The Backstory

In this conversation, award-winning journalist Lisa Armstrong discusses her investigation about a young woman who was sent to isolated confinement multiple times before she died by suicide, the challenges of reporting on such a delicate topic, and how she got access to the documents and videos to tell the story. Her investigation, “When Solitary Confinement is a Death Sentence,” was produced in pa...

In this conversation, we talk to Sarah Sax about her investigation “When the Heat Is Unbearable but There’s Nowhere to Go,” produced in partnership with High Country News. Sax discusses Washington state prisons’ grievance process, how she connected with incarcerated sources, and her advice for reporters interested in reporting on conditions inside prisons. FURTHER READING “When the Heat Is Unbeara...

In this conversation, we talk to Type Investigations reporting fellow Sarah Posner about her latest piece on Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito’s leaked draft opinion for Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization and her reporting on the evangelical Christian right. Posner discusses how she started reporting on the Christian right, the tactics evangelical right wing groups use in their campaign...

In this conversation, we talk to reporter Jaeah Lee about her investigation, “This Rap Song Helped Sentence a 17-Year-Old to Prison for Life,” produced in partnership with The New York Times. Lee discusses why she felt it was important to use a data-driven approach for her investigation, why she focused on Tommy Canady’s case, and the challenges of having an incarcerated source. “This Rap Song Hel...

In this conversation, we talk to 2020-2021 Ida B. Wells fellow Akintunde Ahmad about his investigation “What Happened When Oakland Tried To Make Police Pay for Misconduct.” Ahmad discusses how he developed some of the sources for his story, the challenges he faced reporting on events from decades ago, and what activists can learn from this failed attempt at police reform. “What Happened When Oakla...

In this conversation, we talk to Lannan reporting fellow Melissa del Bosque about her experiences reporting on the U.S.-Mexico border and her investigation into the murder of two Guatemalan migrants by Texas state troopers. Del Bosque discusses how she started reporting on the border, the difficulty of talking to the families of victims when there hasn’t been any justice, and why it’s important to...

In this conversation, we talk to Type Investigations reporting fellow Adam Federman about his newest article on permafrost thaw in Alaska, and his reporting on government policy on oil and gas development on public lands. Federman discusses how he started reporting on the government’s role in fossil fuel development, the importance of emphasizing the human impacts of climate change, and the diffic...

In this conversation, we talk to former Type Investigations reporting fellow Seth Freed Wessler about his new documentary “The Facility and how his reporting led to the film’s creation. Wessler discusses how he started reporting on Georgia’s Irwin County Detention Center, why he felt it was important to show what was happening as COVID-19 spread inside the facility, and how reporting on it would h...

In this conversation, we talk to Ida B. Wells fellow Irene Romulo about her investigation into ‘gang contracts’ students in Cicero and Berwyn, Illinois, are pressured into signing. Romulo discusses how she discovered the ‘gang contracts,’ the importance of writing for the community you report on, and the impact her story has had on students in her community. Romulo’s story, “‘Gang Contracts’ in Ci...

In this conversation, we hear from journalist and author Sylvia A. Harvey about her investigation into how the foster care system often removes parental rights from parents who have been to prison. Harvey talks about the challenges of covering the foster care system, why she focused on a father, Kenneth Clark, rather than a mother, and how she slowly gained his trust. Harvey’s story, in partnershi...

In this conversation, investigative journalist and documentary filmmaker Sarah McClure describes her year-long reporting into sexual abuse in the Amish communities, her reporting process, and the difficulties of covering sexual assault in insular communities. The investigation, published in partnership with Cosmopolitan, reveals how Amish church leaders concealed sexual abuse in their communities....

In this conversation, we learn from film producer and director Juliana Schatz Preston about the challenges of reporting on bureaucratic systems, how Preston broached sensitive topics with sources, and why it’s important to report on solutions as well as problems. Preston, a 2018-17 Ida B. Wells Fellow with Type Investigations, revealed how parents of children with severe mental illness feel pressu...