Investigative Journalism 2.0: An Introduction

Workshop poster in Malay | Workshop poster in English

If you missed the first workshop held in March 2021, Internews in Malaysia together with Sinar Project and in partnership with the European Union are organizing a second workshop on the fundamentals of investigative journalism. Dubbed ‘Investigative Journalism: An Introduction 2.0’, learn the journalistic techniques to uncover information the people in power would like to keep secret and how to craft credible investigative stories on issues of public concern. Story grants worth EUR2,000 each for selected participants upon completion of workshop.

Application deadline: 2nd June 2021

Date: 11 & 12 (Fri & Sat), 18 & 19 (Fri & Sat) June 2021

Training Outcome

  • Understand the differences in criteria, process and focus between standard and investigative reporting
  • Able to verify, organise and use specific data, documents, and open sources for investigations
  • Effectively interview and source information from people (human sources)
  • Apply compelling narrative structures to present and write a hypothesis driven investigative story

Who Should Join

  • Journalists and journalism students who want to learn how to get started in writing investigative reporting and stories
  • Activists and researchers whose work focus on accountability and social justice (e.g uncovering abuses of power, corruption and harm to communities and environment).
  • Although there is no prerequisite, participants are expected to have basic computer skills.
  • This is an introductory workshop and not for experienced investigative journalists.

How Will the Workshop be Conducted?

  • Experienced local and regional award-winning investigative journalists will be guest trainers for each module of the syllabus. They will cover each topic, while sharing real world experiences and tips.
  • Participants are expected to bring their own story or issues that they would like to investigate, to the workshop.
  • The workshop will be conducted online over a period of 4 days on consecutive Friday and Saturdays.

Syllabus

  • Introduction to Investigative Journalism
  • Organizing data and documents
  • Using open sources
  • Using human sources
  • Fact checking and verification
  • Writing effective stories

About the Main Trainer:

Khairil Yusof is an investigative data journalist and researcher working on applying innovative methods of open data and standards, for transparency and anti-corruption. In addition to developing and supporting journalists on investigative methods on corruption, he is also an experienced digital security trainer.

He is the founder of Sinar Project, an organisation that collates patchy government statistics and turns them into usable data for the public and journalists.

He has over 15 years of cross-practice and cross-sector experience implementing programmes for UN agencies, governments and civil society in Asia-Pacific including digital rights, human rights, labour rights, and environment.

sinarproject.org

Testimonials from Participants of Investigative Journalism Workshop Held in March 2021:

“The workshop was delivered nicely by well-versed experts in their respective fields. Keep up the good work and keep on doing lots more workshops such as this. Thank you for the experience!” Liza Mokhtar, 39, Reporter, Sinar Harian 

“It’s amazing how much was packed in this 4-day workshop. I really appreciated the insights and tips by trainers, who themselves have produced amazing work in the past. Hands-on practice sessions with guidance from them gave us a feel of what investigative journalism entails – the good, bad & ugly. Super grateful for this opportunity!” Pamella Lim, Editorial Assistant, Channel News Asia 

“I always wanted to attend Investigative Journalism training and this training by Internews and Sinar Project was excellent and educational. IJ is slightly different from usual journalism and it takes some skills before we want to go into any serious issues. We learn not only how to do investigative yet explosive news but also how to safeguard ourselves in terms of security as well as credibility of our sources and findings. This training is a must for those who wanted to take up issues related to misuse of power or human rights violations.” Sevan Doraisamy, Executive Director, SUARAM (Suara Rakyat Malaysia)