Guide Resource
Covering the Extractive Industries
Mineral extraction plays a dominant role in many economies and in the lives of billions of people. How can reporters dig into the benefits and costs?
Resource Center
GIJN’s Resource Center is here to help journalists expand their knowledge and skills. The Center holds more than 2,000 items in 14 languages – from tip sheets and guides to instructional videos. Use the menu on the right to navigate it or the search box below to find topics you’re interested in.
Awards, Grants, & Fellowships
Climate
Contacts & Networking
Data Journalism
Databases
Distribution & Promotion
Elections
Fundraising
Gender
Getting Started in Investigative Journalism
Getting the Story Out
Human Rights
Human Trafficking
Investigating Institutions
Investigative Techniques
Legal Defense & Emergency Aid
Organized Crime
Reporting Tools & Tips
Safety & Security
Sustainability
Teaching & Training
Guides
Guide Climate Methodology
Reporter’s Guide to Investigating Carbon Offsets — Short Version
Carbon offsets are truly an international climate change story. This short version of our GIJN guide helps reporters understand, research, and investigate the global players.
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Reporter’s Guide to Investigating Carbon Offsets
Carbon offsets are truly an international climate change story with potential for cross-border collaboration between journalists.
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GIJN’s Elections Guide for Investigative Reporters — Revised for 2024
Featuring a broad array of tools, techniques, and resources to help watchdog reporters dig into almost any campaign or election.
Guide Human Rights Reporting Tools & Tips
Reporting Guide to Investigating Disability Issues — Short Version
People with disabilities are the largest intersectional minority group, according to the UN, and virtually every reporting beat has a disability angle.
Guide Resource
Researching Corporations and Their Owners
This resource was last updated in 2023 by GIJN’s Toby McIntosh and Emily O’Sullivan. Investigative journalists play a crucial role in holding corporations to account, and have revealed labor abuses, environmental violations, corporate impunity and other instances of malpractice through deep-dives into companies and their owners. However, government records on corporations often reveal only the […]
Guide Resource
Online Research Guide with Henk van Ess
Online research expert Henk van Ess has created a seven-chapter guide that offers reporters step-by-step instructions on how to use social media search to perform investigations of people and subjects and he’s also created a detailed tutorial on using facial recognition technology and best practices for putting these tools together in verifying claims online.
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GIJN Reporter’s Guide to Investigating Digital Threats
Featuring expert advice from journalists and security analysts who are working to combat disinformation, malware, spyware, and trolling. The guide is part of an ongoing Digital Threats project, in which GIJN is working with Craig Silverman and a group of cutting-edge specialists to offer a unique cyber investigations online training program specifically tailored for investigative […]
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Resources for Finding and Using Satellite Images
Satellite images are powerful tools for discovery and analysis, plus provide vivid illustrations. Discover GIJN’s favorite resources.
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GIJN Reporter’s Guide to Investigating War Crimes
This comprehensive guide includes expert advice from more than two dozen specialists and journalists.
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Reporting Guide to Holding Governments Accountable for Climate Change Pledges
The global fight against climate change depends on the actions of individual nations — so national accountability is critical.
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Asset Disclosure
Required disclosures by public officials about their income and assets can be invaluable to investigative journalists. And information about wealth and its sources can play a vital role in uncovering corruption. Official filings are often the starting point for classic follow-the-money stories. However, disclosure laws have gaps, so the public records don’t always reveal the […]
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Reporting Guide to Investigating Disability Issues
In this reporting guide we’ve included some of the various definitions of disability, important resources, and key issues for journalists to investigate.
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GIJN’s Updated Guide to Planespotting and Flight Tracking
Investigative journalists have long used information about airplanes to uncover corruption, follow wars, track government officials, and point out the levels of greenhouse gases emitted. GIJN has now revised and updated its reporting guide to planespotting and tracking flights around the world.
Guide Resource
Guide to Investigating Organized Crime in Africa
Organized crime is a global phenomenon. But Africa, with its deep-seated corruption and “resource curse,” is particularly hard hit.
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Guide to Investigating Organized Crime in the Golden Triangle
Tps and best practices for covering drug trafficking, money laundering, official corruption, other illicit activity in the region.
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GIJN’s Guide to Undercover Reporting
In countries without public record transparency rules or strong source protection laws, going undercover can be one of the few tools reporters have to reveal public interest stories.
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GIJN’s Guide to Investigating Sea Level Rise
For journalists, explaining the causes and consequences of rising sea levels is a critical and challenging assignment.
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GIJN’s Elections Guide for Investigative Reporters
This guide offers a broad array of tools, techniques, and resources — beyond the primary local sources you find — to help watchdog reporters dig into almost any election.
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Investigating Russia and the War in Ukraine
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, GIJN has published a series of stories and tipsheets for investigative journalists covering the war.
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Resources for Women Journalists – A GIJN Guide
Women and nonbinary journalists often encounter obstacles, whether they’re out reporting or when they’re back in their newsrooms. GIJN has gathered resources for those who want to connect, handle harassment, and address discrimination issues. We also provide advice and tips from great women investigative journalists that may serve as inspiration. This guide was originally published […]
Guide Resource
GIJN’s Guide to Investigating Methane — A Key to Fighting Climate Change (Short Version)
Reducing methane emissions is the single fastest way to fight climate change, according to climate scientists. In this guide, identify specific sources of methane and hold companies and countries accountable.
Guide Resource
Climate Change Accountability: GIJN’s Guide to Investigating Methane
This guide was written by Toby McIntosh, senior advisor to GIJN’s Resource Center. Editing was by Reed Richardson and Laura Dixon. Illustrations were created by Marcelle Louw.
Guide Resource
Reporting on Migration in the Gulf: A Revised and Expanded GIJN Guide
This updated and expanded guide was written in cooperation with Migrant-Rights.org. Illustrations are by Marcelle Louw. The project manager was Majdoleen Hasan. Editing by Reed Richardson.
Guide Resource
How to Set Up a Video Unit: A GIJN Guide for Small Organizations
How to hire staff and plan out your shoots to tips for better photography and helpful case studies.
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A Guide to Fact-Checking Investigative Stories
Bulletproofing your story demands much more than getting the facts right. It requires a meticulous approach from the start in order to pass quality control.
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Reporter’s Guide to Investigating Organized Crime
For details on this guide’s chapter authors, see the Acknowledgments page. Illustrations are by Ann Kiernan. Editing by Laura Dixon, Tanya Pampalone, and Reed Richardson. Andrea Arzaba was the project manager.
Guide Resource
Business Tools
Here are tools to help small newsrooms with all the work that isn’t newsgathering: paying the bills; scheduling collaborative projects, and maintaining shared communication channels for team members; editing and posting a podcast; designing a graphic for social media and then seeing how well the post performs. With myriad products on the market all claiming […]
Guide Resource
A Journalist’s Guide to Avoiding Lawsuits and Other Legal Dangers
The practice of independent journalism is facing enormous challenges, ranging from authoritarian regimes implementing regressive laws that stifle speech to journalists being unable to make a living from their work. In order to meet those challenges, journalists can benefit from understanding the protections provided by international law.
Guide Resource
Investigating Femicide: A GIJN Guide
Femicide — the intentional murder of women because they are women — is a global problem. According to the UN’s latest estimates, 50,000 women and girls are killed each year by intimate partners or other family members. GIJN’s latest resource aims to help journalists understand what femicide is, find and understand the data available, and suggest which experts to interview.
Guide Resource
Investigating Sexual Abuse: An Updated Reporting Guide
The subject of sexual violence remains a sensitive if not taboo subject in much of the world and often goes unreported. Watchdog journalism has started digging deeper into sexual violence, but these investigations are still few relative to the estimated number of cases worldwide.
Guide Resource
Health and Medicine Guide – Table of Contents
A GIJN GUIDE Investigating Health & Medicine In this era of the pandemic, journalists worldwide suddenly find themselves on the health beat, trying to make sense of competing claims, varied specialists, and a science that seems to change by the day. Here’s an antidote: a comprehensive, global guide to investigative reporting on health and medicine. […]
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Investigating Health and Medicine
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Partnerships and Collaborations
Collaborations on investigative projects are increasingly popular. Working together with partners can multiply and maximize reporting resources and increase readership. Special skills can be acquired, such as analyzing data, creating visualizations, or preparing multimedia elements. There is a steadily growing amount of literature on how to do collaborative investigations — how to build trust, create […]
Guide Resource
Freelancing: Platforms That Earn Income for Writers
There are a growing number of sites that help writers earn money while self-publishing. Whether these are right for you will require research. In this section, we are not exploring the many places that help create websites, newsletters and blogs, or looking into the plug-ins that permit sales and subscriptions. Nor are we getting into […]
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Digging into Disappearances: A Guide to Investigating Missing People and Organized Crime
Millions of people disappear every year, according to the International Commission on Missing People, and organized crime is involved in many of these cases. The violence associated with drug trafficking in particular, but also wildlife smuggling, resource theft, human trafficking, and other criminal rackets, plays a key role in many of the disappearances. Journalists act […]
Guide Resource
GIJN’s Guide to Citizen Investigations
Citizens can investigate, and they do — all over the world. Today we’re launching a new GIJN guide to help non-journalists investigate even more. It’s full of techniques used by investigative journalists that will be helpful to citizen investigators, too. These include searching the internet, finding out who owns corporations, investigating politicians, and much more.
Guide Resource
Citizen Investigation Guide
Curiosity fuels investigations, and there’s no monopoly on who can be curious. Citizens can investigate, and they do. GIJN provides some great examples below. This GIJN guide aims to help non-journalists investigate even more. The sections teach the techniques used by investigative journalists.
Guide Resource
GIJN/NAJA Guide for Indigenous Investigative Journalists
This guide is created to encourage Indigenous investigative journalists and to provide empowering tips and tools. Developed collaboratively by the Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) and the Native American Journalists Association (NAJA), the guide explores eight key topics.The entries include background information, examples of investigative work, suggestions for stories, and resources for information. This guide […]
Guide Resource
Climate Crisis: Ideas for Investigative Journalists
This GIJN resource page aims to encourage more investigative reporting about the climate crisis. In Part 1, we begin with articles that provide concrete suggestions for investigative projects. In Part 2, we have collected challenging commentaries on how the media has handled climate change and what it should be doing better. In Part 3, we […]
Guide Resource
Planespotting: An Updated Guide to Tracking Aircraft Around the World
In 2019, GIJN first launched its guide to planespotting and flight tracking around the world. In the wake of the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, which led to a great migration of Russian oligarchs and their assets, as well as Elon Musk’s efforts to block bots from tracking planes in real time on Twitter, we’ve now […]
Guide Resource
Unlocking Laws to Set Information Free: GIJN’s Global Guide to FOI and RTI
More than 115 countries worldwide have laws that require officials to turn over public records.
Guide Resource
Land Ownership Records: So Useful, but Challenging to Find
Finding out who owns land can be tough. While property registration systems exist in almost all countries, the quality and availability of the information vary widely. World Bank experts estimate that only 30% of the world’s population has a legally registered title to their land, a widely quoted figure that Bank officials stress is a […]
Guide Resource
Prospecting and Cultivation: A Fundraising Primer
Growing your major gifts program — or getting one started in the first place — can feel like an overwhelming responsibility. The philanthropic landscape is extremely competitive, and the prospect of identifying and soliciting prospective donors can seem cumbersome and intimidating. While the non-profit journalism landscape has flourished, opening up new revenue streams and business […]
Guide Resource
Crowdfunding: Essential Reading
GIJN’s research provides tips on how to plan and carry out a crowdfunding campaign, names of national and regional crowdfunding sites, suggestions of useful tools to use. And some stories from those who have done it. At GIJN’s 2019 Hamburg conference, Tamas Bodoky of Atlatszo in Hungary, elaborated on seven suggestions (see his tipsheet): Establish […]
Guide Resource
Investigating the Supply Chain
Exposing the connections between the products we buy and the circumstances of their creation has proved to be fertile ground for investigative journalism. In seeking to understand the origins of our food, raw materials and manufactured goods, reporters have uncovered slavery, environmental crimes, corruption and human rights abuses. In this new GIJN resource page, we identify the investigative tools used for tracking the “supply chains” that link fields, oceans, mines and factories with the end products we buy.
Guide Resource
Investigating Supply Chains
Supply chains are networks between companies and their suppliers that produce and distribute a specific product. They may include providers of raw material, firms that convert the material into products, storage facilities and distribution centers, and retailers who bring the ultimate product to consumers. The products are as varied as the marketplace: clothing, electronics, vehicles, […]
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Tracking Ships at Sea
More than 90,000 commercial ships make up the world’s commercial fleet, their locations closely tracked and the resulting data available for free. GIJN has compiled a comprehensive list of resources to track ships (including big yachts and fishing boats). We link to four dozen valuable sources of information. At the 2023 Global Investigative Journalism Conference, […]
Guide Resource
Migration Reporting: Sources, Guidelines, Contests
With an estimated 257 million migrants in the world, migration has emerged as one of the most contentious national and international issues. GIJN has gathered resources on this topic, including: Useful sources of factual information Reporting guidelines and media criticism Information on journalism prizes (and the winners) concerning migration Examples of recent and varied stories […]
Guide Resource
Human Trafficking and Slavery: A Guide to Resource Materials
Researchers estimate 40 million people exist in some form of slavery today, ranging from debt bondage and false contracts to sex trafficking, forced marriage and child labor. To help journalists cover human trafficking and slavery, GIJN has created this collection of resources including documents and reports, places to find expertise and advice on best practices in reporting and investigation.
Videos
Resource Video
Investigating Latin America’s Global Reach Of Illicit Activities
In today’s global landscape, tracing the path of illicit money has become a critical skill for reporters. Join GIJN for a webinar tailored for investigative journalists who have unraveled intricate webs of misconduct that start in Latin America but impact communities around the world. This session delves into stories about deforestation, drugs, and mining, providing […]
Resource Video
Investigating Latin America’s Global Reach Of Illicit Activities
How reporters have covered illicit money flows, drug trafficking, and environmental crimes when webs of misconduct start in Latin America but impact communities around the world.
Resource Video
Investigating the Extractives Industry in Africa
Africa is home to a substantial amount of the global mineral wealth. The continent, according to the Natural Resource Governance Institute, holds about 30% of the world’s oil, gas, and mineral resources. This includes up to 92% of the world’s platinum and chromium reserves, 56% of cobalt, 54% of manganese, and 40% of its gold. […]
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Investigating the Israel Hamas Conflict
Seven months into the conflict between Israel and Hamas, journalists carrying out their work in the region have faced unparalleled challenges. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, as of April 9th, preliminary investigations show at least 95 journalists and media workers were among the more than 34,000 estimated killed since the conflict began on […]
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Investigating Elections: Threat from AI Audio Deepfakes
Elections all over the world are endangered by a vast array of sophisticated digital threats. This year, when more voters head to the polls than ever before, AI-driven deepfakes threaten electoral processes everywhere, with potentially disastrous consequences for at-risk democracies. AI-generated audio simulations — in which a real voice is cloned by a machine learning […]
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Investigative Journalism and Digital Threats in 2024 Elections
Free and fair elections are fundamental to a functioning democracy. Investigative journalism helps to ensure the integrity of the electoral process by exposing and correcting false narratives and disinformation that can influence public opinion. This reporting not only helps voters to make informed decisions but empowers them to assess the information they encounter, fostering a […]
Chapter Guide Resource Video
Video: GIJC21 – Citizen Investigations
Journalists don’t have a monopoly on exposing wrong-doing and abuses of power. Increasingly citizen investigators – including individuals working alone on laptops, small and large NGOs, and professors and their students are playing important roles in public interest investigation and opening up new opportunities for collaboration. In this session you’ll hear from cutting-edge investigators at Citizen Lab, Forensic Architecture, the UC Berkeley’s Human Rights Center, and the new SEEK project. They’ll talk about tools and techniques they use to expose wrongdoing and how and when they collaborate with journalists.
Chapter Guide Resource Video
Video: GIJC23 – Developing a Business Strategy (Part 1 & 2)
Join our panel to hear strategies for media sustainability that work in the real world, from fundraising and membership to commercial revenue.
Chapter Guide Resource Video
Video: How to Investigate Methane Emissions
In this GIJN webinar, we bring together two senior reporters and two experts who will offer tools and techniques to identify specific methane emitters, find the data, and look closely at measurement systems. They will also present tips and resources to research what companies and governments are doing to reduce methane emissions.
Chapter Guide Resource Video
GIJC23 – Best Investigations on Russia’s War on Ukraine
The challenges for journalists covering Russia’s invasion of Ukraine are massive. In this panel, we bring together three senior journalists who have investigated the war on Ukraine. They will offer tips, tools, and advice on how to cover this ongoing conflict — but also what they have learned about integrating different investigative methods.
Chapter Guide Resource Video
Video: GIJC23 – Resources for Investigating Russia
Russia matters. A generation after the Cold War, Moscow still has thousands of nuclear weapons. Come hear from two of the best at digging out what’s really happening in Putin’s Russia.
Chapter Guide Resource Video
GIJC23 – Investigating Elections
In this panel we bring together four veteran reporters who have investigated political campaigns and elections around the world.
Resource Video
The Investigative Agenda for Climate Change
Although there has been progress on the development of affordable green energy, global greenhouse gas emissions are rising inexorably, according to one of the world’s leading authorities, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Climate change is global, but the causes are not: fossil fuels — largely coal, oil, and gas — account for more than […]
Chapter Guide Resource Video
Video: Investigating Organized Crime in the Golden Triangle
The Golden Triangle, where the borders of Myanmar, Thailand, and Laos intersect, is one of the world’s renowned centers of criminal activity. The region’s underworld economy turns over billions of dollars annually in narcotics production, human trafficking, wildlife smuggling, illegal mining, and more. Its cross-border illicit networks have global impact, working with criminal groups across […]
Chapter Guide Resource Video
Investigating War Crimes
This webinar shares methodologies for investigating war and conflict, and provide a briefing on the laws that govern what, in popular usage, are called “war crimes.”
Chapter Guide Resource Video
Video: So You Think You Can Google? – Workshop With Henk van Ess
We need to talk about Google! In this video search guru Henk van Ess focuses on helping journalists worldwide to find the best answers online in the shortest amount of time.
Resource Video
GIJC23 Interview – Jane Lytvynenko: Digital Threats Course
In this short interview Jane Lytvynenko, an independent investigative reporter and an instructor for GIJN’s Digital Threats course, talks about how to start investigating online manipulation and also what challenges she faces when doing digital threats investigations. ———————– The Global Investigative Journalism Network is an international association of journalism organizations that support the training and […]
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GIJC23 – The Future of Data Journalism: New Analytical Tools, Data Visualization, and AI
This roundtable will conclude the data track of the conference with a discussion on the tools that are coming to the forefront for doing data stories and with predictions for what is ahead. Join us with your ideas for what is next. ———————– The Global Investigative Journalism Network is an international association of journalism organizations […]
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GIJC23 – The Basics of Using Google Sheets
Have you been curious about working with data but haven’t taken that first step? Here’s a great opportunity — we have three of the best data trainers in the biz who know how to get you started. In this introductory session, you’ll learn how to use Google Sheets to do some basic analysis — and […]
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GIJC23 – Using Pinpoint to Organize Unstructured Data
Pinpoint is a powerful tool for converting unstructured data (text and other forms of messy data) into datasets that can be analyzed and used for stories. ⚠️ Warning for first-time Pinpoint users: In your web browser you need to be logged into a gmail.com account. Open another tab and go to the following site https://journaliststudio.google.com/pinpoint/about. […]
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GIJC23 – Cross Border Reporting: The Next Steps
Cross-border investigative reporting has come far since its early attempts in the 1980s and ’90s by a handful of nonprofits. Today’s projects are multinational efforts involving mainstream media, hundreds of journalists, and tech-savvy data analysis and security systems.
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GIJC23 – Exiled Media: An Investigative Toolkit
Hundreds of journalists are forced into exile around the world by despots, autocrats, and crime cartels. Exiled editors and émigré media are an old story. But amid the modern backlash against independent media, journalists are taking advantage of a new era in tools and technology. These digital toolkits are proving a game-changer, enabling journalists to better report on their homelands, and their audiences to better access that reporting.
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GIJC23 – Masterclass: Digging into Digital Advertising
More than $550 billion was spent on digital ads last year — on everything from banners and video ads to sponsored tweets and pop-ups of every sort. What’s behind this mega-business? The systems used to buy and sell digital ads are vast, complicated, poorly understood, and rife with fraud and deception.
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GIJC23 – Measuring Impact
Watchdog reporting makes a critical contribution to society by exposing wrongdoing, fighting corruption, and promoting accountability. But how do we measure this, and explain the value of investigative reporting to a skeptical public (and donors)? At a time of unprecedented attacks on the press, a broken financial model, and low public trust, it is critical […]
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GIJC23 – Masterclass: Mobile Journalism
Here’s how mobile journalists tell big stories with small cameras. This session showcases the latest tech, tools, apps and techniques for field reporting with mobile gear. The workshop features fresh case studies and best practices of mobile journalism reports and documentaries from around the globe. Literally “from Smartphone to the Silver Screen.” ———————– The Global […]
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GIJC23 – FOIA/RTI Investigations
More than half of the world’s countries have laws that require officials to supply public documents on request. These laws offer valuable windows for reporters, even for those outside of a country’s borders. But there are almost always tricks to targeting and expediting these disclosures, and this panel brings deep experience in how to do […]
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GIJC23 – Fundraising: Prospecting
Prospecting for donors is the vital process of identifying potential donors for your organization’s programs and projects. In this session, you will learn strategies and tools available to help you find donors with the financial capacity and interest to support your work. ———————– The Global Investigative Journalism Network is an international association of journalism organizations […]
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GIJC23 – Lightning Round Favorite Tools & Techniques
Lightning rounds are among the most popular sessions at our global conferences. The presentations are short — about five minutes — so we fit in as many as a dozen speakers, one after another. Favorite Tools & Techniques showcases investigative methods and apps that may have escaped your notice. It’s impossible to fit all the […]
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GIJC23 – Fundraising: The Craft of Proposal Writing
Crafting an effective proposal starts well before the actual writing process begins. In this session, you will learn how to create a plan that takes into account the timing of the process, the colleagues whose assistance you will need, the problem that your program will address, and how you will address it. You will receive […]
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GIJC23 – Cryptocurrency
Cryptocurrencies have taken the financial world by storm, yet few people truly understand them. Despite an industry raked by volatility and billion-dollar scandals, they have gained popularity not only among investors and anarchists, but also organized crime figures and cyber thieves looking to avoid the traditional financial system. Experts insist there are ways to investigate […]
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GIJC23 – Best Practices in Teaching Data Journalism to Professionals and Students
Programs to train and teach investigative reporting have spread worldwide, but how effective are different methods and styles? For this panel, we bring together educators and trainers from diverse environments in France, Slovenia, South Korea, and the United States for a look at both traditional and innovative techniques. ———————– The Global Investigative Journalism Network is […]
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GIJC23 – Working with Hackers
Uyghur abuse and internment in China. Luxury properties in Austria owned by Belarus’s oil minister. Criminal exploitation of London’s company services industry. These investigations were all possible because of hacked data dumps. As a journalist, how do you negotiate with hackers or hacktivists? What questions do you ask? What are the ethical considerations? What are […]
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GIJC23 – Visual Investigations: Reporting Techniques
Once considered merely a form of fact-checking, forensic visual investigation has rapidly become a critical method of journalistic inquiry, thanks to new technologies, innovative skills, and the global ubiquity of social media imagery. In the chaos of dramatic public events, forensic visual reporting teams can now often answer the question: Who did exactly what, and […]
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GIJC23 – Tracking Assets Around the World
In this global economy, it’s become easy to hide one’s assets overseas, whether you’re a Mexican crime boss or a Russian oligarch. Backgrounding an individual’s holdings is essential, but ferreting out front companies, tax dodges, and hidden assets can be a tough undertaking. Here are two of the best at doing this. ———————– The Global […]
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GIJC23 – Plane and Ship Tracking
A raft of new tools are helping journalists track shipping and aircraft around the world. The numerous ways to track ships and planes open a whole new range of stories for journalists to investigate, from following billionaires’ private planes to uncovering the details of refugee boats capsizing. ———————– The Global Investigative Journalism Network is an […]
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GIJC23 – Investigative Editing: Best Practices
We know that becoming a great investigative reporter can take years. But what about the editors? It’s no secret that great investigative editors are hard to find. What makes a terrific editor for watchdog journalism? How do they keep their reporters sane, focused, and motivated? What do they do to protect them in the newsroom? […]
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GIJC23 – Indigenous Investigations
According to the UN, over 476 million indigenous people are living in 90 countries. Many are on the front lines defending their lands and cultures, and they have become minorities in their own homes. Here are Indigenous journalists from Canada, Taiwan, and the United States who are using investigative skills to expose issues ranging from […]
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GIJC23 – How to Use Satellite Images for Investigation
Satellite images play a crucial role in many investigations. Reporters are using them to analyze battlefields and war crimes. Eyes from above also are invaluable for many kinds of climate change stories, such as to document methane emissions, drought, and sea level rise. Our expert panelists will discuss many possible opportunities for using satellite images. […]
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GIJC23 – Freelancing Survival Tips
Freelancing is a tough job; investigative freelancing is even harder. But it also brings independence and the ability to pick your projects. Here are tips from journalists from four countries with decades of experience in working on their own. ———————– The Global Investigative Journalism Network is an international association of journalism organizations that support the […]
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GIJC23 – Exiled Media: Survival Strategies
The recent rise of nakedly autocratic regimes has ballooned the number of independent newsrooms forced to report from exile. These watchdogs-in-exile have shown enterprise and innovation in providing critical news to the homeland. But good journalism is not enough. It’s hard enough to succeed in the media back home, but how do exiled media survive […]
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GIJC23 – Don’t Get Stuck in Side Tracks – Get a Plan
In this presentation, we will methodically guide you through the investigative process and show how to succeed with your project without getting lost along the way. Swedish journalists Emma Johansson and Jessica Ziegerer bring years of experience in investigative projects, both as reporters and editors. They work at the regional newspapers Helsingborgs Dagblad and Sydsvenskan, […]
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GIJC23 – Developing a Business Strategy (Part 2)
Did you know that most start-ups fail? That includes well-meaning non-profit news outlets. What’s often missing is a business strategy. Developing a viable and effective business plan is essential for media organizations, a necessary foundation for sustainability and growth — indeed, for an organization’s very survival. Join this workshop to hear how to do it […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Developing a Business Strategy (Part 1)
Investigative journalism can’t survive without sustainable media organizations. Many were hard hit by changing business models and the loss of advertising revenue, and then the media was hit again during the pandemic, despite record-breaking audiences. What revenue options are currently the most viable and why, and how do we develop methods that will lead to […]
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GIJC23 – Investigating Food & Agriculture
There are numerous investigative topics to explore between the farmer’s field and the grocery store – and, indeed, the plate – and several recent projects have exposed abuses in the production, distribution, and access to food. This expert panel offers deep experience in issues from fisheries and pesticides to food security and biodiversity — with journalists based in Tunisia, the UK, the US, and Southeast Asia.
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GIJC23 – Tracking Political Extremism
We are in the midst of a decade-long global backlash against democracy and human rights. A new extremism has taken hold, characterized by radical right-wing groups and ultranationalist political movements. These groups are not only growing but are becoming more organized. International ties among them are also growing — digitally, ideologically, financially — but their networks are poorly understood and investigative journalism in this area is lacking.
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GIJC23 – Dealing with Online Harassment
Online harassment of investigative journalists who identify as women has reached crisis proportions. In addition to gendered trolling, discrimination, and doxxing, women reporters are disproportionately the targets of intimidation and even direct physical threats on social media. See this experienced and courageous panel to learn about the effective resources that now exist to not only […]
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GIJC23 – Crowd Driven Journalism: Using Communities to Investigate
One of the great spin-offs of the digital age is that journalists can tap into crowds and communities in ways unimaginable only a few years ago. Local communities are reporting impactful stories, providing tips and resources, and bolstering the finances of watchdog media around the world. Here are journalists from remarkably diverse environments — Malaysia, […]
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GIJC23 – Criminal States & Kleptocracies
With the end of the Cold War, intelligence agencies brainstormed about what the next great security threat would be. It turned out they didn’t have to look far: the global advent of kleptocracies and criminal states now threatens democracy and accountable government almost everywhere. Kleptocracies — government by theft — now dominate in much of […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Basic Principles for Mapping Data Using QGIS
This hands-on class will deepen your reporting skills by using QGIS, a free, popular mapping program. More than pretty pictures, mapping programs help you uncover stories and discover important patterns. Crime, health, and environment are just some beats that benefit by knowing mapping skills. In this class you will get familiar with using QGIS and start doing fundamental analysis using real-life data.
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Best Investigations on Russia’s War on Ukraine
The challenges for journalists covering Russia’s invasion of Ukraine are massive — from the obvious dangers of reporting on the ground amid an armed conflict, to trying to investigate during a state of emergency, where disinformation is widespread and independent media is either banned or barely tolerated. In this panel, we bring together three senior […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Resources for Investigating Russia
Russia matters. A generation after the Cold War, Moscow still has thousands of nuclear weapons. By land mass, Russia is the world’s largest country, stretching from Europe to Asia and the Arctic, and it has influence over regional conflicts around the world — not just its disastrous invasion of Ukraine but in the Caucasus, Central […]
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GIJC23 – Holding Algorithms Accountable Through Collaboration
Governments and corporations worldwide are quietly deploying AI technologies that can discriminate and harm the most vulnerable members of society. Yet the impact of predictive and surveillance technologies on communities around the world often goes unreported and remains invisible. How can we bridge the gap? And what is the best way to investigate AI? In […]
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GIJC23 – Investigations to Save Democracy
If there was just one panel to attend at GIJC23, this might be it. We’re witnessing a global assault on democratic institutions and a sustained global decline in democracies. Investigative journalism, in partnership with civil society, has emerged as a last line of defense for human rights and democratic principles in countries around the world — even where we thought we were secure. This panel features giants in the push-back against fascism and authoritarianism. We have an extraordinary lineup — Lina Attalah, Vinod Jose, and David Cay Johnston. — who will offer inspiration and tools to fight for a free and accountable future.
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GIJC23 – Rewriting History: Investigations that Change Our Understanding of the Past
The best historians and investigative journalists share a great deal: they go after primary sources, they follow the trails of money and accountability, and they put events in a broader context that the public can understand. Often those events look shockingly different just 20 or 30 years later, based on documents, data, and interviews.
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GIJC23 – Plenary: Watchdog Journalism in the Age of Digital Subversion (Panel)
Following Ron Deibert’s keynote, we have an all-star panel of journalists on the front lines of the digital war being waged against watchdog media. Moderator Sheila Coronel will lead an hour-long discussion about what it’s like to have your newsroom invaded, your sources exposed, and your actions tracked every day. We’ve asked noted journalists from […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – 40 Years of Cross-Border Muckraking: Where It All Began
Today, we take for granted large-scale, collaborative cross-border investigative reporting. Not only at the global scale, but across Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East, networks of investigative journalists have made the extraordinary almost routine. But this relatively new field has deep roots, going back to a series of little-known meetings in the 1980s, […]
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GIJC23 – AI: Perils and Promise
The rise of AI-powered chatbots has prompted hot debates about whether these technologies will reshape or unmake our world. But instead of engaging in the hype cycle, journalists can demystify these tools for their audiences by sticking to basic reporting principles: investigate the artificial intelligence models themselves and cover their real-world impact. Burke will discuss […]
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GIJC23 – Fighting Back Against SLAPPs & Other Legal Threats
Journalists are facing a worldwide legal assault from a growing arsenal of abused laws, from national security and emergency edicts to libel and privacy statutes. Harassment lawsuits, while always a threat, have mushroomed in use by the rich and powerful to silence watchdog reporting. SLAPP suits (“strategic lawsuits against public participation”), are one variant and […]
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GIJC23 – What Does AI Have to Do with Investigative Journalism? Everything!
If we follow the headlines, AI is either going to kill us all or solve all our problems. Meanwhile, in the real world, algorithms deployed in hospitals, schools, courts, and even refugee camps are creating new forms of discrimination and exclusion among the most vulnerable citizens. Actual, life-changing harm, not doomsday futuristic scenarios. In this […]
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GIJC23 – Investigating Social Media: Telegram, Twitter, & WhatsApp
This workshop might just emerge as the one that changes your life as a watchdog journalist. Misinformation and disinformation on “closed” social media networks — such as WhatsApp and Telegram – have already had devastating consequences for democratic processes in places like India, Nigeria, Russia, and Brazil. At first glance, some platforms may seem impenetrable, […]
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GIJC23 – Climate: Investigating Impacts
The impacts of climate change everywhere. But how to do in-depth reporting on the widespread human costs — both immediate and longer-term? Speakers from Asia, Africa, and Europe will discuss how to cover topics such as sea level rise, heat, drought, and extreme weather with an eye to the impact on humanity and the environment. […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Investigating Social Media: Telegram, Twitter, & WhatsApp
This workshop might just emerge as the one that changes your life as a watchdog journalist. Misinformation and disinformation on “closed” social media networks — such as WhatsApp and Telegram – have already had devastating consequences for democratic processes in places like India, Nigeria, Russia, and Brazil.
Resource Video
GIJC23 – When the Data Aren’t There: Building Your Own Datasets
Think there’s no data in your story? Create your own. Journalists can use polls, physical surveys, documents, or even monitoring devices to create their own data. We’ll give you examples of how these techniques are used and some best practices for doing it yourself. ———————– The Global Investigative Journalism Network is an international association of […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Climate: Investigating Causes
Hear from some of the world’s most imaginative climate change journalists. Mongabay’s Rhett Ayers Butler presides over a newsroom producing a constant stream of articles on climate change worldwide. Elisângela Mendonça recently has connected the production of the anti-aging cure collagen with deforestation in Brazil. Emilio Godoy’s multi-faceted portfolio includes investigations of gas leaks and […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Using Social Network Analysis for Investigations
This session will provide an overview of social network analysis, which is used to visualize and analyze such things as the connections between companies and individuals in organized crime and money laundering, the paths and progress of infections in pandemics, interlocking directorships of corporations, and the structure of terrorist organizations.
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Plenary: Watchdog Journalism in the Age of Digital Subversion (keynote)
Our keynote speaker this year is Ron Deibert, director of the groundbreaking Citizen Lab at the University of Toronto. Deibert was among the first to sound the alarm about a global information security crisis — warning that the digital revolution would spark a new era of surveillance, censorship, and disinformation. Deibert’s interdisciplinary team at Citizen […]
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GIJC23 – Podcasts: Producing the Investigative Podcast
Podcast listening in Brazil and Indonesia, two of the world’s top markets, has followed a global surge in listeners turning to the intimacy of podcasting and streaming audio, when and where they want. Come meet three journalists and producers who have both led the way in their countries, and collaborated in true GIJN fashion. Join […]
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GIJC23 – How AI Can Save Small Newsrooms
Do you have too little time to do investigative stories? Try L-ai-la, the new AI research assistant, trained to find news fit to print. (You may be both lazy & forgetful, but Laila never misses a story.) Is this about GPT4? Generative AI? No, forget about it. We are talking about LHF (the LowHangingFruit AI […]
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Measuring and Increasing the Effects of Investigative Journalism
Watchdog reporting makes a critical contribution to society by exposing wrongdoing, fighting corruption, and promoting accountability. But how do we measure this, and explain to a skeptical public the value of investigative reporting? At a time of unprecedented attacks on the press, a broken financial model, and low public trust, it is critical to understand […]
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Investigating the War in Ukraine One Year On
You can watch the Ukrainian versino of this webinar here: https://youtu.be/2R-Yxtz2qoY You can watch the Russian version of this webinar here: https://youtu.be/O9Ws0db_HXM In the 12 months since Russia invaded Ukraine, journalists have faced enormous dangers carrying out their work — in both Ukraine and Russia. There is also a lack of information, a tsunami of […]
Resource Video
How To Use The Journalist Security Assessment Tool
Security is essential for journalists, and for investigative journalists in particular. Tackling the issue, let alone understanding its complexities, can be challenging. To make the process easier, GIJN has worked with experts at the Ford Foundation to adapt Ford’s Cybersecurity Assessment Tool (CAT) for use by watchdog journalism groups. Our new Journalist Security Assessment Tool […]
Resource Video
Investigating Organized Crime in Sub-Saharan Africa
Organized crime and corruption are widespread, deeply rooted and growing in Sub-Saharan Africa, a region with some of the world’s highest rates of poverty and inequality. Powerful criminal groups operate with the help of politicians, government officials and a “criminal services industry”, including corrupt banks. They make their money through the illegal narcotics trade, human […]
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Investigating Organized Crime in the Golden Triangle
The Golden Triangle, where the borders of Myanmar, Thailand, and Laos intersect, is one of the world’s renowned centers of criminal activity. The region’s underworld economy turns over billions of dollars annually in narcotics production, human trafficking, wildlife smuggling, illegal mining, and more. Its cross-border illicit networks have global impact, working with criminal groups across […]
Resource Video
Investigating Conflict-Related Sexual Violence
Sexual violence is a feature of conflict and war. Its impact is felt by individuals, but also by families and communities, and its destructive effects persist for generations. Reporting criminal acts of any sort in an active conflict is difficult enough; documenting and reporting sexual violence during a conflict poses even more challenges. In this […]
Resource Video
What Is Washington Doing in Your Country? – GIJN Masterclass
The US government engages with virtually every country in the world and in multiple ways. These can include Presidential and Congressional activity, foreign assistance, criminal investigations, public and private financial transactions, lobbying, arms sales — and much more. In this online Masterclass, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Martha Mendoza is in conversation with GIJN’s David Kaplan. Mendoza […]
Resource Video
How Journalists Investigated the Killing of Shireen Abu Akleh
Shireen Abu Akleh, a prominent Palestinian-American journalist working with Al Jazeera, was killed by a gunshot to the head on the morning of May 11, 2022, while reporting from Jenin, a city in the West Bank. Abu Akleh was covering a raid by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF). The controversial killing has drawn global media […]
Resource Video
How to Investigate the World Cup
Football (soccer to Americans) is the world’s most popular sport and the World Cup one of its highlights, anticipated by millions, even billions around the globe. The next World Cup takes place in November-December this year in Qatar, based on a decision made in 2010 by football’s governing body, FIFA (the International Federation of Football […]
Resource Video
So You Think You Can Google? – Workshop With Henk van Ess
We need to talk about Google! The world’s most popular search engine tries to please as many people as possible. But for journalists, the quality of results has rapidly declined. What is the issue and what can investigators do about it? GIJN is pleased to announce a hands-on session with search guru Henk van Ess, […]
Resource Video
How to Investigate a Billion-Dollar Corporate Fraud
Once a $30 billion global bluechip financial services and tech company, Germany’s Wirecard filed for insolvency in 2021 in what is one of the biggest corporate frauds of the modern era. The tenacious and prolonged investigative reporting by the Financial Times, helped to uncover widespread fraud, malpractice and negligence. Dan McCrum, a senior Financial Times […]
Resource Video
How to Investigate Elections
The state of democracy is at its lowest point in decades. Around the world, free and fair elections face growing threats from disinformation campaigns, foreign interference, voter suppression, campaign corruption, violence, intimidation, and more. Covering elections as a political “horse race” has never been enough. This approach to campaign reporting is even more inadequate today, […]
Chapter Guide Video Climate Investigative Techniques Methodology Organized Crime
Wildlife Trafficking: A GIJN Guide
The illegal trafficking of wild animals and plants is damaging biodiversity worldwide and spreading diseases. It’s an international story, with great opportunities for investigations in virtually every country. GIJN’s new guide encourages deep reporting about the subject with tips and tools for covering a global trade.
Resource Video
Nils Mulvad – The story behind the data
More than ever, investigative journalists need to understand electronic data to do their jobs. To find, extract, analyze and tell stories, increasingly they need to deal with spreadsheets, databases, and visualizations. Nils Mulvad (https://x.com/nmulvad) is an Investigative journalist based in Denmark, who has worked with data journalism for more than 20 years. Visit GIJN’s resource […]
Climate
Database Resource
GIJN Resources on Illegal Wildlife Trafficking
This spreadsheet is a list of major reports, key groups, examples of investigative journalism, and relevant databases on lllegal Wildlife Trafficking. The collection is part of GIJN’s Illegal Wildlife Trafficking guide, which can be found here. Suggestions for additions to the collection are welcome. Please email here.
Guide Climate Methodology
Reporter’s Guide to Investigating Carbon Offsets — Short Version
Carbon offsets are truly an international climate change story. This short version of our GIJN guide helps reporters understand, research, and investigate the global players.
Guide Resource
Reporter’s Guide to Investigating Carbon Offsets
Carbon offsets are truly an international climate change story with potential for cross-border collaboration between journalists.
Resource Video
The Investigative Agenda for Climate Change
Although there has been progress on the development of affordable green energy, global greenhouse gas emissions are rising inexorably, according to one of the world’s leading authorities, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Climate change is global, but the causes are not: fossil fuels — largely coal, oil, and gas — account for more than […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Climate: Investigating Impacts
The impacts of climate change everywhere. But how to do in-depth reporting on the widespread human costs — both immediate and longer-term? Speakers from Asia, Africa, and Europe will discuss how to cover topics such as sea level rise, heat, drought, and extreme weather with an eye to the impact on humanity and the environment. […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Climate: Investigating Causes
Hear from some of the world’s most imaginative climate change journalists. Mongabay’s Rhett Ayers Butler presides over a newsroom producing a constant stream of articles on climate change worldwide. Elisângela Mendonça recently has connected the production of the anti-aging cure collagen with deforestation in Brazil. Emilio Godoy’s multi-faceted portfolio includes investigations of gas leaks and […]
Tipsheet Climate Reporting Tools & Tips
Holding Your Government Accountable for Climate Change Pledges
In this abridged version, GIJN offers tips from our latest reporting guide, on how journalists can investigate their country’s climate change pledges and hold governments accountable.
Guide Resource
Reporting Guide to Holding Governments Accountable for Climate Change Pledges
The global fight against climate change depends on the actions of individual nations — so national accountability is critical.
Guide Resource
GIJN’s Guide to Investigating Sea Level Rise
For journalists, explaining the causes and consequences of rising sea levels is a critical and challenging assignment.
Resource
Remote Sensing and Data Tools for Environmental Investigations
This edition of the GIJN Toolbox explores global databases and remote sensing resources that reporters can use to investigate local environmental threats.
Guide Resource
GIJN’s Guide to Investigating Methane — A Key to Fighting Climate Change (Short Version)
Reducing methane emissions is the single fastest way to fight climate change, according to climate scientists. In this guide, identify specific sources of methane and hold companies and countries accountable.
Guide Resource
Climate Change Accountability: GIJN’s Guide to Investigating Methane
This guide was written by Toby McIntosh, senior advisor to GIJN’s Resource Center. Editing was by Reed Richardson and Laura Dixon. Illustrations were created by Marcelle Louw.
Contacts & Networking
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Cross Border Reporting: The Next Steps
Cross-border investigative reporting has come far since its early attempts in the 1980s and ’90s by a handful of nonprofits. Today’s projects are multinational efforts involving mainstream media, hundreds of journalists, and tech-savvy data analysis and security systems.
Resource
Working with Whistleblowers
Whistleblowers – insiders who expose corrupt or illegal activities – are an important source of information for journalists everywhere. From their position inside governments, companies, and other organizations, they can provide crucial leads, evidence, and sometimes “smoking guns” that expose everything from fraud and waste to criminal conspiracies and war crimes. It’s important for journalists […]
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Guides to Finding Expert Sources
Looking for sources? Finding experts in a particular field is a good place to start for many stories. GIJN took a look at various guides to expert sources. After cutting those that are outdated, too specialized, or tools of the PR industry, we found a handful worth consulting. Here are six services with functioning, reliable databases used by journalists searching for expert sources.
Resource
Investigative Journalism Organizations
Here are nonprofit and related organizations worldwide that work in support of investigative journalism, listed by region. It is a diverse group that includes nonprofit newsrooms, online publishers, professional associations, NGOs, training institutes, and academic centers in nearly 50 countries. For inclusion, GIJN applied the following criteria: the group is structured as a nonprofit or […]
Data Journalism
Data Journalism Reporting Tools & Tips
Step-By-Step Guide for Journalists on the Basics of Google Sheets
Knowing how to use spreadsheets is a crucial skill, as it allows you to find potential stories in large amounts of data and to think critically about how to use it.
Tipsheet Data Journalism Reporting Tools & Tips
Tipsheet for Using Ocean Data in Your Investigations
Investigations into what happens on, under, and around the ocean can often be answered thanks to the vast amount of data available online.
Tipsheet Data Journalism GIJC23
No Coding Required: A Step-by-Step Guide to Scraping Websites With Data Miner
Knowing where to look for data — and accessing it via scraping data from websites — can be a powerful force multiplier for investigative journalists.
Resource Video
GIJC23 – The Future of Data Journalism: New Analytical Tools, Data Visualization, and AI
This roundtable will conclude the data track of the conference with a discussion on the tools that are coming to the forefront for doing data stories and with predictions for what is ahead. Join us with your ideas for what is next. ———————– The Global Investigative Journalism Network is an international association of journalism organizations […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – The Basics of Using Google Sheets
Have you been curious about working with data but haven’t taken that first step? Here’s a great opportunity — we have three of the best data trainers in the biz who know how to get you started. In this introductory session, you’ll learn how to use Google Sheets to do some basic analysis — and […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Using Pinpoint to Organize Unstructured Data
Pinpoint is a powerful tool for converting unstructured data (text and other forms of messy data) into datasets that can be analyzed and used for stories. ⚠️ Warning for first-time Pinpoint users: In your web browser you need to be logged into a gmail.com account. Open another tab and go to the following site https://journaliststudio.google.com/pinpoint/about. […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Measuring Impact
Watchdog reporting makes a critical contribution to society by exposing wrongdoing, fighting corruption, and promoting accountability. But how do we measure this, and explain the value of investigative reporting to a skeptical public (and donors)? At a time of unprecedented attacks on the press, a broken financial model, and low public trust, it is critical […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Best Practices in Teaching Data Journalism to Professionals and Students
Programs to train and teach investigative reporting have spread worldwide, but how effective are different methods and styles? For this panel, we bring together educators and trainers from diverse environments in France, Slovenia, South Korea, and the United States for a look at both traditional and innovative techniques. ———————– The Global Investigative Journalism Network is […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Basic Principles for Mapping Data Using QGIS
This hands-on class will deepen your reporting skills by using QGIS, a free, popular mapping program. More than pretty pictures, mapping programs help you uncover stories and discover important patterns. Crime, health, and environment are just some beats that benefit by knowing mapping skills. In this class you will get familiar with using QGIS and start doing fundamental analysis using real-life data.
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Holding Algorithms Accountable Through Collaboration
Governments and corporations worldwide are quietly deploying AI technologies that can discriminate and harm the most vulnerable members of society. Yet the impact of predictive and surveillance technologies on communities around the world often goes unreported and remains invisible. How can we bridge the gap? And what is the best way to investigate AI? In […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – When the Data Aren’t There: Building Your Own Datasets
Think there’s no data in your story? Create your own. Journalists can use polls, physical surveys, documents, or even monitoring devices to create their own data. We’ll give you examples of how these techniques are used and some best practices for doing it yourself. ———————– The Global Investigative Journalism Network is an international association of […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Using Social Network Analysis for Investigations
This session will provide an overview of social network analysis, which is used to visualize and analyze such things as the connections between companies and individuals in organized crime and money laundering, the paths and progress of infections in pandemics, interlocking directorships of corporations, and the structure of terrorist organizations.
Databases
Database Resource
Resources on Corruption
This database is maintained by the Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) and is one of many resources available at our Resource Center. Scroll cursor left and right to see entire table.
Database Resource
Resources on Poverty
This database is maintained by the Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) and is one of many resources available at our Resource Center. Scroll cursor left and right to see entire table.
Database Resource
Resources on Terrorism
This database is maintained by the Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) and is one of many resources available at our Resource Center. Scroll cursor left and right to see entire table.
Database Resource
Resource on Crime
This database is maintained by the Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) and is one of many resources available at our Resource Center. Scroll cursor left and right to see entire table.
Database Resource
Resources on Human Rights
This database is maintained by the Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) and is one of many resources available at our Resource Center. Scroll cursor left and right to see entire table.
Database Resource
Resources on Sports
This database is maintained by the Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) and is one of many resources available at our Resource Center. Scroll cursor left and right to see entire table.
Database Resource
Resource on Military and Conflict
This database is maintained by the Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) and is one of many resources available at our Resource Center. Scroll cursor left and right to see entire table.
Database Resource
Resource on Environmental Data
This database is maintained by the Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) and is one of many resources available at our Resource Center. Scroll cursor left and right to see entire table.
Database Resource
Database for Carbon Offset Reporting
This database includes key resources, watchdog groups, and case studies for investigating the carbon offsets market.
Database Resource
Resources on Health and Medicine
This database is maintained by the Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) and is one of many resources available at our Resource Center. Scroll cursor left and right to see entire table.
Database Resource
Resources on Business and Trade
This database is maintained by the Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) and is one of many resources available at our Resource Center. Scroll cursor left and right to see entire table.
Database Resource
Resources on Migration
This database is maintained by the Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) and is one of many resources available at our Resource Center. Scroll cursor left and right to see entire table.
Distribution & Promotion
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Measuring Impact
Watchdog reporting makes a critical contribution to society by exposing wrongdoing, fighting corruption, and promoting accountability. But how do we measure this, and explain the value of investigative reporting to a skeptical public (and donors)? At a time of unprecedented attacks on the press, a broken financial model, and low public trust, it is critical […]
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Maximizing Social Media in Your Newsroom: A Tipsheet on Distribution and Engaging Audiences
In order to break through the noisy internet landscape, you need to put in the work to build a long-term relationship with your readers, so that they remember your name and keep coming back. But what are the best platforms for you to use? And how can media organizations choose the apps that best reach their audiences? GIJN’s Rossalyn Warren has some tips.
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Freelancing: Safety and Security
Freelance journalists are often on their own when it comes to security, both physical and digital, but there are many helpful resources. Help on many topics is available in the resources listed below, and even more are included in these GIJN resource pages: Safety and Security Digital Security Legal Defense Emergency Aid for Journalists Working […]
Guide Resource
Partnerships and Collaborations
Collaborations on investigative projects are increasingly popular. Working together with partners can multiply and maximize reporting resources and increase readership. Special skills can be acquired, such as analyzing data, creating visualizations, or preparing multimedia elements. There is a steadily growing amount of literature on how to do collaborative investigations — how to build trust, create […]
Guide Resource
Freelancing: Platforms That Earn Income for Writers
There are a growing number of sites that help writers earn money while self-publishing. Whether these are right for you will require research. In this section, we are not exploring the many places that help create websites, newsletters and blogs, or looking into the plug-ins that permit sales and subscriptions. Nor are we getting into […]
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Freelancing: Media Liability Insurance
Freelance investigative journalists should seriously consider having insurance to protect against the risk of being sued. “Media liability” policies are shields against the financial costs of litigation over libel, slander, defamation, invasion of privacy, plagiarism, copyright infringement and more. Insurance can cover potentially very large legal bills and monetary damages due to adverse court judgments […]
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Freelancing: Risk Insurance
Having insurance while on risky assignments may be a prudent investment and less expensive than you fear. Get the publisher to pay for it if possible. What to insure for? Classic travel problems: missed flights, lost documents, etc. Medical issues: sickness, injury, etc. (COVID-19 coverage is excluded.) Evacuation, if necessary. Kidnapping. Disability insurance. Repatriation of […]
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Freelancing: Contracts and Negotiation
Contractual Considerations Contract negotiations for investigative articles should cover several issues that aren’t as relevant for, say, a feature about cute kittens. There are some fairly universal points on which to concentrate, including: A definition of the scope of work and how changes will be handled. The terms of payment. Who owns the rights. For […]
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Freelancing: Places to Pitch Story Ideas
There are no platforms designed specifically for journalists to sell investigative story ideas, but a few websites may prove useful. To find a publisher for an investigative idea, most reporters suggest alternative routes, such as doing research on possible outlets and making personal contacts. (See more about networking in the section on pitching stories.) However, […]
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Freelancing Investigative Journalism: How to Pitch
Selling freelance investigative journalism proposals is a lot like selling other stories, but harder. There just aren’t enough media outlets willing to engage in watchdog reporting. For more on Distribution, Promotion, and Freelancing, see our GIJN Guide. And pitching investigations which may have uncertain and controversial outcomes is especially challenging, requiring the establishment of mutual trust. […]
Elections
Resource Video
Investigating Elections: Threat from AI Audio Deepfakes
Elections all over the world are endangered by a vast array of sophisticated digital threats. This year, when more voters head to the polls than ever before, AI-driven deepfakes threaten electoral processes everywhere, with potentially disastrous consequences for at-risk democracies. AI-generated audio simulations — in which a real voice is cloned by a machine learning […]
Resource Video
Investigative Journalism and Digital Threats in 2024 Elections
Free and fair elections are fundamental to a functioning democracy. Investigative journalism helps to ensure the integrity of the electoral process by exposing and correcting false narratives and disinformation that can influence public opinion. This reporting not only helps voters to make informed decisions but empowers them to assess the information they encounter, fostering a […]
Guide Resource
GIJN’s Elections Guide for Investigative Reporters — Revised for 2024
Featuring a broad array of tools, techniques, and resources to help watchdog reporters dig into almost any campaign or election.
Resource Video
How to Investigate Elections
The state of democracy is at its lowest point in decades. Around the world, free and fair elections face growing threats from disinformation campaigns, foreign interference, voter suppression, campaign corruption, violence, intimidation, and more. Covering elections as a political “horse race” has never been enough. This approach to campaign reporting is even more inadequate today, […]
Fundraising
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Measuring Impact
Watchdog reporting makes a critical contribution to society by exposing wrongdoing, fighting corruption, and promoting accountability. But how do we measure this, and explain the value of investigative reporting to a skeptical public (and donors)? At a time of unprecedented attacks on the press, a broken financial model, and low public trust, it is critical […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Fundraising: Prospecting
Prospecting for donors is the vital process of identifying potential donors for your organization’s programs and projects. In this session, you will learn strategies and tools available to help you find donors with the financial capacity and interest to support your work. ———————– The Global Investigative Journalism Network is an international association of journalism organizations […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Fundraising: The Craft of Proposal Writing
Crafting an effective proposal starts well before the actual writing process begins. In this session, you will learn how to create a plan that takes into account the timing of the process, the colleagues whose assistance you will need, the problem that your program will address, and how you will address it. You will receive […]
Resource Tipsheet
GIJN Africa: Funding and Grants
Nonprofit organizations dedicated to offering grants in support of investigative journalism in Africa.
Guide Resource
Prospecting and Cultivation: A Fundraising Primer
Growing your major gifts program — or getting one started in the first place — can feel like an overwhelming responsibility. The philanthropic landscape is extremely competitive, and the prospect of identifying and soliciting prospective donors can seem cumbersome and intimidating. While the non-profit journalism landscape has flourished, opening up new revenue streams and business […]
Guide Resource
Crowdfunding: Essential Reading
GIJN’s research provides tips on how to plan and carry out a crowdfunding campaign, names of national and regional crowdfunding sites, suggestions of useful tools to use. And some stories from those who have done it. At GIJN’s 2019 Hamburg conference, Tamas Bodoky of Atlatszo in Hungary, elaborated on seven suggestions (see his tipsheet): Establish […]
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Fundraising: Essential Reading
Raising money to build and scale up a nonprofit investigative journalism organization is challenging. Grants and donations from philanthropic organizations and individuals are one source of funding. Here are tips and ideas from fundraising experts: NEW: MediaDev Fundraising Guide (2021) Tipsheet: Fundraising Research Resources, by Bridget Gallagher, from a presentation at GIJC19. Inside Philanthropy: Who’s […]
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Fundraising: More Reading
Media philanthropy in Germany on the rise ‘When money is offered, we listen’: foundation funding and nonprofit journalism Fundraising like reporting: How eight nonprofit newsrooms majorly increased their major gifts Journalism Funders Confidential: Monthly newsletter with insights into some of the major forces currently shaping philanthropy and journalism in Europe 50,000 first-time donors? Here’s how […]
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Crowdfunding for Journalists
At a time when the media is struggling to support serious journalism, investigative reporters increasingly are turning to crowdfunding. The field is growing quickly and success stories abound, but the challenges are many. For our latest resource page, GIJN has gathered tips and strategies from the best sites and blogs, and done a guide to global and regional crowdfunding sites most suited for journalists. Let us know what we’ve missed!
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Crowdfunding: Case Studies
How Germany’s Journalists Built a Crowdfunding Campaign to Save Russia’s Meduza, GIJN Crowdfunding Campaigns Give Boost to Independent Czech Media, GIJN Behind Journalism’s Top Crowdfunding Campaign, GIJN How the Correspondent crowdfunded $2.5m in 29 days Engaged Journalism Journalism crowdfunding platform PressPatron named hottest media industry tech start-up by NZ Marketing Magazine New Zealand Herald Platform […]
Gender
Resource Video
Investigating Conflict-Related Sexual Violence
Sexual violence is a feature of conflict and war. Its impact is felt by individuals, but also by families and communities, and its destructive effects persist for generations. Reporting criminal acts of any sort in an active conflict is difficult enough; documenting and reporting sexual violence during a conflict poses even more challenges. In this […]
Guide Resource
Resources for Women Journalists – A GIJN Guide
Women and nonbinary journalists often encounter obstacles, whether they’re out reporting or when they’re back in their newsrooms. GIJN has gathered resources for those who want to connect, handle harassment, and address discrimination issues. We also provide advice and tips from great women investigative journalists that may serve as inspiration. This guide was originally published […]
Guide Resource
Investigating Femicide: A GIJN Guide
Femicide — the intentional murder of women because they are women — is a global problem. According to the UN’s latest estimates, 50,000 women and girls are killed each year by intimate partners or other family members. GIJN’s latest resource aims to help journalists understand what femicide is, find and understand the data available, and suggest which experts to interview.
Guide Resource
Investigating Sexual Abuse: An Updated Reporting Guide
The subject of sexual violence remains a sensitive if not taboo subject in much of the world and often goes unreported. Watchdog journalism has started digging deeper into sexual violence, but these investigations are still few relative to the estimated number of cases worldwide.
Getting Started in Investigative Journalism
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Measuring Impact
Watchdog reporting makes a critical contribution to society by exposing wrongdoing, fighting corruption, and promoting accountability. But how do we measure this, and explain the value of investigative reporting to a skeptical public (and donors)? At a time of unprecedented attacks on the press, a broken financial model, and low public trust, it is critical […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – FOIA/RTI Investigations
More than half of the world’s countries have laws that require officials to supply public documents on request. These laws offer valuable windows for reporters, even for those outside of a country’s borders. But there are almost always tricks to targeting and expediting these disclosures, and this panel brings deep experience in how to do […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Plane and Ship Tracking
A raft of new tools are helping journalists track shipping and aircraft around the world. The numerous ways to track ships and planes open a whole new range of stories for journalists to investigate, from following billionaires’ private planes to uncovering the details of refugee boats capsizing. ———————– The Global Investigative Journalism Network is an […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Freelancing Survival Tips
Freelancing is a tough job; investigative freelancing is even harder. But it also brings independence and the ability to pick your projects. Here are tips from journalists from four countries with decades of experience in working on their own. ———————– The Global Investigative Journalism Network is an international association of journalism organizations that support the […]
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GIJC23 – Don’t Get Stuck in Side Tracks – Get a Plan
In this presentation, we will methodically guide you through the investigative process and show how to succeed with your project without getting lost along the way. Swedish journalists Emma Johansson and Jessica Ziegerer bring years of experience in investigative projects, both as reporters and editors. They work at the regional newspapers Helsingborgs Dagblad and Sydsvenskan, […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Crowd Driven Journalism: Using Communities to Investigate
One of the great spin-offs of the digital age is that journalists can tap into crowds and communities in ways unimaginable only a few years ago. Local communities are reporting impactful stories, providing tips and resources, and bolstering the finances of watchdog media around the world. Here are journalists from remarkably diverse environments — Malaysia, […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Basic Principles for Mapping Data Using QGIS
This hands-on class will deepen your reporting skills by using QGIS, a free, popular mapping program. More than pretty pictures, mapping programs help you uncover stories and discover important patterns. Crime, health, and environment are just some beats that benefit by knowing mapping skills. In this class you will get familiar with using QGIS and start doing fundamental analysis using real-life data.
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GIJC23 – Rewriting History: Investigations that Change Our Understanding of the Past
The best historians and investigative journalists share a great deal: they go after primary sources, they follow the trails of money and accountability, and they put events in a broader context that the public can understand. Often those events look shockingly different just 20 or 30 years later, based on documents, data, and interviews.
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Investigating Social Media: Telegram, Twitter, & WhatsApp
This workshop might just emerge as the one that changes your life as a watchdog journalist. Misinformation and disinformation on “closed” social media networks — such as WhatsApp and Telegram – have already had devastating consequences for democratic processes in places like India, Nigeria, Russia, and Brazil.
Resource Video
GIJC23 – When the Data Aren’t There: Building Your Own Datasets
Think there’s no data in your story? Create your own. Journalists can use polls, physical surveys, documents, or even monitoring devices to create their own data. We’ll give you examples of how these techniques are used and some best practices for doing it yourself. ———————– The Global Investigative Journalism Network is an international association of […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Using Social Network Analysis for Investigations
This session will provide an overview of social network analysis, which is used to visualize and analyze such things as the connections between companies and individuals in organized crime and money laundering, the paths and progress of infections in pandemics, interlocking directorships of corporations, and the structure of terrorist organizations.
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Working with Whistleblowers
Whistleblowers – insiders who expose corrupt or illegal activities – are an important source of information for journalists everywhere. From their position inside governments, companies, and other organizations, they can provide crucial leads, evidence, and sometimes “smoking guns” that expose everything from fraud and waste to criminal conspiracies and war crimes. It’s important for journalists […]
Getting the Story Out
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Podcasts: Producing the Investigative Podcast
Podcast listening in Brazil and Indonesia, two of the world’s top markets, has followed a global surge in listeners turning to the intimacy of podcasting and streaming audio, when and where they want. Come meet three journalists and producers who have both led the way in their countries, and collaborated in true GIJN fashion. Join […]
Guide Resource
How to Set Up a Video Unit: A GIJN Guide for Small Organizations
How to hire staff and plan out your shoots to tips for better photography and helpful case studies.
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Investigative Audio: 8 Tips from Podcasting Innovators
In a GIJC21 session on investigative podcasts, journalists and producers who have created award-winning podcasts shared ideas on how to leverage this audio storytelling technique to better connect with the audience and tell impactful stories.
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Business Tools for Newsrooms: A GIJN Guide
This guide was produced thanks to support from the Google News Initiative. It was researched and written by Talya Cooper, a researcher based in New York who has worked as the archivist of the Edward Snowden archive at The Intercept and as archive manager at StoryCorps. She is the co-author, with Alison Macrina, of “Anonymity,” a […]
Resource Video
Nils Mulvad – The story behind the data
More than ever, investigative journalists need to understand electronic data to do their jobs. To find, extract, analyze and tell stories, increasingly they need to deal with spreadsheets, databases, and visualizations. Nils Mulvad (https://x.com/nmulvad) is an Investigative journalist based in Denmark, who has worked with data journalism for more than 20 years. Visit GIJN’s resource […]
Resource Tipsheet
Mobile Journalism Guide: How To Get Your Mojo Workin’
COVID-19 Update: Reporting during the pandemic poses some new risks. Here are some relevant resources. Marc Settle, a BBC Academy smartphone trainer, prepared this article: Coronavirus’ impact on mobile journalism Nico Piro, mobile journalism trainer and special correspondent at Italy’s RAI, shared lessons here: Lessons from Italy: best practices for field reporting during the coronavirus […]
Resource Tipsheet
Drone Journalism
Turbulent with a chance of data: Journalism’s drone-powered futures: A guide to storytelling with UAVs, by Monika Sengul-Jones in datajournalism.com. Tips on Drone Journalism by Raffy Tima, a senior news producer and news anchor with GMA Network Manila, Philippines, as presented during GIJC17. Six Tips for Succeeding at Drone Journalism, a guide prepared by Johnny […]
Resource Tipsheet
Investigative Photography: Supporting a Story with Images
There’s nothing like a good photographer to bring alive an investigative story. One of the worst crimes that investigative journalists commit is spending months on a great story, and then only minutes on the presentation. Working with photojournalists who know their craft (along with designers and graphic artists) can be one of the real pleasures of putting a big project together. We’re fortunate that a new handbook on using photography for investigations was just published: Investigative Photography: Supporting a Story with Pictures, by CJ Clarke, Damien Spleeters, and Juliet Ferguson.
Human Rights
Resource Video
Investigating the Israel Hamas Conflict
Seven months into the conflict between Israel and Hamas, journalists carrying out their work in the region have faced unparalleled challenges. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, as of April 9th, preliminary investigations show at least 95 journalists and media workers were among the more than 34,000 estimated killed since the conflict began on […]
Guide Human Rights Reporting Tools & Tips
Reporting Guide to Investigating Disability Issues — Short Version
People with disabilities are the largest intersectional minority group, according to the UN, and virtually every reporting beat has a disability angle.
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Indigenous Investigations
According to the UN, over 476 million indigenous people are living in 90 countries. Many are on the front lines defending their lands and cultures, and they have become minorities in their own homes. Here are Indigenous journalists from Canada, Taiwan, and the United States who are using investigative skills to expose issues ranging from […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Investigating Food & Agriculture
There are numerous investigative topics to explore between the farmer’s field and the grocery store – and, indeed, the plate – and several recent projects have exposed abuses in the production, distribution, and access to food. This expert panel offers deep experience in issues from fisheries and pesticides to food security and biodiversity — with journalists based in Tunisia, the UK, the US, and Southeast Asia.
Guide Resource
GIJN Reporter’s Guide to Investigating War Crimes
This comprehensive guide includes expert advice from more than two dozen specialists and journalists.
Guide Resource
Reporting Guide to Investigating Disability Issues
In this reporting guide we’ve included some of the various definitions of disability, important resources, and key issues for journalists to investigate.
Resource Video
Investigating the War in Ukraine One Year On
You can watch the Ukrainian versino of this webinar here: https://youtu.be/2R-Yxtz2qoY You can watch the Russian version of this webinar here: https://youtu.be/O9Ws0db_HXM In the 12 months since Russia invaded Ukraine, journalists have faced enormous dangers carrying out their work — in both Ukraine and Russia. There is also a lack of information, a tsunami of […]
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Best Practices for Journalists Covering Conflict-Related Sexual Violence
At a recent GIJN webinar, journalist and experts discussed best practices for investigating conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV), including tips for interviewing possible war crimes victims and corroborating incidents without re-traumatizing survivors.
Resource Video
Investigating Conflict-Related Sexual Violence
Sexual violence is a feature of conflict and war. Its impact is felt by individuals, but also by families and communities, and its destructive effects persist for generations. Reporting criminal acts of any sort in an active conflict is difficult enough; documenting and reporting sexual violence during a conflict poses even more challenges. In this […]
Guide Resource
GIJN’s Elections Guide for Investigative Reporters
This guide offers a broad array of tools, techniques, and resources — beyond the primary local sources you find — to help watchdog reporters dig into almost any election.
Guide Resource
Investigating Russia and the War in Ukraine
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, GIJN has published a series of stories and tipsheets for investigative journalists covering the war.
Guide Resource
Resources for Women Journalists – A GIJN Guide
Women and nonbinary journalists often encounter obstacles, whether they’re out reporting or when they’re back in their newsrooms. GIJN has gathered resources for those who want to connect, handle harassment, and address discrimination issues. We also provide advice and tips from great women investigative journalists that may serve as inspiration. This guide was originally published […]
Human Trafficking
Resource Video
Investigating Conflict-Related Sexual Violence
Sexual violence is a feature of conflict and war. Its impact is felt by individuals, but also by families and communities, and its destructive effects persist for generations. Reporting criminal acts of any sort in an active conflict is difficult enough; documenting and reporting sexual violence during a conflict poses even more challenges. In this […]
Guide Resource
Reporting on Migration in the Gulf: A Revised and Expanded GIJN Guide
This updated and expanded guide was written in cooperation with Migrant-Rights.org. Illustrations are by Marcelle Louw. The project manager was Majdoleen Hasan. Editing by Reed Richardson.
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Investigating Human Trafficking, an Evil Hidden in Plain Sight
Human trafficking is a persistent and pervasive crime around the world, and a critical and impactful area for journalists to investigate. In this GIJN Original, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Martha Mendoza gives her tips for digging into the subject.
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10 Case Studies in Human Trafficking
Full guide here. العربية Below we profile 10 stories of trafficking and forced labor common throughout the countries in the Gulf Cooperation Council region, which includes the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman. Domestic Workers: Trafficking and Unscrupulous Recruitment Indian Women Duped by Recruiters. Indian women are regularly trafficked through the United Arab […]
Guide Resource
Human Trafficking and Slavery: A Guide to Resource Materials
Researchers estimate 40 million people exist in some form of slavery today, ranging from debt bondage and false contracts to sex trafficking, forced marriage and child labor. To help journalists cover human trafficking and slavery, GIJN has created this collection of resources including documents and reports, places to find expertise and advice on best practices in reporting and investigation.
Investigating Institutions
Resource Video
Investigating the Extractives Industry in Africa
Africa is home to a substantial amount of the global mineral wealth. The continent, according to the Natural Resource Governance Institute, holds about 30% of the world’s oil, gas, and mineral resources. This includes up to 92% of the world’s platinum and chromium reserves, 56% of cobalt, 54% of manganese, and 40% of its gold. […]
Guide Resource
Covering the Extractive Industries
Mineral extraction plays a dominant role in many economies and in the lives of billions of people. How can reporters dig into the benefits and costs?
Guide Resource
Researching Corporations and Their Owners
This resource was last updated in 2023 by GIJN’s Toby McIntosh and Emily O’Sullivan. Investigative journalists play a crucial role in holding corporations to account, and have revealed labor abuses, environmental violations, corporate impunity and other instances of malpractice through deep-dives into companies and their owners. However, government records on corporations often reveal only the […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Working with Hackers
Uyghur abuse and internment in China. Luxury properties in Austria owned by Belarus’s oil minister. Criminal exploitation of London’s company services industry. These investigations were all possible because of hacked data dumps. As a journalist, how do you negotiate with hackers or hacktivists? What questions do you ask? What are the ethical considerations? What are […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Investigating Food & Agriculture
There are numerous investigative topics to explore between the farmer’s field and the grocery store – and, indeed, the plate – and several recent projects have exposed abuses in the production, distribution, and access to food. This expert panel offers deep experience in issues from fisheries and pesticides to food security and biodiversity — with journalists based in Tunisia, the UK, the US, and Southeast Asia.
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Tracking Political Extremism
We are in the midst of a decade-long global backlash against democracy and human rights. A new extremism has taken hold, characterized by radical right-wing groups and ultranationalist political movements. These groups are not only growing but are becoming more organized. International ties among them are also growing — digitally, ideologically, financially — but their networks are poorly understood and investigative journalism in this area is lacking.
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Criminal States & Kleptocracies
With the end of the Cold War, intelligence agencies brainstormed about what the next great security threat would be. It turned out they didn’t have to look far: the global advent of kleptocracies and criminal states now threatens democracy and accountable government almost everywhere. Kleptocracies — government by theft — now dominate in much of […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Resources for Investigating Russia
Russia matters. A generation after the Cold War, Moscow still has thousands of nuclear weapons. By land mass, Russia is the world’s largest country, stretching from Europe to Asia and the Arctic, and it has influence over regional conflicts around the world — not just its disastrous invasion of Ukraine but in the Caucasus, Central […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Investigations to Save Democracy
If there was just one panel to attend at GIJC23, this might be it. We’re witnessing a global assault on democratic institutions and a sustained global decline in democracies. Investigative journalism, in partnership with civil society, has emerged as a last line of defense for human rights and democratic principles in countries around the world — even where we thought we were secure. This panel features giants in the push-back against fascism and authoritarianism. We have an extraordinary lineup — Lina Attalah, Vinod Jose, and David Cay Johnston. — who will offer inspiration and tools to fight for a free and accountable future.
Guide Resource
GIJN Reporter’s Guide to Investigating War Crimes
This comprehensive guide includes expert advice from more than two dozen specialists and journalists.
Guide Resource
Reporting Guide to Holding Governments Accountable for Climate Change Pledges
The global fight against climate change depends on the actions of individual nations — so national accountability is critical.
Guide Resource
Asset Disclosure
Required disclosures by public officials about their income and assets can be invaluable to investigative journalists. And information about wealth and its sources can play a vital role in uncovering corruption. Official filings are often the starting point for classic follow-the-money stories. However, disclosure laws have gaps, so the public records don’t always reveal the […]
Investigative Techniques
Tipsheet Investigative Techniques Reporting Tools & Tips
Reporter’s Tipsheet for Acquiring Free Satellite Images
There is a treasure trove of compelling visual evidence out there that is going unused by many watchdog journalists. Here’s how to find it.
Investigative Techniques Teaching & Training
29 Journalists Graduate from GIJN’s Third Digital Threats Training Course
The third cohort of GIJN’s online training in cyber and digital threats investigations has now completed, graduating journalists from more than 26 countries.
Resource Video
Investigating Elections: Threat from AI Audio Deepfakes
Elections all over the world are endangered by a vast array of sophisticated digital threats. This year, when more voters head to the polls than ever before, AI-driven deepfakes threaten electoral processes everywhere, with potentially disastrous consequences for at-risk democracies. AI-generated audio simulations — in which a real voice is cloned by a machine learning […]
Tipsheet Investigative Techniques Reporting Tools & Tips Research
How to Identify and Investigate AI Audio Deepfakes, a Major 2024 Election Threat
Experts agree that AI-driven audio deepfakes could pose a significant threat to democracy and fair elections in 2024.
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Working with Hackers
Uyghur abuse and internment in China. Luxury properties in Austria owned by Belarus’s oil minister. Criminal exploitation of London’s company services industry. These investigations were all possible because of hacked data dumps. As a journalist, how do you negotiate with hackers or hacktivists? What questions do you ask? What are the ethical considerations? What are […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Visual Investigations: Reporting Techniques
Once considered merely a form of fact-checking, forensic visual investigation has rapidly become a critical method of journalistic inquiry, thanks to new technologies, innovative skills, and the global ubiquity of social media imagery. In the chaos of dramatic public events, forensic visual reporting teams can now often answer the question: Who did exactly what, and […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Tracking Assets Around the World
In this global economy, it’s become easy to hide one’s assets overseas, whether you’re a Mexican crime boss or a Russian oligarch. Backgrounding an individual’s holdings is essential, but ferreting out front companies, tax dodges, and hidden assets can be a tough undertaking. Here are two of the best at doing this. ———————– The Global […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Plane and Ship Tracking
A raft of new tools are helping journalists track shipping and aircraft around the world. The numerous ways to track ships and planes open a whole new range of stories for journalists to investigate, from following billionaires’ private planes to uncovering the details of refugee boats capsizing. ———————– The Global Investigative Journalism Network is an […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – How to Use Satellite Images for Investigation
Satellite images play a crucial role in many investigations. Reporters are using them to analyze battlefields and war crimes. Eyes from above also are invaluable for many kinds of climate change stories, such as to document methane emissions, drought, and sea level rise. Our expert panelists will discuss many possible opportunities for using satellite images. […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Investigating Food & Agriculture
There are numerous investigative topics to explore between the farmer’s field and the grocery store – and, indeed, the plate – and several recent projects have exposed abuses in the production, distribution, and access to food. This expert panel offers deep experience in issues from fisheries and pesticides to food security and biodiversity — with journalists based in Tunisia, the UK, the US, and Southeast Asia.
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Tracking Political Extremism
We are in the midst of a decade-long global backlash against democracy and human rights. A new extremism has taken hold, characterized by radical right-wing groups and ultranationalist political movements. These groups are not only growing but are becoming more organized. International ties among them are also growing — digitally, ideologically, financially — but their networks are poorly understood and investigative journalism in this area is lacking.
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Investigations to Save Democracy
If there was just one panel to attend at GIJC23, this might be it. We’re witnessing a global assault on democratic institutions and a sustained global decline in democracies. Investigative journalism, in partnership with civil society, has emerged as a last line of defense for human rights and democratic principles in countries around the world — even where we thought we were secure. This panel features giants in the push-back against fascism and authoritarianism. We have an extraordinary lineup — Lina Attalah, Vinod Jose, and David Cay Johnston. — who will offer inspiration and tools to fight for a free and accountable future.
Legal Defense & Emergency Aid
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Fighting Back Against SLAPPs & Other Legal Threats
Journalists are facing a worldwide legal assault from a growing arsenal of abused laws, from national security and emergency edicts to libel and privacy statutes. Harassment lawsuits, while always a threat, have mushroomed in use by the rich and powerful to silence watchdog reporting. SLAPP suits (“strategic lawsuits against public participation”), are one variant and […]
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Emergency Aid for Journalists
Our colleagues are under threat around the world. Since 1992, more than a thousand journalists have been killed, and thousands more are victims of assault, intimidation, imprisonment, and persecution. A number of organizations provide emergency support to journalists in danger. Assistance ranges from medical and legal aid to moving a targeted journalist out of the country. If you are in genuine danger, don’t hesitate to reach out — there is help available.
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Legal Defense
Guide Resource
A Journalist’s Guide to Avoiding Lawsuits and Other Legal Dangers
The practice of independent journalism is facing enormous challenges, ranging from authoritarian regimes implementing regressive laws that stifle speech to journalists being unable to make a living from their work. In order to meet those challenges, journalists can benefit from understanding the protections provided by international law.
Organized Crime
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Cryptocurrency
Cryptocurrencies have taken the financial world by storm, yet few people truly understand them. Despite an industry raked by volatility and billion-dollar scandals, they have gained popularity not only among investors and anarchists, but also organized crime figures and cyber thieves looking to avoid the traditional financial system. Experts insist there are ways to investigate […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Working with Hackers
Uyghur abuse and internment in China. Luxury properties in Austria owned by Belarus’s oil minister. Criminal exploitation of London’s company services industry. These investigations were all possible because of hacked data dumps. As a journalist, how do you negotiate with hackers or hacktivists? What questions do you ask? What are the ethical considerations? What are […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Tracking Assets Around the World
In this global economy, it’s become easy to hide one’s assets overseas, whether you’re a Mexican crime boss or a Russian oligarch. Backgrounding an individual’s holdings is essential, but ferreting out front companies, tax dodges, and hidden assets can be a tough undertaking. Here are two of the best at doing this. ———————– The Global […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Criminal States & Kleptocracies
With the end of the Cold War, intelligence agencies brainstormed about what the next great security threat would be. It turned out they didn’t have to look far: the global advent of kleptocracies and criminal states now threatens democracy and accountable government almost everywhere. Kleptocracies — government by theft — now dominate in much of […]
Guide Resource
Guide to Investigating Organized Crime in Africa
Organized crime is a global phenomenon. But Africa, with its deep-seated corruption and “resource curse,” is particularly hard hit.
Resource Video
Investigating Organized Crime in Sub-Saharan Africa
Organized crime and corruption are widespread, deeply rooted and growing in Sub-Saharan Africa, a region with some of the world’s highest rates of poverty and inequality. Powerful criminal groups operate with the help of politicians, government officials and a “criminal services industry”, including corrupt banks. They make their money through the illegal narcotics trade, human […]
Resource Video
Investigating Organized Crime in the Golden Triangle
The Golden Triangle, where the borders of Myanmar, Thailand, and Laos intersect, is one of the world’s renowned centers of criminal activity. The region’s underworld economy turns over billions of dollars annually in narcotics production, human trafficking, wildlife smuggling, illegal mining, and more. Its cross-border illicit networks have global impact, working with criminal groups across […]
Guide Resource
Guide to Investigating Organized Crime in the Golden Triangle
Tps and best practices for covering drug trafficking, money laundering, official corruption, other illicit activity in the region.
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Video Resources for Investigating Organized Crime and Corruption
To share investigative best practices and other lessons learned from our most recent conference, GIJC21, we are releasing a series of videos from the event’s many seminars, panels, and workshops. The first installment in this series focuses on how investigative reporters can better dig into organized crime and corruption around the world.
Guide Resource
Reporter’s Guide to Investigating Organized Crime
For details on this guide’s chapter authors, see the Acknowledgments page. Illustrations are by Ann Kiernan. Editing by Laura Dixon, Tanya Pampalone, and Reed Richardson. Andrea Arzaba was the project manager.
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Investigating Cybercrime and the Dark Web
Cybercrime is any criminal activity perpetrated in a digital realm. While we often think of cybercrime as defined by “hacking,” there are many other types of crimes that are part of this world, and everything from trafficking in child pornography, to withdrawing illicit funds, to the theft of source code, falls into the category of “cyber” crimes.
Reporting Tools & Tips
Tipsheet Investigative Techniques Reporting Tools & Tips
Reporter’s Tipsheet for Acquiring Free Satellite Images
There is a treasure trove of compelling visual evidence out there that is going unused by many watchdog journalists. Here’s how to find it.
Tipsheet Reporting Tools & Tips Research
Toolkit: How to Investigate Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing
A Pulitzer Center toolkit for illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, which impacts marine ecosystems, coastal communities, food security, and human rights.
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GIJC23 Resources
Here are the tipsheets and presentations shared by speakers at the Global Investigative Journalism Conference in 2023.
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GIJC21 Resources
Here are the tipsheets and presentations shared by speakers at the Global Investigative Journalism Conference in 2021. Data Sessions
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GIJC19 Resources
Here are the tipsheets and presentations shared by speakers at the Global Investigative Journalism Conference in 2019.
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AIJC18 Resources
Here are the tipsheets and presentations shared by speakers at the Asian Investigative Journalism Conference in 2018.
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GIJC17 Resources
Here are the tipsheets and presentations shared by speakers at the Global Investigative Journalism Conference in 2017.
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ACIJ16 Resources
Here are the tipsheets and presentations shared by speakers at the Asian Investigative Journalism Conference in 2016.
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GIJC15 Resources
Here are the tipsheets and presentations shared by speakers at the Global Investigative Journalism Conference in 2015.
Data Journalism Reporting Tools & Tips
Step-By-Step Guide for Journalists on the Basics of Google Sheets
Knowing how to use spreadsheets is a crucial skill, as it allows you to find potential stories in large amounts of data and to think critically about how to use it.
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AIJC14 Resources
Here are the tipsheets and presentations shared by speakers at the Asian Investigative Journalism Conference in 2014.
Guide Resource
Covering the Extractive Industries
Mineral extraction plays a dominant role in many economies and in the lives of billions of people. How can reporters dig into the benefits and costs?
Safety & Security
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Exiled Media: An Investigative Toolkit
Hundreds of journalists are forced into exile around the world by despots, autocrats, and crime cartels. Exiled editors and émigré media are an old story. But amid the modern backlash against independent media, journalists are taking advantage of a new era in tools and technology. These digital toolkits are proving a game-changer, enabling journalists to better report on their homelands, and their audiences to better access that reporting.
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Dealing with Online Harassment
Online harassment of investigative journalists who identify as women has reached crisis proportions. In addition to gendered trolling, discrimination, and doxxing, women reporters are disproportionately the targets of intimidation and even direct physical threats on social media. See this experienced and courageous panel to learn about the effective resources that now exist to not only […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – AI: Perils and Promise
The rise of AI-powered chatbots has prompted hot debates about whether these technologies will reshape or unmake our world. But instead of engaging in the hype cycle, journalists can demystify these tools for their audiences by sticking to basic reporting principles: investigate the artificial intelligence models themselves and cover their real-world impact. Burke will discuss […]
Resource Video
How To Use The Journalist Security Assessment Tool
Security is essential for journalists, and for investigative journalists in particular. Tackling the issue, let alone understanding its complexities, can be challenging. To make the process easier, GIJN has worked with experts at the Ford Foundation to adapt Ford’s Cybersecurity Assessment Tool (CAT) for use by watchdog journalism groups. Our new Journalist Security Assessment Tool […]
Resource Tipsheet
A Guide to Journalism Safety Organizations
The figures are grim for our colleagues around the world. Since 1992, 978 journalists have been killed, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. More than 60 percent have been murdered with impunity; that is, no killer was ever brought to justice. And today, 232 journalists are in prison worldwide, many for doing what would […]
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How to Protect Yourself from Metadata
There is no way for investigative journalists to completely eliminate the risk of being tracked through metadata, but in an interview with Reporters Without Borders, technology expert Benjamin Finn offers a series of tips on how to protect both your sources and yourself.
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GIJN Launches Journalism Security Assessment Tool
Increasingly, investigative journalists are being hacked, doxxed, harassed, and assaulted by external threats, so GIJN — with generous support from the Ford Foundation — is proud to launch a first-of-its-kind safety guide for newsrooms at GIJC21: the Journalist Security Assessment Tool (JSAT).
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Data Security & Encryption Tools for Journalists
GIJN is publishing a new business tools guide focused on helping news outlets solve their administrative needs. Written by Talya Cooper and illustrated by Chafiq Faiz, the guide includes useful software and applications – many of which are free – for small newsrooms. Tools included cover administration, management, communication, file sharing, accounting, SEO, audience engagement, audiovisual, content management, subscriber management, design and data visualization, social media and email marketing, site security, and password management.
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Afghanistan: How to Help Journalists and Others at Risk
In an effort to help journalists and others trying to leave Afghanistan, GIJN has put together this list of resources for emergency evacuation and asylum processes.
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Three “Musts” for Today’s Investigative Journalist
Journalism is by definition investigative. However, the depth and scope of possibilities to unearth and bring to light wrongdoings of public interest has increased manifold, thanks to the way the Internet has been evolving in the last decade. To be a true investigative reporter today, it is indispensable to fine-tune the old philosophy with three new practices: be Open, Systematic and Safe.
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Digital Self-Defense for Journalists: An Introduction
Digital self-defense is becoming an important part of the journalistic toolkit. Beyond risks to everyone’s digital lives—webcam hacking, email breaches, identity theft—people who work in newsrooms have even more at stake. Newsrooms are some of the biggest targets in the world for state-sponsored digital attacks, as well as more routine threats.
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Abraji’s Security Manual for Covering Street Protests
Covering street protests involves risks that every journalist should be prepared for. Knowledge, experience, and planning can help reduce these risks. Our colleagues at Abraji (The Brazilian Association of Investigative Journalism) have particular experience with this — between May 2013 and May 2014, there were at least 171 cases of violations against media staff covering […]
Sustainability
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GIJC23 – Masterclass: Digging into Digital Advertising
More than $550 billion was spent on digital ads last year — on everything from banners and video ads to sponsored tweets and pop-ups of every sort. What’s behind this mega-business? The systems used to buy and sell digital ads are vast, complicated, poorly understood, and rife with fraud and deception.
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GIJC23 – Lightning Round Favorite Tools & Techniques
Lightning rounds are among the most popular sessions at our global conferences. The presentations are short — about five minutes — so we fit in as many as a dozen speakers, one after another. Favorite Tools & Techniques showcases investigative methods and apps that may have escaped your notice. It’s impossible to fit all the […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Freelancing Survival Tips
Freelancing is a tough job; investigative freelancing is even harder. But it also brings independence and the ability to pick your projects. Here are tips from journalists from four countries with decades of experience in working on their own. ———————– The Global Investigative Journalism Network is an international association of journalism organizations that support the […]
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GIJC23 – Exiled Media: Survival Strategies
The recent rise of nakedly autocratic regimes has ballooned the number of independent newsrooms forced to report from exile. These watchdogs-in-exile have shown enterprise and innovation in providing critical news to the homeland. But good journalism is not enough. It’s hard enough to succeed in the media back home, but how do exiled media survive […]
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GIJC23 – Developing a Business Strategy (Part 2)
Did you know that most start-ups fail? That includes well-meaning non-profit news outlets. What’s often missing is a business strategy. Developing a viable and effective business plan is essential for media organizations, a necessary foundation for sustainability and growth — indeed, for an organization’s very survival. Join this workshop to hear how to do it […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Developing a Business Strategy (Part 1)
Investigative journalism can’t survive without sustainable media organizations. Many were hard hit by changing business models and the loss of advertising revenue, and then the media was hit again during the pandemic, despite record-breaking audiences. What revenue options are currently the most viable and why, and how do we develop methods that will lead to […]
Resource Video
GIJC23 – How AI Can Save Small Newsrooms
Do you have too little time to do investigative stories? Try L-ai-la, the new AI research assistant, trained to find news fit to print. (You may be both lazy & forgetful, but Laila never misses a story.) Is this about GPT4? Generative AI? No, forget about it. We are talking about LHF (the LowHangingFruit AI […]
Resource Video
Measuring and Increasing the Effects of Investigative Journalism
Watchdog reporting makes a critical contribution to society by exposing wrongdoing, fighting corruption, and promoting accountability. But how do we measure this, and explain to a skeptical public the value of investigative reporting? At a time of unprecedented attacks on the press, a broken financial model, and low public trust, it is critical to understand […]
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How Independent Journalism Is Filling Gaps in the European Media Landscape
A new generation of intrepid news organizations is rising across Europe – one that is strongly committed to serving its audience and democracy alike through public interest journalism. A new report by Netzwerk Recherche outlines this emerging innovative media scene and takes a closer look at how this New Sector reclaims journalistic terrain that traditional media has abandoned.
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Demonstrating Investigative Impact: More Reading
American Press Institute Metrics for News Gauging the Global Impacts of the ‘Panama Papers’ Three Years Later How to build a metrics-savvy newsroom Big Impact: A Pocket-Guide to the Financial Benefits of Major Investigations How an impact and reach scorecard helps Carolina Public Press gut-check its journalism What Makes a Good Metric? Media change deniers: […]
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Demonstrating Investigative Impact: Essential Reading
Investigative journalism shines a light into dark corners of human, corporate and government behaviour and prompts corrective action and so, better societies. Yet it is hard to prove this impact – increasingly necessary as donors want to know the impact of the work they sponsor. Here are ways to show and measure your value, and […]
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Other Sources of Income: Blockchain and Cryptocurrency
The media and the Blockchain – hype or hope? Can Blockchain Save Journalism? Civil to sell millions of dollars worth of cryptocurrency to fund a global network of newsrooms Blockchain – it’s early days but never too early for publishers to get involved Goodbye, Denver Post. Hello, Blockchain Blockchain: What’s in it for the news […]
Teaching & Training
Investigative Techniques Teaching & Training
29 Journalists Graduate from GIJN’s Third Digital Threats Training Course
The third cohort of GIJN’s online training in cyber and digital threats investigations has now completed, graduating journalists from more than 26 countries.
Resource Video
GIJC23 – Best Practices in Teaching Data Journalism to Professionals and Students
Programs to train and teach investigative reporting have spread worldwide, but how effective are different methods and styles? For this panel, we bring together educators and trainers from diverse environments in France, Slovenia, South Korea, and the United States for a look at both traditional and innovative techniques. ———————– The Global Investigative Journalism Network is […]
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GIJC23 – Investigative Editing: Best Practices
We know that becoming a great investigative reporter can take years. But what about the editors? It’s no secret that great investigative editors are hard to find. What makes a terrific editor for watchdog journalism? How do they keep their reporters sane, focused, and motivated? What do they do to protect them in the newsroom? […]
Resource Tipsheet
Investigative Journalism Manuals
Investigative Journalism Data Journalism Teaching and Training Other Useful Guides Spanish Only Looking for tips, tools, and tutorials? The below guides focus on investigative journalism and provide case studies and examples from around the world. Most are available for free, unless indicated otherwise. You can also find our guide to the guides in Chinese and […]
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Online Methods to Investigate the Who, Where, and When of a Person
Online research is often a challenge for traditional investigative reporters, journalism lecturers and students. Information from the web can be fake, biased, incomplete or all of the above. Offline, too, there is no happy hunting ground with unbiased people or completely honest governments. In the end, it all boils down to asking the right questions, digital or not. This chapter gives you some strategic advice and tools for digitizing three of the biggest questions in journalism: who, where and when?
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The Research Desk: Tips and Tools
The Research Desk with Gary Price is back, with its second installment, featuring a roundup of new tools — the WHO’s MiNDBANK database, with documents from 170 countries; ePSIplatform, on open data in the EU & worldwide; new UN report on wastewater; NATO archives expand; and the Getty Thesaurus of Geographic Names.
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Abraji’s Security Manual for Covering Street Protests
Covering street protests involves risks that every journalist should be prepared for. Knowledge, experience and planning can help reduce these risks. To help journalists worldwide, Abraji has developed a guide, packed with tips and anecdotes from professionals who have experienced risky incidents while covering protests. Here’s an excerpt, covering how to prepare and how to act during the event.
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Investigative Apps: Useful Tools, if Rough on the Edges
There are a lot of websites out there that can help you find hidden information. But there are also software applications and browser plug-ins that can be of use to investigative journalists. Created by up-and-coming developers and enthusiasts on a budget, many of these programmes are rather unsophisticated, so don’t expect slick interfaces and 24-hour help desks. That said, if you can get past the jargon and rough-and-ready feel, you’ll find nifty little apps that can help you discover nuggets of information which would be unavailable through conventional means.
Other Resources
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Awards for Investigative Journalists
A guide to prominent journalism awards and competitions of special interest to investigative journalists.
Database Resource Tipsheet
Grants and Fellowships for Journalists
GIJN has compiled a comprehensive list of national, regional, and global reporting grants and fellowships focused on opportunities available to international journalists.
Resource Tipsheet
GIJN Africa: Funding and Grants
Nonprofit organizations dedicated to offering grants in support of investigative journalism in Africa.