In this episode we speak to two educators from two very different corners of the field who are doing their best to prepare students for a changing industry landscape. We discuss the pros and cons of formal training and the skills journalists need to be industry-read. It’s what you need to know to thrive in today’s media landscape.

Part 2 of a two-part series.

Interviewees

Lam Thuy Vo, Associate Professor in Data Journalism, Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism (CUNY), Investigative Reporter at Documented

Ron Haviv, Photojournalist and Co-founder of The VII Foundation

Hosted by Beatriz Ramalho da Silva and Tessa Pang

Produced by Lara Bodger

Sound edited and designed by Elli Xypolitaki / Spoovio

Music by mobygratis

Website - X - BlueSky - Instagram - and you can email us at [email protected]

Does journalism school still matter? This episode follows two early career journalists who got into the field in completely different ways: one who went to J-school twice, and one who never went at all. Part 1 of a two-part series.

Interviewees:

Laís Martins, Investigative Reporter, Intercept Brazil, Pulitzer Center AI Accountability Fellow

Shoeb Abdullah, Co-founder of the Bangladesh Protest Archive

Hosted by Beatriz Ramalho da Silva and Tessa Pang

Sound edited and designed by Elli Xypolitaki / Spoovio

Music by mobygratis

Website - X - BlueSky - Instagram - and you can email us at [email protected]

Fear, crisis, invasion. That's the way migration gets spoken about and the far right is often the one setting the tone. So how can journalism push back against this narrative? This episode brings together three people covering migration from very different angles: social media, cross border investigations, and cultural commentary with a pinch of humor.

Interviewees:

Sakhr Al-Makhadhi, Executive Producer at AJ+

May Bulman, Investigations Editor at Lighthouse Reports

Coco Khan, journalist, writer and co-host of Pod Save the UK

Hosted by Beatriz Ramalho da Silva and Tessa Pang

Sound edited and designed by Elli Xypolitaki / Spoovio

Music by mobygratis

Website - X - BlueSky - Instagram - and you can email us at [email protected]

The antidote to news fatigue might be closer to home than you think.

This episode dives into the strategies local outlets use to build connection with their communities and deliver journalism that truly resonates.

From the UK to India and the Brazilian Amazon, we spoke to the journalists who are making it work.

Interviewees:

• Moya Lothian-McLean, Managing Editor at Mill Media
• Juliana Mori, Co-founder of InfoAmazonia
• Pooja Prasanna, Editorial Head of Reporting, The News Minute

Hosted by Beatriz Ramalho da Silva and Tessa Pang

Sound edited and designed by Elli Xypolitaki / Spoovio

Music by mobygratis 

Website - X - BlueSky - Instagram - and you can email us at [email protected]

Trust in the media is at an all-time low. So what’s going wrong? Who’s actually fixing it? And what can we learn from alternative news models emerging around the world?

To tackle these questions, Beatriz and Tessa speak with Ed Lee, who led the New York Times Trust Team, independent journalist Joi Lee and Isaac Saul, founder of Tangle News.

Hosts: Beatriz Ramalho da Silva, Tessa Pang

Sound editing and design: Elli Xypolitaki / Spoovio

Music by mobygratis 

Website - X - BlueSky - Instagram - and you can email us at [email protected]

Everyone loves to win awards. But what does it mean to reward good journalism? 

In the latest Backlight episode, Beatriz and Tessa speak to Jennifer Athanasiou-Prins, executive director of the European Press Prize, and Patrick Boehler, founder of the Gazzetta research lab, about

• The influence of awards on journalism
• The pitfalls of award categories 
• How awards can be reimagined to value journalism that serves the public interest

Hosts: Beatriz Ramalho da Silva, Tessa Pang

Sound editing and design: Elli Xypolitaki / Spoovio

Website - X - BlueSky - Instagram - and you can email us at [email protected]

People in Sudan are facing the world’s worst humanitarian crisis. Telling stories about what is happening on the ground has never been more urgent, or more challenging.

In the context of our latest investigation exposing ethnically motivated atrocities against civilians by the Sudanese Armed Forces, Beatriz and Tessa speak to Lighthouse editor Aziz Alnour and digital reporter Sabrina Slipchenko about

• The challenges of reporting on Sudan and how we overcame them

• How we gather and verify open source evidence, and how we conducted on-the-ground interviews with survivors

• How the work can increase public attention on Sudan, contribute to international accountability and achieve justice for survivors.

Investigations mentioned:

• The Kanabi Killings

• The Killing Fields of Al Fashir

Hosts: Beatriz Ramalho da Silva, Tessa Pang

Sound editing and design: Elli Xypolitaki / Spoovio

Website - X - BlueSky - Instagram - and you can email us at [email protected]

Reporting live from the world’s biggest investigative journalism conference in Malaysia last year, Tessa and Beatriz bring you a crash course on how to make an investigative podcast. Covering everything from identifying a good story, to constructing an intriguing narrative, and building good characters. 

We take you inside The Global Investigative Journalism Conference with some behind-the-scenes audio and Beatriz’s first try of the world’s smelliest fruit.

Guests featured in this episode:

• Susanne Reber, Founder and Executive Producer, Piz Gloria Productions

• Sue-Lin Wong, Asia Correspondent, The Economist

• Roby Alampay, Founder, PumaPodcast

Hosts: Beatriz Ramalho da Silva, Tessa Pang

Sound editing and design: Spoovio - Audiovisual Productions 
Website - X - BlueSky - Instagram - and you can email us at [email protected]

You’ve seen it in movies, but what does undercover reporting actually look like in real life?

In this episode of Backlight, we go behind the scenes of two undercover investigations and explain everything you need to know: from how to build your cover identity to what planning an undercover operation really looks like. 

Beatriz and Tessa talk to their Lighthouse colleagues, Crofton Black and Emmanuel Freudenthal, about their recent undercover investigation, Surveillance Secrets. They walk us through the creation of their character, a shady businessman named Albert, and the prep work in their back office before the big day. 

Next, they speak with Jean Peters, a senior reporter at Correctiv, about how he infiltrated a secret meeting with neo-Nazis and members of Germany’s far-right party, AfD. He talked us through the process of creating a fake persona while his colleagues followed him from a sauna boat. 

Finally, they speak to Veena Holkar, director of the non-profit organisation, Wildlight, who explained why it’s crucial to master your gear before going undercover and why women often make the best undercover reporters.

Investigations mentioned: 

Surveillance Secrets 

Secret plan against Germany

Wildlight

Hosts: Beatriz Ramalho da Silva, Tessa Pang

Sound editing and design: Spoovio - Audiovisual Productions 
Website - X - BlueSky - Instagram - and you can email us at [email protected]

What is the role of accountability journalism in post-Assad Syria? We explore this question with Syrian journalists Lighthouse digital investigator Bashar Deeb and investigative journalist Mais Katt, who talk about their first investigation in a newly free Syria.

Under the Assad regime, hundreds of Syrian children were hidden in orphanages to extort their parents. A major international charity knew, but kept silent.

Beatriz and Tessa speak with Bashar and Mais about the experience of reporting from Syria for the first time in 14 years and what it means to uncover injustice in a country still healing from dictatorship. We discuss the story’s impact and how the reporting empowered the families still searching for their children and for justice and accountability.

They also speak with Lighthouse Senior Editor, Charlotte Alfred, who explains how this cross-border collaboration came together and why international partnerships remain vital for accountability journalism in Syria.

Investigations mentioned: Syria’s Stolen Children

Hosts: Beatriz Ramalho da Silva, Tessa Pang

Sound editing and design: Spoovio - Audiovisual Productions

Website - X - BlueSky - Instagram - and you can email us at [email protected]