Workshop: Human Rights Investigative Reporting with Iain Overton

Workshop Friday 21 November 2014, 10:00 AM - 5:00 PM

Standard £150.00
Freelance/Student £125.00
Members £100


Whether researching human rights abuses in a civil war, or exposing human trafficking in the sex trade, this one-day workshop will introduce you to the life of investigative reporting.

Whether you already have experience in the field, are looking to start out, or simply have a critical mind, this workshop will equip you with the knowledge you need. Overall, this session will give you the tools to help set up an investigation; from filing a Freedom of Information request to being aware of ethical implications of undercover reporting. Importantly, it will also help you tell the stories that matter, and teach you how to have one of the most interesting jobs in the world and how to survive doing it.

Iain Overton_smallThe workshop will be led by award-winning investigative journalist Iain Overton. Overton has conducted investigations in areas that include counterfeiting in the pharmaceutical industry, UK deaths in custody, corporate killings in Iraq, and Glasgow gang-land murders linked to security contracts. His work has been recognised with a Peabody Award, two Amnesty International Awards, a OneWorld Award, a Prix Circom, a BAFTA Scotland and 3 RTS nominations, amongst others.

Overton is currently the Director of Investigations at the international organisation Action on Armed Violence and is writing a book for Canongate about the impact of guns worldwide.

What we will cover:

  1. How to survive as a human rights investigative reporter.
  2. Exposés and undercover reporting: ethics and practical considerations
  3. Tools of the human rights investigative trade: from FOI submissions to data journalism
  4. Making an impact: how to secure commissions, media collaborations and fund self-publishing
  5. Storytelling: how to tell your story so that it matters.

Images: Churikov Eduard / Shutterstock.com; Iain Overton