Between July 8th and July 19th, I gained work experience at Help Me Investigate - a website which helps people and journalists investigate topics in the public interest. After conducting investigations as part of my university degree, I wanted to experience this practice in the working world. Investigative journalism is a possible career choice for me so it is important to build up knowledge in this area.
As part of the placement, I helped sub-edit a number of stories. This involved me improving the writing of other Help Me Investigate contributors so the work was more interesting to read. Click here to read an investigation into the London 2012 Olympics, which I edited.
Furthermore, I attended the CIJ Summer School (discussed in my previous post) as part of my work placement. I live-blogged and tweeted for Help Me Investigate during the investigative journalism course. Click here to see my live blog. I believe this exercise helped improve my social media skills and gave me an insight into conducting live blogging. After returning, I wrote up the classes from the CIJ Summer School and summarised them into 'top tips' and 'how to' posts. Click here to read my finished articles from the CIJ Summer School.
Attending this event as a Help Me Investigate contributor also helped me with my communication skills. I used the CIJ Summer School to network and create contacts in the investigative journalism industry. I handed out business cards and discussed Help Me Investigate's work with various individuals. This made me more confident to speak to others and really pushed me out of my comfort zone, which I found exciting and intriguing.
To add to this, I assisted Help Me Investigate with ongoing investigations. This involved me chasing stories and quotes from a variety of individuals and companies. I found that this task helped improve my telephone communication, which I feel I need practice in. I believe my confidence has grown when speaking to professionals in regards to retrieving quotes and information.
Overall, I really enjoyed my experience at Help Me Investigate. I think my knowledge of investigative journalism has significantly grown and conducting investigations outside of university has definitely benefited me. I wish to gain more experience within this industry in the future.
Abbey Hartley
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