Is Investigative Journalism Dying in Jamaica?

In contemporary Jamaican society, many individuals have written off investigative journalism and have pronounced it dead. A letter to the editor appeared in the Jamaica Gleaner written by a Tryrell Morris that raised a rather skeptical eyebrow when it was read. The article was entitled “Where is the Investigative Journalism?” and expressed the writer’s distaste of the so-called lack of work that journalists in Jamaica are doing when it comes to pursuing in-depth investigations. The 2019 article cited only one example of this instance in which he believed little to no investigation was done, not taking into consideration the fact that that example in itself, was an investigation. He described the work of Journalists as lazy, on-the-surface work of news reporting and expressed that he is frustrated by it. Morris also mentioned that the only instance in which investigative journalism was practice was by Janice Budd on CVM TV’s Probe of that same topic.

We are not completely in agreement with the claim that our Jamaica-based Journalists are not doing their required investigation in the stories that they are producing. I disagree for very good reasons. There are countless other examples, especially recent ones in which extensive research was exerted, and the numerous awards won for Investigative Journalism at the Press Association of Jamaica Journalism (PAJ) Awards yearly. The cases vary depending on the nature of the story. It is clear that the writer of this editorial did not do any research before sending this letter, or if he did, it was not enough as ignorance was evident.

Working with the only example that was given in the article, claiming that not enough probing was done for the report, it is quite obvious that the information that the writer was looking for could not be obtained since the case was still ongoing. However, if one really pays attention to the news, especially TVJ news, you will realize stories presented there show the amount of legwork that is put into it. A few cases are the corruption story at the Firearm Licensing Authority (FLA), the Ruel Reid situation, and the Petrojam Scandal. Those are huge stories that require a great deal of scrutiny. A smaller story such as the one reported on TVJ News on May 28, 2019, where a police officer was held in custody because he allegedly killed his wife, highlights Investigative Journalism. TVJ’s Shemala Pullen went on the scene of the crime, spoke to the deceased niece and mother, and later updates were made on the case. Is that not Investigative Journalism? Perhaps the writer’s understanding of investigative journalism is different from the posited definition of the term. According to dictionary.cambridge.org, it is a type of journalism that seeks to discover information of public interest that someone is trying to hide. The story of the long wait at a comprehensive clinic in St Andrew may not be information that was being kept hidden, but it is of great human interest.

It is not fair for Morris to say that Investigative Journalism in Jamaica is being “lazy,” because the awards issued by the Press Association of Jamaica denote that there is work being done in that regard. According to a publication in the Gleaner on December 3, 2017, the Hugh Crosskill/Raymond Sharpe Award for investigative journalism award went to Dania Bogle from The Gleaner and Jordan Forte from TVJ. A November 2018 report on RJR News revealed that Giovanni Dennis of TVJ won three awards including one for Investigative Journalism. The Jamaica Observer gave more flesh on the awards of 2018 when it stated that the President's Award for Investigative Journalism went to Giovanni Dennis, TVJ for Pothole Paradise and the Certificate of Merit: Andrea Chisholm, TVJ for FLA Licence Series. Is this not evidence of Investigative Journalism being conducted, or does the PAJ normally give away awards like these on a yearly basis for no apparent reason? These are the two most recent PAJ Journalism Awards,  which take place annually. The one for 2019 has not occurred as yet, but based on what is portrayed in the media recently, it is safe to say that there will be another one or two of this award to be issued.

If a direct response should be given in regards to the example Morris used about the Uchence Wilson Gang trial, I would say that given the circumstances, the information reported was all that could be obtained because Journalists cannot really interview a witness like that unless they are willing to breach their code of ethics. Added to that is the fact that these witnesses are usually afraid to talk to Journalists especially about the things they may know relating to the trials. If a reporter cannot get a person to talk about something, they cannot force them to do so as it is highly unethical and may lead to the tarnish of a Journalist’s career.

With that being said, the digital age is a renaissance period for investigative reporting. Because it brings a revival of investigative journalism where the culture and style of the profession changes, embracing the new media platforms that emerge with the digital age. This has been made possible through collaboration and scaling up investigations to national and transnational levels. The downside to scaling up investigations is that local inquiries may suffer. Investigations may also be more narrowly targeted to assure a story outcome. There are different models of collaboration and established media play a critical role in all of them. Some partnerships have been more successful than others. WikiLeaks collapsed, in part, because power in the partnership was not distributed equally, and personal relationships were strained.

Data journalism plays a vital role in enabling reporters to interrogate information and find patterns in the data indicating systemic wrongdoing. This includes incorporating social science methods such as statistical analysis to reveal “hidden truths”. Mass anonymous data leaks combined with large-scale investigative collaborations push back against national governments’ national security laws that hamper journalists’ access to, and use of, sensitive documents and hinder whistleblowers’ capacity to speak out.

Investigative journalism is evidence-based reporting. This makes it a vital counter-narrative to fake news. Verified news returns authority to mastheads and media brands, which can offset falling public trust in media.

See the links below for further references

http://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/news/20171203/rjrgleaner-group-reporters-take-top-honours-paj-awards

https://www.adnews.com.au/opinion/debunking-the-myth-that-investigative-journalism-is-dying

http://rjrnewsonline.com/local/big-wins-for-rjrgleaner-group-at-paj-awards-ceremony

http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/observer-s-porter-junior-happy-with-journalism-awards_150736