If you fill out the "Forgot Password" form but don't get an email to reset your password within 5-10 minutes, please email logistics@ire.org for assistance.
Friday’s “Sourcing people of color: Going beyond the community leader” panel, moderated by Manny Garcia of the USA TODAY Network, Diego Santiago of Telemundo, Maria Polletta of The Arizona Republic, and Warren Trent of KTVK/KPHO-TV offered a variety of helpful tips for journalists wanting to improve how they cover historically marginalized communities.
Below are some of their suggestions:
Work to build trust.
Speak up.
Show up.
Get comfortable with criticism.
Don’t assume.
Francisco Vara-Orta is a data specialist/staff writer at Education Week.
Investigative Reporters and Editors has named Scott Pruitt, the Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as the winner of its annual Golden Padlock Award recognizing the most secretive U.S. agency or individual.
Pruitt was selected for this honor for steadfastly refusing to provide emails in the public interest and removing information from public websites about key environmental programs. The Center for Media and Democracy filed nine public records act requests, and one lawsuit between 2015 and 2017, seeking Pruitt’s emails during his time as Attorney General of Oklahoma. It took two years, and a judge’s order containing candid criticism of Pruitt’s office for its “abject failure” to abide by the Oklahoma Open Records Act.
The resulting emails showed Pruitt "closely coordinated with major oil and gas producers, electric utilities and political groups with ties to the libertarian billionaire Koch brothers to roll back environmental regulations.” But many other emails have been withheld and are subject to a lawsuit.
Now, as head of the EPA, Pruitt is helping lead a Trump administration effort to remove information from public websites, including some information about air, water and ground pollution and the sources of toxic chemical releases.
"Judges were impressed with the breadth and scope of Pruitt's information suppression techniques around vital matters of public interest," said Robert Cribb, chair of the Golden Padlock committee. "It is a powerful expression of excellence in the principles of government secrecy that the Golden Padlock was created to honor."
IRE invited Pruitt or a representative from his agency to attend the 2017 IRE Conference and receive the honor. No response was received.
"Too many government officials forget that they are paid by the public and that they work for the public," IRE Executive Director Doug Haddix said. "The Golden Padlock finalists are among the most egregious examples. Unfortunately, they have a lot of company with other officials across the country who fail the public by working in secrecy."
To learn about the 2017 finalists, click here.
Wireless network and password
Wireless internet is available throughout the meeting space thanks to Raycom Media. Join the network IRE17 and follow the steps to enter the access code: Raycom.
Look for IRE Conference buttons
At the registration desk: All attendees can pick up an #IRE17 button when checking in.
At the Tipsheets & Reprints table: To make networking a little easier, we made special buttons for job hunters and news organizations that are hiring. First-time attendees can wear a special button inspired by Washington Post reporter David Fahrenthold's investigation into Donald Trump's charities.
In the hands-on classrooms (Pinnacle Peak): Attend a hands-on class and you'll earn a data journalist sheriff's badge button.
At sales: Show your support for IRE. Make a donation to IRE while you're in Phoenix, and then swing by sales to pick up an investigator button.
Tipsheets and presentations
Speakers: Please send your tipsheets and other presentation materials to tipsheets@ire.org so we can add them to the IRE website.
The Diversity Dilemma (Hosted by CNN)
Friday, June 23 at 9 a.m. in Grand Sonoran E
Why is there a shortage of diversity among investigative journalists in the industry? What can be done about this dilemma? How do you find and develop more diversity: women and journalists of color? It's never been more important to make sure your newsroom is reflective of America. Learn the importance of mentorship, and developing innovative strategies and initiatives.
Facebook Journalism Project: Local News Initiative (Sponsored by the Knight Foundation)
Friday, June 23 from 10:30 - noon in Grand Sonoran A
What are the next steps with Facebook's efforts with the Knight Foundation and Lenfest Foundation to work with local journalism organizations? We'll hear about the role that the Institute for Nonprofit News (INN), Local Independent Online News (LION), the Detroit Journalism Collaborative and the Center for Cooperative Media at Montclair State University will play in working with Facebook to open training opportunities and experimentation to smaller, independent news organizations, and the listening that Facebook is doing as it develops features aimed at users' interaction with local news.
Diversity Mixer hosted by USA TODAY NETWORK, The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com
Friday, June 23 from 5-6:30 p.m. at Twenty6 Lounge
Please join us during the 2017 IRE Conference for networking and free appetizers at a recruiting mixer. We want to invest in more diverse talent to help strengthen our newsrooms and coverage. Come to meet investigative journalists from across the country, stay for the free food for the first 50 people. Everyone is welcome! USA TODAY NETWORK shares investigative journalism across the nation through local media outlets in 109 markets, including in Arizona, where The Republic is the state's largest newspaper and news website. This event is organized by The Republic's Diversity Committee, a group of journalists from all parts of the newsroom who work to ensure our coverage better reflects the diversity of people and communities in Arizona. You'll be able to spot committee members at the mixer by their name tags. Say hi!
Special training by Tableau
Don't miss these four free training opportunities with Tableau on Thursday:
The 2017 IRE Conference begins on Thursday. Below you'll find a few bits of information to help you prepare for this great conference!
For the latest up-to-date information about panels, speakers and special events at the conference, please visit our conference website at https://www.ire.org/conferences/ire2017/.
Hotel Information
The conference is taking place at the JW Marriott Phoenix Desert Ridge, 5350 E. Marriott Drive, Phoenix, AZ 85054.
Thank you to Super Shuttle for offering a discount to attendees. Details on making reservations can be found here.
Registration
Registration opens Wednesday at 2 p.m. and will be available Thursday, Friday and Saturday in the 1st floor meeting space at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge.
Weather
It's going to be a hot week in Phoenix. Remember to stay hydrated throughout your visit. See the 10-day forecast thanks to weather.com.
Wireless Internet
Stop by the registration desk, check the mobile app or look for signs with the wireless access code available throughout the meeting space thanks to Raycom Media. In addition, attendees staying at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge in the group block will receive complimentary basic wireless Internet in their guest room. When logging in from your room, you will need to accept the charges; the hotel will credit these prior to checkout.
Have a question or need help in a session?
Room monitors will be stationed in the hallways during sessions and will be happy to answer your questions. Additionally, if you need something, email IREhelp@ire.org and IRE staff will respond as quickly as possible.
Recent updates and events you don't want to miss:
IRE Board Meeting
Thursday, June 22 at 2 p.m. in Wildflower A, located on the lobby level of the JW Marriott Phoenix Desert Ridge
This meeting is open to all IRE members.
Welcome reception sponsored by the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University
Thursday, June 22 at 6 p.m. in Grand Saguaro North & South
Kick off the conference with a welcome reception on Thursday night. Meet up with friends you have not seen since last year and welcome new attendees. Each attendee will receive one drink ticket for beer, wine, soda or bottled water.
Media lawyers brown bag
Friday, June 23 at 12:45 pm in Grand Canyon 9-10
Does your investigation contain complex legal questions? Unsure of how to proceed? Bring your lunch and your questions for a discussion with some prominent media law experts who will be presenting throughout the 2017 IRE Conference. We'll provide drinks and dessert.
The Diversity Dilemma (Hosted by CNN)
Friday, June 23 at 9 a.m. in Grand Sonoran E
Why is there a shortage of diversity among investigative journalists in the industry? What can be done about this dilemma? How do you find and develop more diversity: women and journalists of color? The importance of mentoring and innovative strategies and initiatives to ensure your newsroom is reflecting America at a time when it has never been more important.
Hosted by CNN with panelists:
Moderator: Ramon Escobar, VP Talent Recruiting & Development and VP, Diversity & Inclusion, CNN Worldwide
Panelists:
Closing reception sponsored by CNN and IRE
Saturday, June 24 at 6:30 p.m. in Grand Saguaro South, East & West
Join us for a closing reception and enjoy one last evening of catching up with old and new friends, speakers and colleagues. Hors d' oeuvres and a cash bar will be available. Conference nametags are required for entry.
IRE Conference app replaces a printed program
You're tech-savvy and care about the environment, and so do we. Rather than printing 1,800 schedules, we're giving you two ways to track the full schedule of panels, hands-on sessions and special events with accurate, up to-the-minute details:
Internet is not required for the app to work once it's downloaded. However, a connection is necessary to receive any updates sent by IRE.
If you feel most comfortable with a printed program, a few copies of the schedule will be available at the registration desk. You can also print out your own copies by scrolling down this page for a link. Please note: We won't be updating these printer-friendly versions with room, time or speaker changes. The mobile app and online schedule will always be up to date.
Conference Daily Update
Be sure to check the conference app (Day 1 news update) or your email for any last minute programming updates. A few paper copies will also be available at the registration desk.
Broadcast Show & Tell and one-on-one mentoring
Show & Tell sessions allow you to share your investigations with colleagues from around the country. Veteran broadcasters will moderate each session. Each slot runs for 15 minutes. Details on signing up can be found here.
One-on-one mentoring sessions will also be available during the conference with Barry Nash and Company. Get additional details and sign-up for Barry Nash and Company.
Use #IRE17 during the conference and stop by the registration desk to see live tweets on the announcement monitor.
Special training
Be sure to check out the list of special sessions, social events and other activities taking place this week. Check out this full list here.
Contact IRE
We want everyone to have a great conference. If you have any concerns, run into any problems or need to contact a member of the IRE staff for any reason, we've set up several ways to reach us. Please remember that whether you're in a session, walking the hallway or hanging out at the bar, it's important to respect all of your fellow attendees. IRE and NICAR have long been known for our sense of community, and we should all be sure that everyone feels welcome.
Reach out by phone: 573-880-5473
Send a text: 573-880-5473
Send an email: IREhelp@ire.org
We thank you for your continued support and are looking forward to seeing you in Phoenix!
COLUMBIA, MISSOURI: Investigative Reporters and Editors is proud to announce the finalists for its 2017 Golden Padlock Award celebrating the most secretive government agency or individual in the United States.
“Undermining the public’s right to know requires dedication, creativity and chutzpa,” said Robert Cribb, chair of the IRE’s Golden Padlock committee.
“The sophisticated methods of this year's nominees include ever more proactive techniques including aggressive lobbying for secrecy protections and even retribution against requesters seeking public interest records. These are some of America’s greatest overachievers in the field of government secrecy, richly deserving of begrudging respect.”
The finalists are:
The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, for extraordinary efforts keeping population statistics from the population. Missouri has not made public its basic birth index after 1910 or its basic death index after 1966. But the department quietly sells the same information to researchers as a revenue stream. When a not-for-profit group of genealogists and historians called Reclaim The Records filed requests for the data last year, the state issued a whopper fee estimate: $1.5 million to cover 35,000 hours of staff time to prepare the records. After some legal wrangling, the department suddenly reduced the fee to $5,000. But in another twist, the state then denied the request altogether. Reclaim the Records filed a lawsuit against the department late last year and unearthed internal e-mails in which the former state registrar advised the department to stonewall the requests by producing “mounds of paper.”
Scott Pruitt, the Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, for steadfastly refusing to provide emails in the public interest and removing information from public websites about key environmental programs. The Center for Media and Democracy filed nine public records act requests, and one lawsuit between 2015 and 2017, seeking Pruitt’s emails during his time as Attorney General of Oklahoma. It took two years, and a judge’s order containing candid criticism of Pruitt’s office for its “abject failure” to abide by the Oklahoma Open Records Act. The resulting emails showed Pruitt "closely coordinated with major oil and gas producers, electric utilities and political groups with ties to the libertarian billionaire Koch brothers to roll back environmental regulations.” But many other emails have been withheld and are subject to a lawsuit. Now, as head of the EPA, Pruitt is helping lead a Trump administration effort to remove information from public websites, including some information about air, water and ground pollution and the sources of toxic chemical releases.
Pennsylvania State-Related Universities, for executing a public mission with public money and little public oversight. In a unique quirk of Pennsylvania law, four universities receiving hundreds of millions of dollars in public funding fall into a legal black hole exempting them from the full effect of state transparency legislation. Penn State, the University of Pittsburgh, Lincoln University and Temple University are permitted to block access to records detailing everything from employee salaries to board conflicts of interest to serious crimes. Journalists in the state have hit brick walls seeking details on Penn State’s handling of the Jerry Sandusky child sexual abuse scandal, the resignation of Temple’s president and firing of its provost. When Temple trustee Bill Cosby resigned from the board following rape allegations from numerous women including a former Temple employee, the response from university officials was a single sentence in a press release. The universities have lobbied with vigor to maintain state-sanctioned secrecy. The effect: journalists and the public remain in the dark.
Appalachian Judicial Circuit Chief Judge Brenda Weaver, for jailing newspaper publisher Mark Thomason and his attorney because of a public records request. The dispute began with a racial slur in a court hearing in Blue Ridge, Georgia, when both the assistant prosecutor and the presiding judge used the “N” word. Thomason asked the court reporter for a full transcript. She sued him for libel, but withdrew the suit, then asked him to pay her legal fees. The publisher filed a records request to ascertain whether the court had already paid her costs. Both Thomason and the lawyer were jailed overnight and the sheriff ordered periodic drug and alcohol testing. In the face of a free-press uproar, the charges were dropped and the chief judge eventually resigned her position as the chair of Georgia’s Judicial Qualifications Commission.
Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed, for the remarkable effort and cost invested in creating an illusion of transparency by printing more than a million documents about a city hall bribery scandal in response to a public records request. Reed summoned reporters to a press conference to unveil a wall of paper which included lunch menus for a local school, church service programs and every record containing a reference to Mitchell Street. City Hall is located – you guessed it – on Atlanta’s Mitchell Street, driving up the page count and safely burying any needles of relevant information in a gigantic haystack. The Reed administration had delivered the same records electronically to the FBI. But it would take the city nearly a month before it began providing those same electronic records to reporters. When journalists asked the administration how much it cost to produce the paper records, officials cited attorney-client privilege.
The winner will be announced at IRE’s annual conference in Phoenix, June 24. A representative from the winning agency will be invited to receive the honor.
Investigative Reporters and Editors, Inc. is a grassroots nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the quality of investigative reporting.
Judges for the 2017 Golden Padlock are:
CONTACT:
Robert Cribb, Golden Padlock committee chair: 416-579-0289; cribb@rogers.com
The 2017 IRE Conference app is now available through Guidebook!
We encourage you to download our mobile guide to enhance your experience at the 2017 IRE Conference. You'll be able to plan your day with a personalized schedule, browse maps and connect with other attendees.
The app is free and compatible with iPhones, iPads, iPod Touches and Android devices. Windows Phone 7 and Blackberry users can access the same information via our mobile site.
To get the guide, choose one of the methods below:
Mexican journalist Miroslava Breach Velducea, who was assassinated earlier this year in retaliation for her efforts to expose organized crime and corruption, will be remembered next week during the Investigative Reporters and Editors annual conference in Phoenix.
Breach will be posthumously recognized with the first-ever Don Bolles Medal, named in honor of the Arizona Republic investigative reporter who was killed in 1976 by a car bomb.
IRE selected Breach as the medal’s first recipient as a symbol of the continuing threats being faced by investigative journalists across Mexico.
“Violence against journalists needs to stop. The legacies of Miroslava Breach and Don Bolles must stand for the simple fact that murder will never silence a story,” said Matt Goldberg, president of the IRE Board of Directors.
The Don Bolles Medal recognizes investigative journalists who have exhibited extraordinary courage in standing up against intimidation or efforts to suppress the truth about matters of public importance.
Breach, a correspondent for the national newspaper La Jornada, was shot eight times in her car outside her home in March. The 54-year-old mother of three had been involved in exposing organized crime, drug trafficking and corruption in the Mexican state of Chihuahua.
Her murder came almost three weeks after she had reported on the role of an organized crime syndicate in supporting candidates for mayor in several small towns in Chihuahua. She had persisted in her reporting despite having received several threats.
According to news reports, the gunman left a note saying the assassination was “for being a snitch.”
Ninety-five journalists have been killed in Mexico since 1992, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. Motive has been confirmed in 41 cases.
Breach is one of four journalists murdered this year in Mexico in direct relation to their work, according to CPJ. The group is investigating the motive for the death of a fifth journalist and the disappearance of a sixth.
One of Mexico’s most influential online publications, Animal Politico, recently noted: “In Mexico, journalists are killed because they can be, because nothing happens.”
The Don Bolles Medal is being created in conjunction with the 40th anniversary of the Arizona Project, an effort led by IRE to finish the work of the investigative journalist.
Bolles died in June 1976 from injuries sustained from the explosion of a bomb planted on his car. His death came a few days before the first national IRE conference in Indianapolis, where the veteran reporter had been scheduled to speak on a panel.
At the time, Bolles had been investigating allegations of land fraud involving prominent politicians and individuals with ties to organized crime.
After his murder, nearly 40 journalists from across the country descended on Arizona to complete his investigation. Their message: Even if you kill a reporter, you can’t kill the story. News organizations across the country published their findings.
IRE was formed in 1975 as a grassroots nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the quality of investigative reporting. Through IRE, journalists throughout the world help each other sharpen watchdog reporting across all beats and all news platforms.
As a public service, IRE is making the new issue of The IRE Journal magazine available for free to journalists, educators, students and the general public. The special issue of the quarterly magazine is full of practical tips, resources and strategies for covering a new presidential administration that’s openly hostile to the news media.
Typically, the quarterly magazine is available only to IRE members and subscribers.
"This issue is too special to keep behind our paywall," IRE Executive Director Doug Haddix said. "New threats against journalists and against freedom of information have raised the stakes not only for reporters but for the foundation of our democracy itself. All journalists -- not just IRE members -- can benefit from the thought-provoking coverage in this issue of our magazine."
In addition to the special Trump coverage, the magazine features winners and finalists in the prestigious IRE Awards -- recognizing the best investigative reporting of 2016.
“Journalists and the public alike can celebrate the remarkable work produced last year,” Haddix said. “IRE Award winners and finalists show the enduring value of watchdog stories that make a huge positive difference in communities across America and around the globe.”
You may download a PDF of the magazine or read it on online.
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IRE Journal (2nd Quarter 2017) (PDF)
IRE Journal (2nd Quarter 2017) (Text)
IRE Chicago meetups are BACK! And since it's summer, we're taking our investigative reporting and socializing to the rooftop! Join us on the rooftop at the Plymouth bar and restaurant (327 S. Plymouth Ct., between Jackson and Van Buren) on June 13, for the next IRE Chicago Meetup!
RSVP online for the event and join the IRE Chicago Meetup group if you haven’t already.
IRE has member-organized Meetup groups in six cities. Learn more about them on our IRE Meetups page.
Starting today, IRE members can vote online for the IRE Board of Directors. Ballots will be sent to the primary e-mail as listed in your membership profile.
So far, six people have declared candidacy; six of the board’s 13 seats are up for election this year. Two people have declared candidacy for the two seats on the Contest Committee. To learn more about the candidates, click here.
If you’re going to the 2017 IRE Conference in Phoenix, be sure to stop by the candidate forum at 6:15 p.m. on June 23. We're hoping conference attendees will wait to vote until they've had a chance to hear from the candidates.
Elections for the IRE Board of Directors involve electronic voting only, and the polls will be open until 6 p.m. (MT) on June 24. To learn more about the voting process, click here.
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