Sam Poling

Sam Poling is a multi-award-winning investigative journalist with the BBC, having won five BAFTAs for her documentaries for Panorama and the investigations series Disclosure and Frontline, as well as three Royal Television Society awards and the British Journalism Award for criminal investigation.

She was the writer and presenter of the multi-award-winning documentary Who Killed Emma? and the hit BBC podcast of the same name which launched in 2021 to critical acclaim. Shortlisted for the Webby Awards for Best Series, it was based on her investigation into the murder of a young woman. A man was subsequently arrested and is awaiting trial, charged with one murder and 43 rapes and serious sexual assaults.

Her work includes investigating human trafficking by organised crime gangs from eastern Europe to the UK, filming in Iraq to show military operations post-invasion, investigated banking call centres in India, working in Pakistan to expose illegal practices within the surgical instrument trade between Pakistan and the NHS with child exploitation front and centre, and investigating the hidden deaths of former servicemen in Iraq and Afghanistan whilst on UK Government contracts.

Sam is also a trainer in investigative journalism for BBC Media Action and has conducted investigations training for teams in Nepal, Central Asia and the Caucasus.

Sam lives in Scotland and, outside of work, enjoys paddleboarding and riding her Ducati motorbike through the Highlands.