• J-Source

    Kick-starting investigative journalism

    Last month, the Fund for Investigative Journalism in the US awarded grants totaling $57,000 to 15 journalists for investigative reporting projects. The idea is to kick-start investigative work in a variety of fields, often providing funding that isn’t available anywhere else. It’s a formula the fund has used with great success since its founding 40…

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    Bribery investigation

    It’s hard to estimate how much corporate bribery takes place each year, but some have put the figure at more than $1 trillion. Because it all takes place in secret, and usually in untraceable cash transactions, bribery is notoriously difficult to document and expose. That’s why the recent documentary and web feature by Frontline and…

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    Le vidéographe de Stéphane Dion récidive

    Difficile d’oublier Mick Gzowski, ce vidéographe responsable de la célèbre vidéo qui a sonné le glas de la carrière politique de Stéphane Dion. Or, ce texte de la Presse canadienne, publié dans Le Devoir, rapporte qu’il travaille à une nouvelle production dont le but consiste à rendre hommage à l’ancien chef du Parti libéral du…

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    National Post kills Monday publication

    National Post publisher Gordon Fisher announced the end of Monday publication just as the Financial Post concluded a five-part series touting the future of newspapers.

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    Local radio station uses Facebook to enhance news coverage of missing girl

    When the story of a young girl gone missing broke in Woodstock, Ont., the local radio station reached out to its audience using the social networking website Facebook in addition to its traditional media coverage. Afternoon radio host Don Martin says that informing the community on the airwaves is no longer enough and explains why…

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    NATO censoring (some) Afghanistan coverage

    Journalists who are not American — and thus protected by that country’s constitution — are working under tough new restrictions imposed by NATO in southern Afghanistan, reported Canadian Press. The story notes that the Canadian military “has tried unsuccessfully” to reverse the new policy, which mirrors American military media policy in Iraq. Canadian journalists are now…

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    Halt media slaughter if you want aid – INSI

    Developing nations’ records on protecting journalists should be factors when democratic governments consider aid programs, according to the International News Safety Institute. In a speech on Capitol Hill in Washington marking World Press Freedom Day, INSI director Rodney Pinder called for practical action by governments to stop the killing of journalists worldwide.  INSI says more…

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    Swine flu Catch 22

    The New York Times looks at the conundrum of whether coverage exacerbates a crisis. An excerpt: Without the news media the public would be dangerously unaware of the swine flu outbreak, but perhaps without saturation coverage on cable news networks and the velocity of information on the Internet, the public would not be so hysterical,…

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    Alternative journalism and investigative reporting

    There is a provocative article in the latest edition of Journalism called “Why alternative journalism matters.” It’s worth reading, and it’s worth thinking about the value of studying alternative media in the context of investigative journalism. Historically, some of the finest examples of investigative work have first appeared in the alternative press.