Heliograph: The Investigative Journalism Playbook
Heliograph is a monthly podcast from the Investigative Journalism Bureau that explores powerful investigative reporting from around the world. Hosted by IJB journalists, it goes behind the stories to examine the strategies, challenges, risks, and lessons behind impactful investigations. Each episode features candid conversations with experienced reporters about their methods, motivations, and the change their work creates. The show also reflects the IJB's educational mission to support rigorous investigative research and storytelling in the public interest.
Episodes
Heliograph LIVE: Jennifer Fraser on how the "gaslit brain" rewires us
Heliograph LIVE, a special feature of the Investigative Journalism Bureau’s Heliograph podcast, where we showcase compelling interviews. In this episode, host Rob Cribb reconnects with author and researcher Dr.Jennifer Fraser, whom he first met in 2014 while reporting on allegations of physical and emotional abuse involving young athletes in Victoria, B.C., including her son. Fraser’s experie
Heliograph: Arthur Caplan on Can We Trust the System Behind Drug Trials
In this episode of Heliograph, host Blair Bigham sits down with world-famous bioethicist Dr. Arthur Caplan to pull back the curtain on the shadowy world of phase one clinical trials, where new drugs are tested on humans for the first time in a broken system of incentives and lies.The IJB had the pleasure of speaking with the professor from his office at NYU Langone in New York City. Caplan, t
Heliograph Snapshots: Ben Hallman, Breaking Ground on International Health Reporting
In the latest episode of Heliograph Snapshots, host Ryan McMahon speaks with Ben Hallman, founder and executive director of The Examination. The IJB had the pleasure of catching up with him after the inaugural IJB x IRE cross-border investigative journalism conference to speak about holding big corporations accountable for global health harms, the growth of collaborative journalism in the investig
Heliograph Snapshots: David Cay Johnston, Journalism in a Democracy at Risk
In this episode of Heliograph: Snapshots host Ryan McMahon sits down with Pulitzer Prize winning David Cay Johnston. The IJB had the pleasure of catching up with the New York Times best selling author after the inaugural IJB x IRE cross-border investigative journalism conference to speak on the current state of investigative journalism, the role it has in a functioning democracy and the implicatio
Heliograph LIVE: Rick Westhead on Investigating Corruption and Abuse in Sports
Heliograph LIVE is a special feature in the Investigative Journalism Bureau’s Heliograph podcast series where we showcase compelling interviews.Welcome to the Press Club, a unique gathering in the cozy Press Club room of Toronto’s Curatus Wine Club. These events bring together reporters, editors, and news enthusiasts to celebrate the work of some of the country’s most distinguished journalists and
Heliograph Snapshots: Reporting on The Invisible Burdens of Women
In this episode of Heliograph: Snapshots, we talk with IJB OG, Emma Jarratt. What makes Jarratt's reporting important is not just that her work takes aim at power, but that her work shares stories that are hiding in plain sight. These are stories we should not take for granted. They’re stories we should have known by now and reckoned with. And they are stories that report on the invisible sufferin
Heliograph Chapter 7: Reporting on the sadistic world of monkey torture
In the latest episode of Heliograph, BBC reporters Rebecca Henschke, Joel Gunter, and Astudestra Ajengrastri reveal the harrowing process behind their documentary, "Saving Mini: Inside the Global Network Torturing Baby Monkeys." They discuss handling dark subject matter, interviewing sources with twisted motivations, and the challenges of undercover reporting. Heliograph examines the brillian
Heliograph Snapshots: Reporting on death featuring Robert Cribb
In this episode of Heliograph:Snapshots, Robert Cribb, director of the Investigative Journalism Bureau and investigative journalist with the Toronto Star, delves into the complex world of medical assistance in dying, (MAID). He reflects on the ethical challenges and emotional impact of reporting on end-of-life issues while also examining the role of investigative journalism in shaping our understa
Heliograph Chapter 6: Stacked Against
In this month’s installment of Heliograph: The Investigative Journalism Playbook, IJB reporters Alina Snisarenko and Norma Hilton speak with Jacob Biba about his investigation with the Carolina Public Press, "Stacked Against." The investigation explores how plea deals, charge stacking and consecutive sentencing can result in long prison sentences, straining the bonds of families burdened by the in
Heliograph Chapter 5: Suspended
In this monthly install of the Heliograph: The Investigative Journalism Playbook, IJB reporters Wendy-Ann Clarke and Masih K interview one of the IJB’s own, Declan Keogh, on the bureau’s groundbreaking “Suspended” series. The series took a deep dive into a previously unexamined phenomenon of Ontarians losing their driving licences due to unfounded medical conditions.Heliograph examines the brillia
Heliograph Chapter 4: Above the Law
In this month’s installment of Heliograph: The Investigative Journalism Playbook, IJB reporters Wendy-Ann Clarke and Masih Khalatbari speak with South African reporter Daneel Knoetze about his award-winning investigation with Viewfinder, “Above the Law.” The investigation exposed data on killings by police and thousands of other cases of alleged corruption and police brutality. Knoetze’s work
Heliograph Chapter 3: Uncovering how cancer-stricken children around the world were given faulty drugs
In this month’s installation of Heliograph: The Investigative Journalism Playbook, reporters Rosa Furneaux and Laura Margottini at the Bureau of Investigative Journalism (BIJ) take us behind the scenes into their award-winning investigation that revealed the global spread of poor-quality childhood cancer medicines. Check out the shipping database that was crucial to the reporting at
Heliograph Chapter 2: The Vulkan Files
In this month’s installation of Heliograph: The Investigative Journalism Playbook, we speak with Hannes Munzinger, the lead reporter on a Der Spiegel investigation on the leaked Vulkan files. Among the contents of the leak were emails and documents that spanned from 2016 to 2021, unveiling Vladimir Putin’s secret plans for cyber warfare. Heliograph examines the brilliant, elusive and inspiring wo
Heliograph Chapter 1: Unguarded
In this month's episode, IJB reporters Norma Hilton and Alina Snisarenko speak with Florida reporters Daniel Rivero and Joshua Ceballos about their series, "Unguarded." The series uncovered that the Guardianship Program of Dade County, a non-profit that receives financial assistance from the government, was selling homes from people deemed unable to care for themselves at cheap prices to companies
Introducing Heliograph
Heliograph: The Investigative Journalism Playbook is the The Investigative Journalism Bureau's monthly podcast, examining powerful investigative journalism from around the world. The podcast will pull back the curtain on the strategies, lessons learned, and stories behind the stories that change the world.Hosted by IJB journalists, listeners can expect candid conversations with accomplis
