this review of the best investigations in Russian and Ukrainian last year, the GIJN Russian team selected the stories that shed light on systemic societal problems in many countries in the region, and those which may inspire journalists in other parts of the world to investigate corruption, money laundering, and other topics using the same investigative methods and tools.
