GIJC21 Sessions

When we survey investigative journalists from around the world, the top issues that routinely come up are exposing corruption and abuses of power. Here are examples from around the world of journalists at their best on these issues, exposing crooked judges in Ukraine, dishonest officials in Liberia, out-of-control cops in Belarus, abuse at religious schools in Sudan, and the unexplained wealth of Lebanon’s central banker.

Having already grown to crisis levels in recent years, economic inequality has accelerated further almost everywhere during the COVID-19 pandemic, with women and minority groups, in particular, losing even more of their share of income and resources. In this session, experts from three of the world’s most unequal nations — Brazil, the United States, and South Africa — share innovative strategies for digging into this perilous gap, from new data techniques to drone imagery.

The rapid collapse of Afghanistan’s pro-Western government left more than billions of dollars and thousands of lives behind. It left behind 20 years of investment in independent media, women’s rights, and civil society. Did Washington and other Western powers delude themselves into thinking this was a winnable fight? Did the news media miss the big picture and fail to report on what was really happening? To make sense of one of the biggest stories in years, we’ve gathered veteran Afghan journalist Samiullah Mahdi, who ran the groundbreaking PAYK Investigative Journalism Center in Kabul; Marjorie Rause of Internews, who oversaw development of independent TV and radio journalism in Afghanistan; and Canadian producer Julian Sher, whose new documentary Ghosts of Afghanistan looks at what’s been lost.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, journalists worldwide suddenly found themselves on the health beat, trying to make sense of competing claims, varied specialists, and a science that seems to change by the day. This session takes you from COVID-19 to drug development and approval, evaluating scientific studies, understanding conflicts of interest, and exposing fraud and malpractice. Rivera and Tinari are authors of the GIJN guide Investigating Health and Medicine, available in seven languages. (Note: GIJC21 has two sessions on health and medicine, one on Tues. timed for the Americas and Europe/Africa/Middle East and one on Thurs. for Asia/Pacific.)