The Italian mafia has established a hidden but lethal presence in Africa. Its members own diamond mines, nightclubs, and land, all with the complicity of corrupt regimes. Mafia, Inc. is more than ever a global business, infiltrating legitimate economies worldwide. An international team of reporters from the non-profit investigative journalism centres IRPI and ANCIR partnered with QUATTROGATTI and CORRECT!V to uncover for the first time the Italian mafia's grip on Africa.
Supported by two working grants for independent journalism, the Innovation in Development Reporting Grant Programme of the European Journalism Centre and Journalism Fund, the work took seven months and included trips to Italy, South Africa, Namibia, Senegal and Kenya. Ten investigative reporters from six different countries, one data-journalist, one data-scientist, three editors, one cross-examiner, and a host of lawyers joined the effort in producing in-depth research into the Mafia's involvement in 13 countries.
In this session, four journalists involved will discuss how they conducted this investigation. They will share pivotal lessons with fellow investigative journalists on how to work in international, multidisciplinary teams on complicated cross-border issues.
This session is held in cooperation with the European Journalism Centre and the Innovation in Development Reporting Grant Programme (Journalismgrants.org)