Invest in your career and level up your investigative and data skills by joining IRE and IJB for two days of professional development training in Toronto at The Creative School/Toronto Metropolitan University, September 20-21, 2024.
This workshop is co-sponsored by the Investigative Journalism Bureau and The Creative School at the Toronto Metropolitan University.
This international event will not only provide you with a plethora of new tips, tricks, and skills for your tool belt, but you’ll also go home with stronger, cross-border connections to take your career to the next level. Whether you’re a reporter, editor, producer, student, freelancer, educator, or all of the above and then some, you don’t want to miss this opportunity to collaborate with your international peers and elevate your career. Attendance is limited, register today to guarantee your spot!
All sessions are held on the first floor of the Rogers Communication Centre, Toronto Metropolitan University , The Venn (RCC 103)
Sessions will run from Friday, September 20 through Saturday, September 21 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. each day.
*Please note, sessions are subject to change. A more detailed schedule with exact times and dates coming soon.
Friday, September 20
9:00 | Registration opens
10:00 – 10:15 a.m. | Welcome & Workshop Overview
- Robert Cribb, IJB
10:15 – 11:15 a.m. | Everyday watchdog
- Adam Rhodes, IRE & NICAR
- We’ll discuss how to build watchdog work into your daily routine and produce meatier stories. We’ll also give some real-world tips on time management, organization and focusing on enterprise, and talk through different scenarios to look for ways to make everyday stories more investigative.
11:15 – 11:30 a.m. | BREAK
11:30 – 12:30 p.m. Demo: Open-source investigation techniques
- Craig Silverman, ProPublica; Jonathan Goldsbie,
- Street Politics is a popular YouTube channel featuring hundreds of anti-Trudeau videos. The channel spreads disinformation under the guise of being an independent Canadian news site. Who was really behind it? As it turns out, the site is run by an Egyptian stock trader and a former Washington state senate aide. Welund is a secretive UK company allegedly run by a former MI6 agent that spies on protestors — and occasionally journalists — for the benefit of private companies and governments. Who runs the company, and how does it work? Investigative journalists Jonathan Goldbie and Karyn Pugliese will share their techniques, showing you how they used open-source intelligence to follow data trails and determine who was behind these sites.
12:30 – 2:00 p.m. | LUNCH BREAK
2:00 – 3:00 p.m. | Ethics of reporting in Indigenous communities
- Ryan McMahon, IJB; Connie Walker, investigative reporter and podcaster
- Learn how to build respectful, reciprocal relationships with Indigenous communities when researching and sharing their stories, and avoiding extractive journalism.
3:00 – 3:15 p.m. | BREAK
3:15 – 4:15 p.m. | This Is Not A Drill: Training the next generation of investigative journalists
- Moderator: Wendy-Ann Clarke, IJB; Naama Weingarten, CBC; Masih Khalatbari, IJB and Alina Snisarenko, CBC,
- Collaborations between journalism students and mainstream media outlets are among the most promising emerging models for doing ambitious work while training the next generation of investigative reporters. In Canada and the U.S. we’ve seen cross-border class projects turn into award-winning stories with sometimes dozens of students working with instructors and senior reporters to bring greater scope and depth to important stories. But how do you pull it off? We explore with former students who did groundbreaking investigative work as students and interns.
4:15 – 4:30 p.m. | BREAK
4:30 – 5:30 p.m. | How to make a great investigation into a podcast
- Habiba Nosheen, investigative reporter and filmmaker; Laurie Few, TVO; Anna Maria Tremonti (moderator)
- The expanding popularity and power of podcasts are bringing new audiences to print investigations. These collaborations between traditional print journalists and audio storytellers are becoming a new step in the investigative planning process. Here we explore what top podcast producers need to re-shape investigative research into audio gold. How can you use effective audio and storytelling techniques to draw listeners to investigative stories? How do you balance engaging your audience without turning into true crime entertainment?
Saturday, September 21
9:00 | Registration opens
9:30 – 10:30 a.m. | The art of interviewing
- David Cay Johnston, DCReport/Rochester Institute of Technology
- Techniques to get strangers to open up and make intimate, revealing, and unexpected disclosures.
10:30 – 10:45 a.m. | BREAK
10:45 – 12:00 p.m. | The fate of investigative reporting in the TikTok age
- Moderator: Robert Cribb, IJB; David Cay Johnston, DCReport/Rochester Institute of Tech; Nicole McIntyre, The Toronto Star; Ron Nixon, Associated Press
- Investigative reporting is often the first thing to go in increasingly cash-strapped newsrooms. The long reporting timeframes, expensive battles for records, legal implications and speculative outcomes are no longer sustainable for news organizations fighting for survival. So what is the future of in-depth accountability reporting? How will it find sustainability?
12:30 – 1:30 p.m. | LUNCH BREAK
1:30 – 2:30 p.m. | Cross-border investigative collaborations
- Moderator: Robert Cribb; Brian Fitzpatrick, OCCRP; Ben Hallman, The Examination
- From sweeping international investigations into offshore money laundering, organized crime and global health threats, journalists are adopting collaboration over competition to tell deeper, broader stories.
2:30 – 2:45 p.m. | BREAK
2:45 – 3:45 p.m. | Writing the long-form, investigative narrative
- Samia Madwar, Walrus Magazine; Brian Rosenthal, The New York Times; Adam Rhodes, IRE & NICAR
- You’ve gathered data, docs and human sources. Now it’s time to turn your reporting into a story — or a series — that packs a punch. This session will cover framing and focusing your story, how to make it through all that material and keep your story moving.
3:45 – 4:00 p.m. | BREAK
4:00 – 5:00 p.m. | Unconference session TBD
5:00 – 5:30 p.m. | Wrap-up/benefits of IRE membership
- Adam Rhodes, IRE & NICAR
Workshop Fees
Please note a current IRE membership is required to attend.
- $60 for current professional (general and early-career), academic, retiree, and associate IRE members
- $25 for current student IRE members
Please log into your IRE account before trying to buy a ticket. If you are not a current member, the “Get Tickets” box will appear empty. You must renew your membership or apply to join IRE before purchasing a conference ticket.