Investigative journalism is a type of reporting in which reporters deeply investigate a topic of interest, often involving crime, political corruption Political corruption is the use of legislated powers by government officials for illegitimate private gain. Misuse of government power for other purposes, such as repression of political opponents and general police brutality, is not considered political corruption. Neither are illegal acts by private persons or corporations not directly involved, or some other scandal From the Greek σκάνδαλον, a trap or stumbling-block. The metaphor is that wrong conduct can impede or "trip" people's trust or faith.
De Burgh (2000) states that: "An investigative journalist is a man or woman whose profession it is to discover the truth and to identify lapses from it in whatever media may be available. The act of doing this generally is called investigative journalism and is distinct from apparently similar work done by police, lawyers, auditors and regulatory bodies in that it is not limited as to target, not legally founded and closely connected to publicity".
An investigative journalist may spend a considerable period researching and preparing a report, sometimes months or years, whereas a typical daily or weekly news reporter writes items concerning immediately available news. Most investigative journalism is done by newspapers A newspaper is a publication containing news, information, and advertising. General-interest newspapers often feature articles on political events, crime, business, art/entertainment, society and sports. Most traditional papers also feature an editorial page containing columns that express the personal opinions of writers. Supplementary sections, wire services A news agency is an organization of journalists established to supply news reports to organizations in the news trade: newspapers, magazines, and radio and television broadcasters. Such an agency may also be referred to as a wire service, newswire or news service and freelance A freelancer, freelance worker, or freelance is a self-employed person who pursues a profession without a long-term commitment to any particular employer. The term was first used by Sir Walter Scott in Ivanhoe to describe a "medieval mercenary warrior" or "free-lance". It changed to a figurative noun around the 1860s and was journalists. An investigative journalist's final report may take the form of an exposé.
There is no more important contribution that we can make to society than strong, publicly-spirited investigative journalism.
– Tony Burman Tony Burman is the managing director of Al Jazeera English, based in Doha, Qatar. In October 2007, he received the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television's Gordon Sinclair Award for lifetime achievement in broadcast journalism, editor-in-chief of CBC News Established in the 1930s, CBC News is the department within the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the news gathering and production of news programs on CBC television, radio and online services. CBC News is the largest news broadcaster in Canada with local, regional, and national broadcasts and stations
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The Investigation
The investigation might call for the reporter to make use of activities such as surveillance techniques, analysis of documents, investigations of the performance of any kind of equipment involved in an accident, patent medicine Patent medicine refers to medical compounds of questionable effectiveness sold under a variety of names and labels. The phrase is somewhat misleading because for the most part these products were trademarked, not patented . In ancient times, such medicine was called nostrum remedium ("our remedy" in Latin). The name patent medicine has, scientific analysis Science refers in its broadest sense to any systematic knowledge-base or prescriptive practice that is capable of resulting in a prediction or predictable type of outcome. In this sense, science may refer to a highly skilled technique or practice, social and legal issues, and the like.
Investigative journalism requires the scrutiny of details, fact-finding, and physical effort. An investigative journalist must have an analytical and incisive mind with strong self-motivation to carry on when all doors are closed, when facts are being covered up or falsified and so on. You must be able to think on your feet.
Some of the means reporters can use for their fact-finding:
- studying neglected sources, such as archives An archive is a collection of historical records, and the location in which the collection is kept. Archives contain records which have accumulated over the course of an individual or organization's lifetime, phone records, address books, tax records and license records
- talking to neighbors
- using subscription research sources such as LexisNexis LexisNexis , a division of Reed Elsevier, offers a widely used, searchable, and identically named archive of content from newspapers, magazines, legal documents and other printed sources. LexisNexis describes itself as the "world’s largest collection of public records, unpublished opinions, forms, legal, news, and business information"
- anonymous sources Examples of sources include official records, publications or broadcasts, officials in government or business, organizations or corporations, witnesses of crime, accidents or other events, and people involved with or affected by a news event or issue. According to Shoemaker and McQuail (1994) there are a multitude of factors that tend to condition (for example whistleblowers A whistleblower is a person who alleges concealed misconduct on the part of an organization or body of people, usually from within that same organization. This misconduct may be classified in many ways; for example, a violation of a law, rule, regulation and/or a direct threat to public interest, such as fraud, health/safety violations, and)
- going undercover Undercover journalism is a form of journalism in which a reporter tries to infiltrate in a community by posing as somebody friendly to that community
Investigations at times can take on the appearance of conspiracy theories. For example, Gary Webb Gary Webb was a prize-winning American investigative journalist's 1996 San Jose Mercury News The San Jose Mercury News is the major daily newspaper in San Jose, California and Silicon Valley. The paper is owned by MediaNews Group. Its headquarters and printing plant are located in North San Jose next to the Nimitz Freeway expose linking the CIA The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government to Nicaraguan Nicaragua officially the Republic of Nicaragua (Spanish: República de Nicaragua, pronounced [reˈpuβlika ðe nikaˈɾaɣwa] ( listen)), is a representative democratic republic. It is the largest country in Central America with an area of 130,373 km2. The country is bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The Pacific Ocean contras organizing the distribution of cocaine Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine. It is both a stimulant of the central nervous system and an appetite suppressant. Specifically, it is a serotonin-norepinephrine-dopamine reuptake inhibitor, into the United States led to its widespread condemnation by the mainstream media as "groundless speculation of government conspiracies" that "exceeded the boundaries of acceptable investigative journalism" forcing a public apology and retraction by the Mercury News eight months later with the articles author demoted. Today, journalists and researchers alike agree that while Webb overstated testimonial evidence the reporting was "neither false nor fantastic" and historical consensus is that the basic outline of the story was correct.[1]
Investigative journalism can be contrasted with analytical reporting. According to De Burgh (2000) analytical journalism takes the data available and reconfigures it, helping us to ask questions about the situation or statement or see it in a different way, whereas investigative journalists go further and also want to know whether the situation presented to us is the reality.
Professional references
In The Reporter's Handbook: An Investigator's Guide to Documents and Techniques, Steve Weinberg defined investigative journalism as:
- Reporting, through one's own initiative and work product, matters of importance to readers, viewers or listeners. In many cases, the subjects of the reporting wish the matters under scrutiny to remain undisclosed. There are currently university departments for teaching investigative journalism. Conferences are conducted presenting peer reviewed research into investigative journalism.
See also
- Barlett and Steele Barlett and Steele refers to an award-winning team of American investigative journalists, composed of reporters Donald Barlett and James Steele. In a career spanning more than three decades, they have researched and written in-depth reports for the Philadelphia Inquirer, Time magazine, and Vanity Fair, as well as authoring a series of books based
- Bob Woodward Robert Upshur "Bob" Woodward is regarded as one of America's preeminent investigative reporters and non-fiction authors. He has worked for The Washington Post since 1971 as a reporter, and is currently an associate editor of the Post. While a young reporter for The Washington Post in 1972, Woodward was teamed up with Carl Bernstein; the
- Bureau for Investigative Journalism
- Carl Bernstein Carl Bernstein (born February 14, 1944) is an American journalist who, as a reporter for The Washington Post along with Bob Woodward, broke the story of the Watergate break-in and consequently helped bring about the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon. For his role in breaking the scandal, Bernstein received many awards; his work
- Center for Investigative Reporting - Bosnia-Herzegovina
- Exposé: America's Investigative Reports (PBS documentary series)
- Goldsmith Prize for Investigative Reporting The Goldsmith Prize for Investigative Reporting is an award for journalists administered by the Joan Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics and Public Policy at Harvard University. The program was launched in 1991, with the goal of exposing examples of poor government, and encouraging good government in the United States of America. There is a $
- Henry Demarest Lloyd Henry Demarest Lloyd was a 19th century American progressive, and a muckraking journalist. He worked for the Chicago Tribune from 1872 to 1885. He has been called "the father of investigative journalism" for his ground-breaking work.[citation needed]
- Ida M. Tarbell Ida Minerva Tarbell was an American teacher, author and journalist. She was known as one of the leading "muckrakers" of her day, work known in modern times in the progressive era as "investigative journalism." She wrote many notable magazine series and biographies. She is best-known for her 1904 book The History of the Standard
- Investigative Reporters and Editors Investigative Reporters and Editors, Inc. is a nonprofit organization that focuses on the quality of investigative reporting. Formed in 1975, it presents the IRE Awards and holds conferences and training classes for journalists. Its headquarters is in Columbia, Missouri, at the University of Missouri School of Journalism
- Muckraker A muckraker is an individual who seeks to expose or reveal corruption of businesses or government to the public. The term originates from writers of the Progressive movement in America who wanted to expose corruption and scandals in government and business. Muckrakers often wrote about the wretchedness of urban life and poverty, and against the
- Seymour Hersh Seymour Myron Hersh (born April 8, 1937) is a United States Pulitzer Prize winning investigative journalist and author based in Washington, D.C. He is a regular contributor to The New Yorker magazine on military and security matters
- Jeremy Scahill Jeremy Scahill is an American investigative journalist with expertise on a number of global issues, most notably the recent rise of private military companies.[citation needed] He is the author of the international best-seller Blackwater:The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army. The book won the George Polk Book Award. He serves as a
- Lowell Bergman
References
- Investigative Journalism: Context and Practice, Hugo de Burgh (ed), Routledge, London and New York, 2000.
- ^ Fenster, Mark (2008). Conspiracy Theories: Secrecy and Power in American Culture. Pgs 2-4: University of Minnisota Press. ISBN 0816654948.
Further reading
Media Law Web: investigative journalism (Winchester University, UK) Investigative Reporting: A Study in Technique (Journalism Media Manual), by David Spark, (paperback) 1999. Tell Me No Lies: Investigative Journalism That Changed the World, John Pilger, ed.
Categories: Investigative journalism | Journalism genres
USA Today
... and Chris Flavelle are reporters for ProPublica, an independent, non-profit newsroom based in New York City that produces investigative journalism . ...
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cijournalism
Fri, 10 Jul 2009 09:25:15 GM
Three journalists from various backgrounds spoke during the IRE Awards luncheon in Baltimore on June 13 on why IRE is so important to their careers and to the future of . investigative journalism. ...
Q. Why is Times of India (pune) Scared of Investigative Journalism & will not print letter by whistleblower?
Asked by scan - Tue Jul 8 05:39:03 2008 - - 4 Answers - 0 Comments
