Investigations: Journalists can still be heroes

I've written an article for InPublishing about the best investigative journalism in the UK over the past year or so, partly inspired by being a judge in the British Journalism Awards.

What struck me was the way some investigations now cross borders and involve different media collaborating, thereby evading legal action in one country that could suppress reporting. There are also interesting alliances between traditional newspapers, broadcasters and digital media for investigating stories and analysing data.

Among the stories I looked at were the HSBC files leaked from Switzerland exposing the use of tax havens; mismanagement at the Kids Company charity; the use of hard sell phone tactics on behalf of leading charities;  corruption allegations at Tower Hamlets Council; doping in athletics; politicians for hire by lobbyists; mistreatment of young offenders; the FIFA scandal; the investigation into Asian grooming gangs; and tennis match fixing.

Among the newspapers featured are the Guardian, Le Monde, Daily Mail, Mail on Sunday, Daily Telegraph, The Times and Sunday Times; as well as Private Eye and the Spectator; programmes from the BBC and Channel Four and investigations by BuzzFeed News and the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. Individual journalists mentioned include Andrew Norfolk, Andrew Jennings, Jonathan Calvert, Andrew Gilligan, Tim Minogue, Miles Goslett and Ted Jeory.

It shows that there's much more to journalism than clickbait and that journalists can still be heroes.

• The Guardian, the BBC,  Süddeutsche Zeitung and the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists and other media organisations in 78 countries have followed up the HSBC leaks investigation brilliantly with the Panama Papers, revealing how the rich and powerful hide their wealth via offshore financial deals, described as "the biggest ever leak of confidential documents."