We have completed the second year of the Investigative Journalism Academy
The Fund for Transparent Slovakia, in cooperation with the Fund for Investigative Journalism at the Open Society Foundation, held the second year of the Investigative Journalism Academy on the 23rd – 25th of September, 2022. The event was attended by 11 journalists from 8 newsrooms from all over Slovakia.
The educational programme thematically focused on areas that investigative journalists encounter in their daily work. Martin Turček (Aktuality.sk), Lukáš Diko (Ján Kuciak Investigative Centre), Peter Kunder (Fair-Play Alliance), Adriana Homolová (Follow the Money investigative platform) and others shared their experiences. The participants gained new knowledge in topics such as working with open sources, editing information, free access to information, data analytics and cyber security of journalists.
Besides a series of professional workshops, the participants had the opportunity to expand their contacts with colleagues from other newsrooms. They could discuss with the lecturers the problems they encounter in their work and get tips on turning their hypotheses into articles and reports.
“The academy’s goal is to provide investigative journalists with space to deepen their knowledge and offer them a summary of information that will help them work more effectively. At the same time, we keep in mind that their legal and cyber security is also important. We are aware of the negative narrative that spreads in society about the work of journalists, so it is all the more important for us to create a space where journalists can discuss with each other across newsrooms and exchange experiences and contacts. It is important to build a society in which a journalist does not have to be afraid to do their job and expose cases,” says Martina Hmírová, coordinator of the academy.
In addition to the educational programme and networking, the academy offers graduates the opportunity to apply in a closed grant call for support of EUR 2,000 for their research projects. An independent selection committee will evaluate grant applications. Besides financial support, the successful applicants will receive a professional mentor to help them prepare for the project.
