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Some journalistic epiphanies take a long time to form. In my case, 30 years. That is how long it took me to realize somebody needed to conduct a systematic examination [...]

A bibliography is presented on books published in 2000 that focus on investigative reporting, along with a brief commentary on a select few. The list is compiled alphabetically by author and includes the title and the publisher.

A list is presented on explanatory books written by investigative journalists, along with brief backgrounds on selected texts and their authors. Topics include reporters' relationships with their sources, comparing the tactics used by Watergate reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein to those used by Michael Isikoff in tracking Pres Bill Clinton's affair with Monica Lewinsky.

Issues discussed concern the investigative reporting techniques of newspaper journalists Anne Hull and Katherine Boo. Topics addressed include writing stories that are infused with personal and social passion, taking new angles on the news, and creating characters in journalistic writing.

Crucial journalistic practices and techniques are illustrated by winners of the Investigative Reporters and Editors assn awards. These include perseverance in information gathering and persistence in obtaining editorial support for stories; a list of the winners and their categories is also presented.

The investigative techniques of Time magazine reporters Donald Barlett and James Steele are examined, using their expose of corporate welfare as an example. A brief history is also included on how the two formed their journalistic partnership.

The investigative reporting of Gary Webb, author of 'Dark Alliance: The CIA, the Contras, and the Crack Cocaine Explosion' is discussed. Topics addressed include the negative press Webb received after the publication of his article that linked the US Central Intelligence Agency with the integration of crack cocaine into the Los Angeles ghettos.

Rarely have so many serious books been challenged in such detail on accuracy grounds. In our May/June issue, CJR examined the many charges of errors, intentional and unintentional, against the [...]

Some newspapers are giving writers a wealth of time and space, urging them to get intimate with subjects. They call it Immersion Journalism. The standards that guide newspapers have been [...]

Issues discussed concern the style and reporting techniques of investigative journalist Seymour Hersh, whose book, 'The Dark Side of Camelot,' has inspired much criticism from other journalists in the field. Topics addressed include Hersh's coverage of Pres John F. Kennedy's scandals, as well as the reporting highlights of his career.

Journalist Gary Webb's revelations about the Central Intelligence Agency's alleged involvement in crack cocaine sales have elicited both public appreciation and criticism. The series 'Dark Alliance: The Story Behind the Crack Explosion,' published in the San Jose Mercury News, is compelling and impressive. However, critics query its motives, reportage, presentation and findings. Together with other controversial investigations, the San Jose project has put to test the ethos of journalism in the 1990s by problematizing journalists' obligation to practice or eschew expert journalism.

When ABC News apologized to Philip Morris last August for an award-winning 1994 Day One investigation called 'Smoke Screen,' about the manipulation of nicotine in cigarettes, most journalists were stunned. [...]

Every journalist can be an investigative reporter. The main requirement is curiosity, plus a degree of scepticism. Some journalists are investigative by instinct but others must acquire the skill from books. True investigative reporters gather information by themselves and a degree of secrecy or evasion may be present. All investigative journalists must be expert at gathering information and must be sure it is accurate.

Investigative journalists should exercise tact and caution when dealing with stories on the improprieties committed by political figures. Charges of this nature, also known as eleventh-hour allegations, are difficult to substantiate and report, specially if the subject under investigation is still to be nominated into office. Public opinion towards exposes of this nature are not always favorable, however, members of the media should always bear in mind that they are responsible for informing the public on the foibles of their public servants.

'Making of a Myth, The October Suprise: It Wasn't Treason, But a Conspiracy Theory Run Wild,' said the title and subtitle in the November 11, 1991, Newsweek. The seven-page article [...]

All the media attention devoted to Kitty Kelley's biography of Nancy Reagan, published by Simon & Schuster, had some beneficial fallout: a few news organizations examined not only what Kelley [...]

The First Chapter of |Telling the Untold Story,' the Book On Investigative Reporters' Changing the Craft When Robert Caro finished his biography of Robert Moses in 1974, he marked an [...]

'Secrets: A Writer in the Cold War' is an autobiography of 'The New Yorker' magazine investigative reporter Paul Brodeur. The memoir narrates Brodeur's polemical world view, including his idea that profit-greedy corporations, the defense-oriented government and the insurance industry are collaborating against citizens and the environment. Brodeur, who has done sensitive defense-related work for the government, has been subjected to several court actions due to his journalistic attacks on government and private enterprises.

The investigative team of Donald L. Barlett and James B. Steele of the Philadelphia Inquirer wrote one of the most debated exposes in the history of journalism. In the 1991 article 'America: What Went Wrong? and the 1996 follow-up 'America: Who Stole the Dream,' they described how lawmakers, presidents, executive branch rule makers, corporate executives, Wall Street financiers and lobbyists collaborated to ruin the standing of middle-class Americans. Their work is controversial because they created a new kind of journalism that has an unprecedented scope and employs advanced, hybrid techniques.

When Charles E. Shepard, one of the best investigative reporters I know, left the projects team at The Washington Post in 1995, I was surprised. He had won a Pulitzer [...]

At the other extreme, stories suggest neval and maybe illegal activity: Politician Q received a $5,000 contribution from an out-of-state tobacco company, then several months later voted to increase subsidies [...]