Winter 2023

More than nine months into the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the online methods for tracking this war are many and proliferating, including the most obvious source of all: social media networks. From the missile attack on a mall in Kremenchuk to mass graves in Motyzhyn, many reporters have relied on open-source investigations (OSI) — or the use of publicly accessible sources, like satellite imagery and social media posts — to expose Russia’s crimes in this war.

Though the war in Ukraine has been exemplary of OSI, open-source newsgathering is becoming integrated into journalistic practice as a standard reporting technique, particularly at investigative outlets.

Nieman Reports’ Winter 2023 takes a look at how open-source investigations are becoming a mainstay in the digital age, and the newsrooms that have taken the lead in incorporating OSI into their reporting.