Tipsheets
Tipsheets
Browse more 5,000 tipsheets from our national conferences and Watchdog Workshops on how to cover specific beats, conduct a great interview and learn countless tips on where to find the information you need.
Logged-in members can download any tipsheet, for free. Contact the Resource Center 573-882-3364 or [email protected] for questions.
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New investigative centers: The university model
This tipsheet offers advice to educators on how to produce great investigative stories while training the next generation of investigative reporters. -
How not to bungle sensitive abuse investigations
In this tipsheet, journalists and representatives for the Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma will share best practices for striking that careful balance between drawing out the facts and avoiding re-traumatizing survivors. They will discuss post-traumatic stress disorder and how it can greatly inform reporting and writing techniques. -
Evolving the true crime podcast
This tipsheet provides advice on how to avoid the pitfalls of the true crime podcast trend, and use thoughtful, investigative work to push forward the genre and audience expectations. -
Nail the interview: How to get sensitive or hard-to-reach sources to talk
This tipsheet offers advice from experienced reporters from print, digital and broadcast outlets on finding, securing and conducting interviews with sensitive or hard-to-reach sources. -
Making time for investigative work in a daily newsroom
It’s not easy to nurture investigative work amid the fast pace of daily news or keep a sprawling project on track while simultaneously managing the day-to-day responsibilities of running a busy newsroom. This tipsheet offers suggestions for how to create a culture and practices that give your readers and viewers excellent investigative journalism without sacrificing daily quality. -
Making time for investigative work in a daily newsroom
It’s not easy to nurture investigative work amid the fast pace of daily news or keep a sprawling project on track while simultaneously managing the day-to-day responsibilities of running a busy newsroom. This presentation offers advice on how to create a culture and practices that give your readers and viewers excellent investigative journalism without sacrificing daily quality. -
Introducing the Public Accountability Project
The Accountability Project is a new site from The Investigative Reporting Workshop to help you search hundreds of millions of rows of public data based on names, organizations and addresses. We've indexed federal and state campaign finance, nonprofit grants and employees, 527s, and some state personnel, business license and voter data. We'll show the site and tell you what's next. -
How to Find the Best Investigative Story Ideas and Pitch Them Successfully
A tipsheet explaining how to identify the best investigative stories and convince your editor they're worth the time. -
Investigating Charities and Other Nonprofits
This tipsheet covers various documents and other resources reporters can use to navigate the world of nonprofits, including how to find, read, and use the annual 990 forms nonprofits file with the IRS. It also highlights potential red flags to look for when scrutinizing charities. -
Detecting Business Fraud
A tipsheet from a reporter, the Better Business Bureau and an attorney on how to report on fraud using documents, sources and whistleblowers.