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CIJ Summer Conference

25–26 June 2026

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Thu 25 Jun
Fri 26 Jun
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Class Talk Demo Welcome Keynote Course Workshop Tools Case study Gavin MacFadyen Memorial Lecture
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Hacking Infosec Journalism Sources Technology Law Legal Local Journalism AI Data Climate Investigation Security Methodology Tools OSINT Freedom of Information Freelancers Ukraine War Crimes Business Crime Financial Impact International Justice Supply Chains Abuse Open Source Disinformation Fact-checking Coding Undercover Narrative
 
Thursday 25 June
  • 25 June 2026 08.45–09.30
Summer Conference Event

Registrations Days 1+2

Register today if you booked Days 1+2 and Day 1 tickets.
  • 25 June 2026 09.30–09.50
Summer Conference Event
 — Talk Welcome

Welcome

A welcome to the conference by James Harkin, Director of the Centre for Investigative Journalism, and Dr Omega Douglas, Head of Journalism and Strategic Communications at Goldsmiths, University of London.
People
  • 25 June 2026 09.50–10.30
Summer Conference Event
 — Gavin MacFadyen Memorial Lecture Keynote

Harry Shukman: Undercover in the British far right

Harry Shukman spent more than a year infiltrating far-right groups for a Channel 4 Documentary. From canvassing with Britain First to befriending Holocaust deniers, neo-Nazis and a Silicon Valley-backed race-science organisation, Shukman again and again risked his safety and sanity to remove the far right’s terrifyingly everyday mask.
People
  • 25 June 2026 10.50–16.30
Summer Conference Event
 — Course

Understanding Company Accounts 1-4

This mini course taught by a journalist-friendly forensic accountant will show you how to understand company accounts and get beyond the corporate PR spin. The emphasis will be on teaching practical skills rather than a series of lectures.
People
  • 25 June 2026 10.50–13.00
Summer Conference Event
 — Course

Data Journalism: Spreadsheets 1-2. Hands-on. [B+I]

Hands-on. Beginner-Intermediate. This two-part hands-on express data journalism course will introduce you to the basics of data analysis in Google Sheets. Suitable for beginners (part I) and intermediates (part II).
People
  • 25 June 2026 10.50–11.50
Summer Conference Event
 — Class

Fighting Climate Dis and Misinformation

Misinformation and disinformation on climate change are growing and are one of the major obstacles inhibiting or delaying progress in tackling the issue. The objective of this session is to enhance the capacity of participants to counter misleading information around climate change.
People
  • 25 June 2026 10.50–11.50
Summer Conference Event
 — Class

OSINT: Building Investigations with Open-Source Intelligence

This is a short course for those new to open-source intelligence. The workshop will look at how open-source techniques can be used to enhance your online research, verification skills and uncover connections between a range of different investigative targets, from people and companies, to organisations, marine and air freight and infrastructure.
People
  • 25 June 2026 12.00–15.10
Summer Conference Event
 — Course

Story-Based Inquiry Method 1-2

This course sets out the Story-Based Inquiry (SBI) method, which has been successfully used by thousands of journalists, academics and NGO researchers since its publication by UNESCO in 2009. The method can be used for feature writing or documentary filmmaking as well as reportage.
People
  • 25 June 2026 12.00–13.00
Summer Conference Event
 — Talk

Lessons Learned from Defending Investigative Journalism Against Legal Claims

In April 2021, in a series of articles, the Guardian broke the story of multiple accusations of bullying and sexual misconduct against Noel Clarke, a British actor, director and producer. Clarke later sued the Guardian for libel, seeking up to £70 million in damages.
People
  • 25 June 2026 14.10–16.30
Summer Conference Event
 — Course

Data Journalism: Beyond Vibe Coding – Python Essentials 1-2. Hands-On. [B-I]

Hands-on. Beginner [B]-Intermediate [I]. See each session for the details. This two-part series introduces participants to the power of Python, by journalists, for journalists. We'll help you take your first steps on the road to code, from the very basics, to working with giant spreadsheets, to extracting structured data from the web.
People
  • 25 June 2026 14.10–15.10
Summer Conference Event
 — Talk

How to Amplify Your Investigation’s Impact

Impact has become a buzzword way beyond investigative journalism. But in today's attention-fragmented environment and with news avoidance on the rise, ensuring that our stories lead to real-world change has become critical.
People
  • 25 June 2026 15.30–16.30
Summer Conference Event
 — Case study Talk

Get Results: Impact Case Studies

We will focus on two case studies highlighting the concrete impacts that investigative stories can have and what steps journalists and news organisations took to achieve this. Case study 1 Supply chains that bind: The abuse of workers behind Decathlon's profits During this session, Pierre Leibovici of Disclose (France) will share lessons learnt from a year-long investigation on the supply chain of Decathlon, one of the world’s largest sports retailers.
People
  • 25 June 2026 15.30–16.30
Summer Conference Event
 — Workshop

How to Make a Living as a Freelance Journalist (Now)

Being a freelance journalist is not easy. This practical workshop will help freelancers navigate this complex landscape and make sure they get paid for their work too. A clear, realistic picture of how freelance journalism income actually works today Practical guidance on getting paid work (not just publishing work) A better understanding of which income […]
People
  • 25 June 2026 16.50–17.50
Summer Conference Event
 — Talk

Tracking the Kinahan Cartel

Connor Plunkett of Bellingcat and John Mooney of The Sunday Times discuss their ongoing project to track the activities of the Kinahan cartel, the transnational criminal organisation based in the United Arab Emirates, including the tools and methods they have used.
People
  • 25 June 2026 16.50–17.50
Summer Conference Event
 — Talk

Fake TikTokers, Harry Potter Shops, and Snail Farms: How to Run High-Impact Local News Investigations

Jim Waterson, the editor of London Centric, explains how to run local news investigations that capture the public’s imagination and have real-world impact – without being boring.
People
Friday 26 June
  • 26 June 2026 09.30–10.00
Summer Conference Event

Registrations Day 2

Register today if you booked Day 2 tickets.
  • 26 June 2026 10.00–12.20
Summer Conference Event
 — Course

Story-Based Inquiry Method 3-4

This course sets out the Story-Based Inquiry (SBI) method, which has been successfully used by thousands of journalists, academics and NGO researchers since its publication by UNESCO in 2009. The method can be used for feature writing or documentary filmmaking as well as reportage.
People
  • 26 June 2026 10.00–11.00
Summer Conference Event
 — Class

Multimedia Skills for Your Investigation

How to turn complex investigations into impactful videos? This hands-on workshop explores how to transform dense, text-heavy reporting into short-form videos made for social media. Students will learn a practical step-by-step approach to creating explainers that are clear, engaging, and visually compelling — without losing the depth of the story.
People
  • 26 June 2026 10.00–11.00
Summer Conference Event
 — Class

Investigating White Collar Crime with Companies House and Other Datasets

Maxence Peigné will explain how to use open-source material to investigate companies, corporate structures and real ownerships to expose white collar crime. In this session, we’ll see how to make the most of the UK's corporate register, Companies House and how to bypass some of its flaws.
People
  • 26 June 2026 10.00–11.00
Summer Conference Event
 — Class

Climate Investigations: Investigating Governments

This session will focus on investigating governments. The session covers three major angles: lack of regulation; lack of enforcement; and broken promises. Across these areas, the session will identify a range of methods to uncover and evidence corruption in government decisions and actions.
People
  • 26 June 2026 11.20–12.20
Summer Conference Event
 — Workshop

From Story to Community: Designing Engagement Strategies for Investigative Journalism

This is a practical workshop. Please bring your laptop/tablet with you. The workshop will focus on practical strategies for designing engagement around an investigation. Participants learn how to identify key audiences, choose platforms that actually reach them, and plan engagement activities before, during, and after publication.
People
  • 26 June 2026 11.20–12.20
Summer Conference Event
 — Demo Talk

AI + Data Show and Tell

AI is just now all the rage, and is used for absolutely everything. Three very experienced data journalists talk about the gains, but also pitfalls, of using AI for data journalism.   Case Study 1: Hits and misses when extracting data with the help of AI Helena Bengtsson looks into ways of extracting data with the help of AI.
People
  • 26 June 2026 11.20–12.20
Summer Conference Event
 — Class

Introduction to Information Security for Journalists

Worried about digital threats to journalists? Ever been trolled or harassed online? Ever thought you’d love to work with a whistleblower or sensitive information but wouldn’t know where to start? This introductory course provides a solid foundation in information security to protect yourself and your sources.
People
  • 26 June 2026 12.30–13.30
Summer Conference Event
 — Talk

Investigating War Crimes in Occupied Territories

How to investigate war crimes having no access to the territory? How to get witnesses and talk to them? How to get information from the perpetrators themselves? Where does OSINT come in? A Ukrainian reporter shares The Kyiv Independent's War Crimes Investigations Unit's experience.
People
  • 26 June 2026 12.30–13.30
Summer Conference Event
 — Talk

How to Stand Firm in the Face of Legal Threats

Since its founding in 2020, The Liverpool Post has built a reputation for publishing hard-hitting investigative journalism that truly connects with readers. As a result, The Post has also faced its fair share of legal threats.
People
  • 26 June 2026 14.40–17.00
Summer Conference Event
 — Course

Data Journalism: Investigating Data with R 1-2. Hands-on. [B+I]

Hands-on. Beginner [B]-Intermediate [I]. Sooner or later you know you’ll come up against a dataset so big it’s going to crash Excel if you even try to open it. Maybe your questions are becoming too complex for Excel’s built-in analytics tools to handle.
People
  • 26 June 2026 14.40–15.40
Summer Conference Event
 — Demo Talk

AI Without Prompting: Tricks to Force AI to Behave in Investigations

Most journalists lose the fight with AI before it begins, by writing the prompt themselves. This session flips the relationship: instead of telling the model what to do, you make the model write its own analytical prompt — and then execute it.
People
  • 26 June 2026 14.40–17.00
Summer Conference Event
 — Course

Using the Freedom of Information Act: tips, tricks, and testing out AI. 1-2

This two-part practical course will guide you through the basics of freedom of information legislation and equip you with the skills necessary to make successful information requests and appeals.
People
  • 26 June 2026 14.40–15.40
Summer Conference Event
 — Demo Talk

Save the day with Notion – Hands-On. [B]

Recordkeeping is a breeze with Notion. Forget Google Drive and the clunky notetaking apps of Apple and Microsoft. They are just shoe boxes passively holding your stuff — Notion is a dynamic database, actively helping you get your work done and your story out.
People
  • 26 June 2026 16.00–17.00
Summer Conference Event
 — Demo Tools

Cross-Border Corporate Mapping

Many investigations start with company registries but quickly run into their limitations. Journalists often need to: Analyse registries from different countries Search for beneficial owners through multiple layers of ownership Explore global networks of companies Identify sanctioned and toxic connections Clearly and effectively visualize relationship structure.
People
  • 26 June 2026 16.00–17.00
Summer Conference Event
 — Demo Talk

How to Combine OSINT and AI for Investigations

Based on the session originally delivered in-house at BBC Verify. Open-source intelligence has always rewarded patience: long hours, many tabs, careful cross-checking. AI changes the economics of that work — but only if you use it the right way.
People
  • 26 June 2026 17.10–18.00
Summer Conference Event
 — Keynote

Catrin Nye: On investigating cults, and being harassed by them.

Following an investigation into a lifecoaching organisation called Lighthouse for a BBC podcast, the investigative reporter was shocked to find Lighthouse members turning up on her doorstep seeking to intimidate her.
People