investigative journalism
Introduction to investigative reporting
From finding yourself in the midst of a civil war to working undercover in a Chinese criminal gang, this ONLINE workshop will introduce you to life as an investigative human rights reporter or researcher.
Investigative Journalism Investigated
In a time of scandal and division, the Frontline Club examines the role of investigative journalism in today’s media. Is investigative journalism landing its punches and how does long-form journalism work in the face of the increasingly reduced attention span? What sort of journalism leads to change, and what has little impact? Join us for a lively discussion with a great panel.
The Price of Paradise: Age of the Suicide Bomber
The suicide bomber has become central to our contemporary era of terror – a figure that not only dominates the fears of Western societies but also influences the way we fight our wars, protect our nations, pass security legislation and even define ourselves. Join award-winning journalist Iain Overton, author of acclaimed book, ‘The Price of Paradise’, as he reveals how the suicide bomber has shaped our modern age.
The Outlaw Ocean
There are few remaining frontiers on our planet. But perhaps the wildest, and least understood, are the world’s oceans: too big to police, and under no clear international authority, these immense regions of treacherous water play host to rampant criminality and exploitation. Drawing on five years of perilous and intrepid reporting, often hundreds of miles from shore, investigative journalist Ian Urbina introduces us to the inhabitants of this hidden world.
Introduction to investigative human rights reporting
From finding yourself in the midst of a civil war to working undercover in a Chinese criminal gang, this one-day workshop will introduce you to life as an investigative human rights reporter or researcher and give you the tools you need to help set up and pitch investigations.
EIA and Greenpeace Uncover: Supermarkets’ Plastic Habits
We meet to discuss the findings of an undercover report on the volume of single-use plastic packaging each retailer puts onto the market every year, their targets to reduce plastic packaging and their approach to tackling plastic pollution across their supply chains.
White Right: Meeting the Enemy
BAFTA Nominated Deeyah Khan sits face-to-face with fascists, racists and the proponents of the “alt-right” to discover the men behind the masks.
The Ballymurphy Precedent + Q&A
Award-winning director Callum Macrae’s (No Fire Zone) new feature documentary tells the story of the death of eleven innocent people killed by the British Army on a Catholic estate in Belfast in 1971, and the fight by their relatives and survivors to discover the truth.
Who Was Daphne Caruana Galizia And Why Was She Murdered?
On October 2017 a car bomb killed the investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galicia in Malta, extinguishing the free voice that for years, in solitude, we screen the first documentary that tells the story of Daphne, who killed her and why her killers are still in the shadows…
Kleptoscope 8: Exposing Kleptocracy, and Paying the Price
The first Kleptoscope of 2018 focusses on the price paid by those who expose grand corruption, and asks what we in Britain can do about it
From Panama to Paradise: The Power of Collaboration in Investigative Journalism
The Panama Papers, The Paradise Papers, The 2016/2017 Football Leaks – Good collaborative journalism is now more important than ever. The Bureau of Investigative Journalism explore the different models that journalists are using to write these explosive stories.
Screening: The Ransom + Q&A
The Ransom dives into the secret system of Kidnap & Ransom, designed by major insurance companies in response to the 30,000 kidnappings committed every year around the world.
Kleptoscope 7: The SFO – investigating and prosecuting the heavyweights
At the Frontline Club’s seventh Kleptoscope, hosted as usual by journalist Oliver Bullough, Serious Fraud Office director David Green will talk about how the SFO works, and what might lie ahead for the investigation of fraud and corruption in the UK post-Brexit. He will be joined by Camilla de Silva, who led a key strand of the SFO’s investigation into Rolls-Royce and was recently rewarded with the Bar Council’s Award of Employed Barrister of the Year.
Tusk Traffickers – inside the illegal ivory trade
Our panel discuss with unique insight the dark world of the ivory trade. In 2016, Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) embarked on a yearlong undercover investigation into the murky world of ivory trafficking in Mozambique in Africa. These investigations revealed a Chinese-led criminal syndicate which for over two decades has been trafficking ivory from Africa to Shuidong, their hometown in southern China. The traffickers claimed that up to 80 per cent of all African elephant tusks were destined for Shuidong town.
The Al Qaeda resurgence – how Osama bin Laden’s family survived after 9/11 and how his followers have rebuilt the terrorist organisation
Join us for an evening of conversation with journalists Cathy Scott-Clark and Adrian Levey to discuss their new book: The Exile: The Stunning Inside Story of Osama Bin Laden and Al Qaeda In Flight and the recent resurgence of the terror group, as Osama bin Laden’s son, Hamza is expected to take over the terrorist organisation.
Story-Based Inquiry Workshop: Tools & Techniques
Story-based Inquiry is based on doctoral-level research, over 100 years of collective experience, and field-testing with literally thousands of journalists and researchers. SBI has been hailed as “a major contribution” for its effectiveness and simplicity. If you are unsure of how to undertake long-form projects, in particular work that involves investigative skills, or feel the need to make your work more efficient, this seminar with the creators of SBI will help you.
Panama Papers: The Inside Story with Frederik Obermaier & Bastian Obermayer
Late one evening, investigative journalist Bastian Obermayer received an anonymous message offering him access to secret data. Through encrypted channels, he subsequently received documents revealing how the president of Argentina had sequestered millions of dollars of state money for private use. This was just the beginning – Obermayer and fellow Süddeutsche journalist Frederik Obermaier soon found themselves immersed in a secret world where complex networks of shell companies help the super-rich to hide their money.
We will be joined by Bastian Obermayer and Frederik Obermaier to hear the inside story of what Edward Snowden has called “the biggest leak in the history of data journalism.”
Whistleblowers and Bounty Hunters: Combating Corruption and Organised Crime
“They used to describe Tsarist Russia as monarchy moderated by assassination but now it seems to be total secrecy moderated by insane leaks.”
Spotlight: Investigative Journalism at the Boston Globe
By Isabelle Gerretsen On Wednesday 18 November, Sacha Pfeiffer and Mike Rezendes from The Boston Globe’s Pulitzer-prize winning Spotlight team discussed their 2002 exposé of the Catholic Church sex abuse scandal, the subject of the new film Spotlight. They spoke to Richard Sambrook, former head of BBC News and director of the centre for journalism […]
Spotlight: Behind the Scenes at The Boston Globe
Spotlight tells the astonishing true story of The Boston Globe’s Pulitzer Prize-winning “Spotlight” team of investigative journalists, who in 2002 shocked the city and the world by exposing the Catholic Church’s systematic cover-up of widespread paedophilia perpetrated by more than 70 local priests.
For this special event we are delighted to be joined by the film’s director and co-writer Tom McCarthy and co-writer Josh Singer, along with The Boston Globe journalists that the film is based on: Sacha Pfeiffer and Mike Rezendes.
Cross-Border Journalism: Europe and Beyond
When money, politics, abuse of power and corruption reach across borders, transnational networks of journalists become key to an open, accountable and democratic society. Cross-border investigations such as Swiss Leaks and Tobacco Underground have caused public outcry, and in many instances have led to legislative changes and the prosecution of those under investigation.
In an event in partnership with the Romanian Cultural Centre (RCC) and Frontline Club Bucharest, a panel of experts will be discussing what it takes to expose stories that spill across borders.
Screening: Chameleon + Q&A
He’s a household name in Ghana, but few have seen his face. Investigative journalist Anas Aremewaw Anas is on a mission to ferret out corruption in every corner of his country. Despite his notoriety, Anas’ vigilante methods warrant criticism from some local police, who believe his investigations go too far in luring and catching suspected criminals to achieve sensationalist stories.
Under Surveillance: Protecting Journalistic Sources
By Francis Churchill On Tuesday 7 July 2015, the Frontline Club hosted a discussion on the problem of protecting journalistic sources in the age of digital surveillance. Hosting the panel of experts was journalist and president of the Foreign Press Association Paola Totaro. The discussion touched upon issues of the law, journalist’s ethics, state transgression […]
Workshop: Storytelling in Journalism
Are you interested in learning how to tell a compelling story? How to pitch successful ideas to commissioners? How to translate exposing data into hard hitting reporting? Then join this one day event with Iain Overton that focuses on the art of storytelling in journalism.
Sheffield Doc/Fest Session: Dangerous Storytelling — Documentary Filmmaking and the Safety of Subjects
Heading to Sheffield Doc/Fest this year? Not only does the programme contain a fantastic selection of documentaries, but everyone with a full festival pass also has access to the diverse and inspiring conference programme. We have produced a conference session, Dangerous Storytelling: Documentary Filmmaking and the Safety of Subjects, which will place at the ITV Town Hall Council Chamber at 10:15 AM on Tuesday 9 June.
BBC Arena Preview: The New York Review of Books – A 50 Year Argument + Q&A
Acclaimed filmmaker Martin Scorsese and his longtime documentary collaborator David Tedeschi pay homage to a 20th century American institution: The New York Review of Books. The film weaves rarely seen archival material, interviews and excerpts from writings by such icons as James Baldwin, Gore Vidal and Joan Didion. These scenes reflect the humming and restless energy of a magazine that still feels as vital as its indefatigable founding editor, Robert Silvers. This screening will be followed by a Q&A with Anthony Wall, series editor of BBC Arena.
Hearts of Oil: Virunga Sneak Preview + Q&A
By George Symonds “They are like my family.” “They’re just fucking monkeys.” On Thursday 15 May 2014, the Frontline Club screened Virunga, a masterful documentary that portrays both the highest of human empathy, and lowest of murderous greed in eastern DR Congo. Present for the Q&A were director Orlando von Einsiedel, producer Joanna Natasegara and investigative […]
BBC Preview Screening: Shooting Bigfoot + Q&A
When director Morgan Matthews decided to join three groups of men from the highly competitive and bitterly divided world of Bigfoot hunting, he got more than he bargained for. Shooting Bigfoot is a raucous road trip featuring a larger than life cast of monster-hunting men who devote their lives to the search for Bigfoot. This screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Morgan Matthews.
The Changing Face of News Gathering: Getting In On The Action
By Antonia Roupell Blackberry Messenger, Google Maps, YouTube and other less conventional information hubs were put under scrutiny on the 21 January at the Frontline Club. Richard Pendry, a journalist and lecturer at the University of Kent, chaired the fully booked discussion titled: The Changing Face of News Gathering. Well-versed in the art of unconventional […]
The “Ambiguous World” of the Organ Black Market
By Ratha Lehall On Monday 13 January, the Frontline Club hosted a screening of Tales from the Organ Trade followed by a Q&A session with director Ric Esther Bienstock. Bienstock introduced the film briefly, telling the audience it took three years to make, covers eight countries, and comprises five different languages. Tales from the Organ Trade presents the different […]