The early bird deadline for 
Posts by Alena Rehberger
IRE Preview: Meet the first intelligence whistleblowers and the journalist who revealed their secrets
Watch the trailer for “1971” Before Daniel Ellsberg, Edward Snowden, Chelsea Manning and Wikileaks, there was the Citizens Commission to Investigate the FBI. In March 1971, eight citizens broke into an FBI office in Media, Pennsylvania, took hundreds of secret files and shared them with the public. The files revealed massive political surveillance by the…
Read MoreNICAR Q&A with Rachael Bale
Rachael Bale Rachael Bale worked at The Center for Investigative Reporting on environmental stories about pesticides and mining, crime and justice stories, among other topics. She also worked as a freelance reporter for KQED public radio, the Bay Area’s NPR affiliate. She just moved to Washington D.C., where she intends to freelance. In 2012 she…
Read MoreWhat is NICAR Q&A?
Every week in the NICAR data library we get phone calls and emails from reporters who have their hands in data. Some call us with questions about particular databases, or to ask for help with SQL, or to celebrate and share work they’ve just completed. We love these conversations and trouble-shooting sessions, the collective sense…
Read MoreGet your tickets for IRE Night at the Ballpark
We will be doing an IRE Night at the Ballpark again on Friday, June 5. The game is at 7:05 p.m., and tickets are $26 a piece. They can be picked up at the IRE sales table beginning on Thursday, June 4. The seats are in section 105/106. Discounted tickets will be sold until May…
Read MoreIRE Radio Podcast | The Problem with Witness Protection
When the Washington, DC police chief bristled over a question about witness executions, Washington Post reporter Cheryl W. Thompson knew she was on to something. On this episode we’ll be talking to Thompson about her investigation into witness killings and intimidation. And for the second half of the show we dug into our audio archives…
Read MoreLos Angeles Meetup group partners with ONA for May mixer
Mark your calendar for our May mixer hosted by the IRE Los Angeles Meetup group. We’ll be gathering Tuesday, May 12 from 7-9 p.m. at the River Rock Lounge. The River Rock offers an extensive menu of fine wines, specialty cocktails, craft beers and bar staples such as hot wings and calamari as well as…
Read MoreIRE Preview: Second showcase, pop-up panels, new hands-on series
We’re continuing to add new speakers, sessions and training opportunities to the 2015 IRE Conference schedule. Here are a few recent additions: Early bird registration ends Friday! Register today to save $30. A second showcase panel, “Sexual assault investigations: Empathy, accuracy, transparency.” Panelists will include an author of the report analyzing Rolling Stone’s University of…
Read MoreUpdated at NICAR: FBI Uniform Crime Reports and SBA Disaster Loans
We’ve posted two updated datasets at the NICAR data library this week: FBI Uniform Crime Reports for 2013 and Small Business Administration Disaster Loans through February 2015. See below for details. FBI UNIFORM CRIME REPORTS Law enforcement agencies around the country voluntarily submit reports to the FBI on what are known as “index” crimes: Murder, nonnegligent manslaughter,…
Read MoreIRE Award winners take us behind the story in blog posts, podcasts
Over the last year we’ve talked to many of the journalists now honored with 2014 IRE Awards. They’ve taken us behind their award-winning stories, shared tips and provided valuable insight into the reporting process. We combed our archives to put together a list of all the behind-the-scenes interviews we’ve gathered over the last 12 months.…
Read MoreKansas AG: Private emails on public topics protected
Kansas’ attorney general said Tuesday that emails sent by state employees through private accounts aren’t public record, even when they deal with public business. Attorney General Derek Schmidt was responding to a question from state Sen. Anthony Hensley about whether such an email would constitute public record. Schmidt, who interpreted “private email” to be an…
Read More