Global Investigative Journalism Network (https://archive.gijn.org/category/tips-tools/page/11/)
Syrian journalists have gained extensive experience documenting possible human rights violations and war crimes by the Russian military. GIJN spoke with several of these reporters to understand the lessons they learned, and how investigative journalists can cover the Ukraine invasion more effectively.
National laws that govern arms dealing are uneven, contradictory, influenced by corrupted leadership, and rife with loopholes. Other barriers to exposing the weapons trade range from maritime and aviation secrecy concealing the transportation of arms; corporate entities that shield dealers and operators; the role of neighboring countries as conduits, and a barter system that allows one illicit commodity, such as ivory, to be exchanged for another.
In an expert panel on visual investigations at #GIJC21, three members of the New York Times’ pioneering team showed that it is now possible to report exactly who did what, and when, at various incidents.
Covering drug trafficking is inherently difficult and can be dangerous. Information is also scant. In most cases, it is best to begin by getting the best data possible. However, in all cases, proceed with caution: data on drug trafficking, especially drug seizures, gives you only a small part of the picture and can even distort reality in some cases.
In interviews over the past year, dozens of leading journalists have told me about the scores of tools and techniques that proved helpful in their investigations. But, again and again, these top muckrakers point to about a dozen tactics that they rely on all the time. We share those favorite techniques in this roundup.
There are scores of muckraking techniques that can help journalists gain access to elusive sources and data. Here we share the dozen online tools that leading reporters commonly praised in interviews with GIJN in the past year — and especially those that require few or no special digital skills.
Whether investigating human rights abuses, money laundering, or even public officials’ conflicts of interests, reporters are increasingly developing their own databases for investigative projects. Here are a series of tips drawn from the experiences of a number of international journalists and from the author’s personal experience gathering and creating data sets for investigative stories.
Talya Cooper spent several years working alongside journalists in a newsroom, where she witnessed some “unholy messes” of files on both physical and virtual desktops. But as she writes here, while taking good care of data requires some time and money the loss of irreplaceable reporting work can come at a higher cost.
In a panel at IRE21 — the annual conference hosted by Investigative Reporters & Editors — veteran reporters shared a dozen tools and tips that can help time-pressed beat reporters keep investigations running ‘on the side.’
In a GIJN webinar on audience engagement, editors and digital marketing experts shared tips and resources on how to reach and engage with audiences by maximizing the impact of stories, and by using carefully curated newsletters.