Resources
ARIJ MENA’s Research & Data Desk Project
Launched by Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism, ARIJ MENA’s Research & Data Desk Project is a trail-blazing project in the world of Arab journalism by the leading organization promoting and supporting investigative reporting in the region.
The main idea and motivation behind the data desk is creation of a singular, coordination online data desk that collects as much diverse data as possible from open sources in ARIJ target countries. These are Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, UAE, and Yemen.
Journalists need the data collected on property, taxes, legal actions and finances to complete meaningful and evidence-based investigative reports.
Bellingcat's Online Investigation Toolkit
In an effort to promote open-source intelligence (OSINT) tools (data collected from publicly available sources), Bellingcat has launched a freely available online open source investigation toolkit. The list includes satellite and mapping services, tools for verifying photos and videos, websites to archive web pages, and much more. It also includes guides at the end of the document, highlighting the methods and use of these tools in further detail. You can access the resource here
Additionally, Bellingcat provides tailored digital forensics workshops as well as three-to-five day open source investigation workshops. For more information, contact Christiaan Triebert.
BIRN's Investigative Resource Desk
The Balkan Investigative Reporting Network’s (BIRN) Investigative Resource Desk (BIRD) is an innovative interactive platform created for journalists who want to keep up-to-date with the fast-changing world of technology without sacrificing their ethics or the standards of professional journalism. BIRD provides investigative journalists with various types of assistance, and a set of tools and resources relating, but not limited, to freedom of information, data access and protection, cybersecurity, and open source datasets. Assistance is free and provided on a needs basis. It also includes a resource centre that includes job, fellowship, grant, and research opportunities, links, best practices, and other resources. See more here
Center for Investigative Reporting (CIR) Impact Tracker
The Impact Tracker is an interactive database where staff can create records for all the real-world change associated with their work. For this to be useful, your organization first needs to set impact priorities and socialize these throughout the newsroom so everyone knows what counts and should be entered.
Collaborative Investigative Journalism Tools
This spreadsheet contains a crowdsourced list of links, resources, and other information about collaborative investigative journalism tools and projects around the world.
Data Journalism Den
The Data Journalism Den is a global hub by the Global Editors Network, dedicated to serving the international data journalism community through the collaborative exchange of data, tools, and resources. The Den is open to all journalists, developers, designers, and organisations committed to the practice and development of data journalism. The Global Editors Network (GEN) is an international association of over 6,000 editors-in-chief and media executives with the mission of fostering digital innovation in newsrooms all over the world.
DW Akademie's How to fund investigative journalism: Insights from the field and its key donors report
This report is designed to give funders a succinct and accessible introduction to the practice of funding investigative journalism around the world, via major contemporary debates, trends and challenges in the field. It is part of a series from DW Akademie looking at practices, challenges and futures of investigative journalism (IJ) around the world.
The paper is intended as a stepping stone, or a springboard, for those who know little about investigative journalism, but who would like to know more. It is not a defense, a mapping or a history of the field, either globally or regionally; nor is it a description of or guide to how to conduct investigations or an examination of investigative techniques. These are widely available in other areas and (to some extent) in other languages already.
Rooted in 17 in-depth expert interviews and wide-ranging desk research, this report sets out big-picture challenges and opportunities facing the IJ field both in general, and in specific regions of the world. It provides donors with an overview of the main ways this often precarious field is financed in newsrooms and units large and small. Finally it provides high-level practical advice—from experienced donors and the IJ field—to help new, prospective or curious donors to the field to find out how to get started, and what is important to do, and not to do.
Read the full report here
EJC's Data Journalism Handbook
The Data Journalism Handbook is one of the world’s leading journalism resources and used by students, researchers and practitioners learning about the state of the ever-evolving field of data journalism. In partnership with the Google News Initiative, the European Journalism Centre is currently working on a revised second edition of the Handbook that will reflect the current state of data journalism.
EJC also produces its Conversations with Data podcast, hosted by DataJournalism.org
EU Investigative Journalism Awards
The EU award for investigative journalism aims at celebrating and promoting outstanding achievements of investigative journalists and improving the visibility of quality investigative journalism in the Western Balkans countries and Turkey. It follows the EU Enlargement strategy which recognizes strong need for ensuring freedom of expression in the media, and for support to investigative journalism to monitor the reform processes and to keep the historical momentum toward the EU accession. The award also aims at promoting a young generation of investigative journalists.
Fact Checking & Investigative Journalism Tools
Public Alliance Media is providing a collection of tips, platforms and other resources to better practice fact checking and investigative journalism. With political influence over the media and the rise of user generated content via social media, it is becoming harder to distinguish between fact and fiction. When crises, emergencies, elections, and other social conflicts arise, journalists often need to be at the forefront, making sure they provide accountable and timely information.
First Draft
First Draft is a global non-profit that supports journalists, academics, and technologists working to address challenges relating to trust and truth in the digital age. They host a global verification and collaborative investigation network through their CrossCheck International initiative, work in partnership with their expanding community to conduct innovative and experimental research projects, and continuously develop online and offline training designed to expand and embed best practices in newsrooms and journalism schools around the world. With a firm focus on tackling information disorder, First Draft is building on its pioneering work around elections in the US, France, UK, Germany, Brazil, and Nigeria.
Global Investigative Journalism Conference (GIJC) Citizen Investigations Guide
This guide and toolkit from GIJN aims to help both journalists who are just starting out as well as help non-journalists investigate even more. The sections in this guide teach the techniques used by investigative journalists, including: Planning and carrying out an investigation; Ethics and safety; Searching the Internet; Researching individuals; Finding out who owns corporations; Looking into government records; Investigating politicians; Digging up property records; and more.
Global Investigative Journalism Conference (GIJC) Cross Border Investigation Tips
Cross-border projects have grown in popularity and sophistication. At the 11th Global Investigative Journalism Conference, muckrakers who have worked on the Panama Papers, Implant Files and Troika Laundromat shared their lessons from collaborating across borders.
Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) Guide to Tracking Aircraft Around the World
GIJN’s new guide to tracking aircraft around the world offers a valuable overview of how to track the movements of planes and other aircraft; an increasingly valuable skill for investigative journalists. According to GIJN, this knowledge has helped investigative journalists to:
Virtually observe a Russian oligarch’s jet making suspicious trips to the Middle East and Africa;
question the use of private planes — by Hungary’s president, among others;
expose rendition flights by the Turkish government;
follow the travels of government officials;
learn about military operations;
watch the movements of corporate executives;
analyse aircraft accidents; and more.
Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) Help Desk and Resource Center
The Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) is an international association of nonprofit organisations that support, promote, and produce investigative journalism.
The GIJN Help Desk is a space designed to help investigative journalists around the world. Network’s fortnightly bulletin brings the latest news from GIJN, useful tips, tools and the best investigative stories around the world.
One of GIJN’s first tasks was putting together a guide to all the investigative reporting guides out there. You’ll find on the following links three dozen guides in various languages, plus a selection of resources for teaching and training.
Data Journalism is now an essential part of investigative journalism, and almost every day new tools and tips appear. GIJN developed a comprehensive guide to the field in Data Journalism Resources plus a handy tip sheet for newsrooms in the Data Journalism Toolkit.
GIJN created a page to guide journalists into prominent journalism awards competitions around the world. It refers especially awards that are of special interest to investigative journalists, that are open to international entries, and that are global or regional in scope.
Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) How Tos for Investigative Journalists
The Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) is an international association of nonprofit organisations that support, promote, and produce investigative journalism. In 2020, they published a “How Tos for Investigative Journalists” guide, which features some of their most popular how tos from our story archives – as well as select items from their growing Resource Center – to offer up solid tutorials on a range of tools that could help you in your investigations, whether you need to track planes, extract data from PDFs, or build a GIF using satellite image imagery.
Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) Indigenous Journalists Guide
The Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) and the Native American Journalists Association have created a resource to help Indigenous journalists doing in-depth and watchdog reporting. This unique guide is designed to encourage Indigenous journalists worldwide and to empower them with tips, tools, and sources for information.
Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) New Guide to Citizen Investigations
Citizens can investigate, and they do — all over the world. This new GIJN Guide can 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.
Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) Global Shining Light Award
Every two years, the Global Investigative Journalism Network presents the Global Shining Light Award, a unique award which honors investigative journalism in a developing or transitioning country, done under threat, duress, or in the direst of conditions.
Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN) Women's Group
The Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN)’s Women Group serves as a forum to discuss topics related to women in investigative journalism. The group’s mailing list is used to share news, updates, resources, and events relevant to the work of women investigative journalists.
ICFJ & OCCRP partnership: The big bet
The reporting project established in partnership with ICFJ and OCCRP will result in a regional corps of seasoned investigative journalists who understand and practice the highest standards of journalism, ethics and safety. It will prepare skilled investigative editors to train a new generation of investigative journalists.
ICFJ Knight Fellowships Tools and Projects
ICFJ Knight tools is a curated a list of resources for journalists and technologists around the globe. Fellows and the ICFJ Knight team are available to help you get started. International Center for Journalists (ICFJ) empowers journalists to deliver trustworthy news essential for vibrant societies.
IJ4EU Grants from ECPMF and IPI
Investigative Journalism for Europe (IJ4EU) grants are intended to foster and strengthen collaboration among European journalists and newsrooms based in EU member state and candidate countries on revelations in the public interest and of cross-border significance. The grant aims to support investigations that reflect the media’s watchdog role and that assist the public in holding those in power accountable for their actions and to their obligations. In so doing, it seeks to contribute to the sustainability of democracy and the rule of law in the EU.
Internews Network’s resources
Internews trains journalists in investigative reporting, produces content to encourage dialogue on corruption, and helps reform media laws and expand freedom of information rights and internet freedom policies and practices.
They also have a rich practice in data journalism, helping seasoned and emerging professionals locate, clean and present data that supports their investigative work.
Mother Jones
Mother Jones is a non-profit magazine that focuses on news, commentary, and investigative reporting on topics including politics, the environment, human rights, and culture.
New York Times Data Journalism Course
The New York Times developed an extensive, in-house course to teach their reporters basic data skills needed for work in a modern newsroom. They have recently made the course contents publicly available for use by reporters, newsrooms, and any other media professionals.
OCCRP Documents Library
The Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project Resource Center is a collection of important resources for journalists and researchers on organized crime and corruption. OCCRP has used these tools, reports, public records, court cases and other materials in their reporting.
Also, OCCRP launched the Investigative Dashboard, an online platform to help journalists anywhere to investigate and to trace people, companies and assets across the globe.
The Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) is an investigative reporting platform formed by 40 non-profit investigative centres, scores of journalists and several major regional news organisations around the globe.
OECD's survey : The role of media and investigative journalism in combating corruption
OECD launched a survey on Investigative Journalism in Combating Corruption including the good practices and the challenges in the detection of international corruption cases via media reporting and investigative journalism.
The media and investigative journalism play a crucial role in bringing allegations of corruption to light and fighting against impunity. International consortiums of investigative journalists are an example of an international cooperation that leads to tangible results in bringing financial and economic crime to the attention of the public and law enforcement authorities.
Poynter's International Fact-Checking Network
The International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN) is a unit of the Poynter Institute dedicated to bringing together fact-checkers worldwide. The IFCN was launched in September 2015 to support a booming crop of fact-checking initiatives by promoting best practices and exchanges in this field.
SCM's Digital Security Tips
Some countries or telecommunications companies or even Internet distributors in a number of countries and regions block a number of websites. Which is an obstacle to the work of some journalists and prevent them from access to some platforms and sources of information. Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression (SCM) created a list of tips for journalists on blockage bypassing and viewing blocked sites.
UNESCO Manuals
UNESCO has constantly fostered debate on media accountability and professional and ethical standards, which provide journalists with guiding principles and training materials on how to best exercise their profession. In collaboration with Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism (ARIJ), UNESCO launched the first manual for investigative journalists in Arab States, entitled Story-Based Inquiry: A Manual for Investigative Journalists in 2009.
Following the successful launch of the Manual which has been adopted by many journalism programmes in the Arab States, Asia, the United States of America and the Russian Federation, UNESCO presented The Global Investigative Journalism Casebook, as complementary material for training purposes.
Verification Handbook
Edited by Craig Silverman and written by leading journalists from the BBC, Storyful, ABC, Digital First Media and other verification experts, the Verification Handbook is a new resource for journalists and aid providers. It provides the tools, techniques and step-by-step guidelines for how to deal with user-generated content (UGC) during emergencies.
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