21st Century Muckrakers

21st Century Muckrakers: Introduction

By Melissa Ludtke• 21st Century Muckrakers• July 1, 2009

Fatima Tlisova witnessed the injustice of villagers being poisoned by pollution from a nuclear lab nearby; she reported their story in a place where journalists risk their lives for sharing truths considered harmful to those in power. When she learned … Read more

Watchdog Photo Gallery

21st Century Muckrakers• March 15, 2008

Our visual journey moves from the late 19th and early 20th century muckraking era to the Watergate coverage of the early 1970’s, which swept into newsrooms a wave of young journalists hoping to do watchdog reporting during a time when … Read more

Publisher, Editor and Reporter: The Investigative Formula

By Steve Weinberg• 21st Century Muckrakers• March 15, 2008

Looking back to the early 1900’s—to Ida Tarbell and S.S. McClure—offers valuable lessons for watchdog journalism in the 21st century. Read more

The Press and the Presidency

By Murrey Marder• Watchdog• March 15, 2008

‘President Bush was obsessed from the beginning of his administration with what he regarded as unjustified intrusions by the press.’ Read more

Decision-Making: A Visual Journey Inside the Iraq War

By Michael Kirk and Michael Wiser• Watchdog• March 15, 2008

‘… it remains the job of journalists to do more than report the “stuff” that happens or bring to the public the “first rough draft of history.”’ Read more

Determining the Reliability of a Key CIA Source

By Bob Drogin• Watchdog• March 15, 2008

After his newspaper story exposed the CIA’s reliance on a con man to determine if Iraq had WMD, a journalist dug deeper to unravel the mystery. Read more

Digital Records Reveal Corruption on Capitol Hill

By Jerry Kammer and Marcus Stern• Watchdog• March 15, 2008

The 2006 Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting was awarded to the staffs of The San Diego Union-Tribune and Copley News Service, “with notable work by Marcus Stern and Jerry Kammer,” given in recognition of “their disclosure of bribe-taking that sent … Read more

Classified Documents: Secrecy vs. Citizenship

By Steven Aftergood• Watchdog• March 15, 2008

In the digital age, there is an appetite ‘for direct access to source documents.’ Read more

Investigative Reporting About Secrecy

By Ted Gup• Books• December 15, 2010

‘… it would be a terrific investment of reportorial resources, not to mention a valuable public service, to dedicate an entire beat to secrecy.’ Read more

Seeking New Ways to Nurture the Capacity to Report

By Charles Lewis• Features• March 15, 2008

‘Without an independent news media, there is no credibly informed citizenry.’ Read more

Selling the Iraq War: Unearthing False Advertising

By Charles Lewis• Features• March 15, 2008

For the first time, five years after the start of the Iraq War, journalists and citizens can view what the most prominent Bush administration officials said publicly, juxtaposed against what they knew internally, day to day, prior to the March 19, 2003 invasion of Iraq. Read more

Universities and Investigative Journalism

By Charles Lewis• Features• March 15, 2008

RELATED ARTICLES “Seeking New Ways to Nurture the Capacity to Report” – Charles Lewis “Watchdog Reporting: Exploring Its Myth” … Read more

Going Online With Watchdog Journalism

By Paul E. Steiger• Features• March 15, 2008

‘… investigative reporting itself is also on the cusp of major transformation ….’ Read more

New Sources of Funding, New Sources of Reporting

By Gilbert Cranberg• Features• March 15, 2008

As nonprofit investigative models take shape, a journalist surveys emerging possibilities.  Read more

Watchdog Reporting: Exploring Its Myth

By Florence Graves• Features• March 15, 2008

‘The myth of journalists doggedly uncovering all the facts is both important—and dangerous.’ Read more

Understanding the Value of Investigative Reporting

By Bill Buzenberg• Features• March 15, 2008

A nonprofit director feels frustrated by how difficult it is to find ‘adequate resources for independent investigative reporting.’ Read more

When a Few Dollars Make a Big Difference

By John Hyde• Features• March 15, 2008

In 1969, as the Vietnam War raged on, a dogged young reporter named Seymour Hersh thought he was onto something. He had learned that there might have been a massacre of Vietnamese civilians by U.S. soldiers in the village of … Read more

Fund for Investigative Journalism: Practices and Policies

By John Hyde• Features• March 15, 2008

As a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization, the fund operates frugally so it can give out as many grants as possible. Its 12-member board of directors, composed of distinguished working journalists who serve without compensation, meets several times a year to weigh … Read more

Seeking Support for Investigative Projects

By Rachel Schaff• Features• March 15, 2008

These foundations and centers offer financial support for journalists. Alicia Patterson Foundation www.aliciapatterson.org This Washington, D.C.-based fund provides six-month and one-year grants to working investigative reporters who want to pursue independent investigative projects. Grants can … Read more

Good Journalism Can Be Good Business

By Daniel Brogan• Features• March 15, 2008

‘Let’s not pull the plug on for-profit journalism just yet.’ Read more

Digital Journalism: Will It Work for Investigative Journalism?

By Barry Sussman• Technology• March 15, 2008

The Nieman Watchdog Project’s editor explores what might be missing and what might be found as journalists turn to the Web to assist in reporting. Read more

Revealing the Disinformation Industry

By Barry Sussman• Technology• March 15, 2008

RELATED ARTICLE “Digital Journalism: Will It Work for Investigative Journalism?” – Barry SussmanWith complicated stories, a problem for reporters and editors always has been to wade through mounds … Read more

Reporting With the Tools of Social Science

By Stephen K. Doig• Technology• March 15, 2008

‘We had put the social scientists on notice that journalists increasingly would be competitors in their field.’ Read more

Building a Toolbox for Precision Journalism

By Stephen K. Doig• Technology• March 15, 2008

Want to add social science methods to your toolbox of investigative reporting skills? What follows are some ways to consider doing this: Read “Precision Journalism: A Reporter’s Introduction to Social Science Methods” (4th edition) by Philip Meyer. Read more

Reporting Is Only Part of the Investigative Story

By Donald L. Barlett and James B. Steele• Technology• March 15, 2008

‘In “Billions Over Baghdad,” we knew that simply reporting the costs of the Iraq War in mind-numbing billions wasn’t good enough.’ Read more

When Video Is King

By Stuart Watson• Technology• March 15, 2008

For local TV news, a difficulty will come in figuring out how to make watchdog reporting stand out in a digital world. Read more

Letter to the Editor

By Vince Crunk• 21st Century Muckrakers• March 15, 2008

Watson Replies to Vince Crunk’s Letter to the Editor

By Stuart Watson• Technology• March 15, 2008

I think he has a point. I think television and streaming video can give citizens a window into public meetings and the sausage-making of governance. But gavel-to-gavel camera work is not a replacement for good old shoe-leather city hall beat … Read more

Are Reporters Doomed?

By The Guardian• Technology• March 15, 2008

Citizen journalism is here to stay. But in the rush to embrace new media we risk destroying the soul of traditional reporting. Read more

Changing Equations in Investigative Reporting

By John Robinson• Journalist’s Trade• March 15, 2008

An editor proposes that journalists seek new partners in their mission of monitoring those in power. Read more

Instilling a Watchdog Culture in the Newsroom

By Lorie Hearn• Journalist’s Trade• March 15, 2008

‘Watchdog work is not just about projects; it’s about an approach to beat coverage that should be reflected in daily and longer-form work.’ Read more

Redefining a Newspaper’s Watchdog Approach

By Brent Walth and Les Zaitz• Journalist’s Trade• March 15, 2008

On a soggy December morning, a hillside above a busy Oregon highway gave way, and a torrent of mud, rock and trees buried the road, destroyed homes, and smashed cars. Our newspaper, The Oregonian, dutifully reported on the landslide and … Read more

A Vital Responsibility in Need of Support

By Rick Rodriguez• Journalist’s Trade• March 15, 2008

‘… our industry, as a whole, cannot afford to abandon or cut back on investigative reporting, particularly on local and regional issues.’ Read more

What Are Newspaper Journalists Investigating?

By Brant Houston and Rachel Schaff• Journalist’s Trade• March 15, 2008

RELATED WEB LINK “Extra! Extra!” — ire.org/extraextraWhat follows are a few examples from the wide range of investigations being done by mainstream media outlets throughout the United States. The examples—grouped by general topic and .compiled by … Read more

Using Expertise From Outside the Newsroom

By Betty Wells• Journalist’s Trade• March 15, 2008

After ‘crowdsourcing’ worked to expand reporting, The News-Press reached out to nearby residents to form Team Watchdog. Read more

Beacons of Hope: Investigative Journalism Centers

By Brant Houston• Watchdog• March 15, 2008

Training and support for investigative journalists are increasing, and collaborative projects are happening worldwide. Read more

Confronting Pressure From Donors

By Aung Zaw• Watchdog• March 15, 2008

The following words are reprinted from a Nieman Reports article written by Aung Zaw, editor of The Irrawaddy, a magazine about Burma and Southeast Asian affairs located in Chiang Mai, Northern Thailand. In this section of his article, Zaw addressed … Read more

Strengthening Global Investigative Journalism

By Brant Houston• Watchdog• March 15, 2008

In 2007, David Kaplan, who for many years was the chief investigative correspondent at U.S. News & World Report, studied the condition of global investigative journalism. Part of his mission was to determine the need for training and other assistance … Read more

Global Efforts at Investigative Reporting

By Fernando Rodrigues• Watchdog• March 15, 2008

A Brazilian journalist explores the benefits of collaboration and describes how and why watchdog reporting has changed in Latin America. Read more

Squeezing Substance Into the ‘Sensational and Superficial’

By Sheila S. Coronel• Watchdog• March 15, 2008

Experiences in the Philippines taught a journalist that ‘the space for watchdog reporting must be created before new structures congeal.’ Read more

Circumventing Censorship With Technology

By Karl Idsvoog• Watchdog• March 15, 2008

When news stations in Georgia refused to broadcast an investigative report about a high government official’s actions, the news story found a home on the Internet. Read more

The Investigative Journalist’s Digital Tool Kit

By Joe Murray• Watchdog• March 15, 2008

Working, as we do, in our digital, converged-media school of journalism at Kent State, we are learning to use the new technology to educate the next generation of journalists. When my colleague Karl Idsvoog first showed me the video of … Read more

Democracy Can Complicate the Job of Journalists

By Dharma Adhikari• Watchdog• March 15, 2008

When a decade of conflict ended, ‘what many Nepali journalists did not anticipate was that the worst had yet to come.’ Read more