From the Shell Papers To the Hungarian PM’s Family Business: FOIA Requests and Journalism

The online event featured two investigative journalism cases, through which the audience got an insight into the methods journalists use to get their hands on and interpret the information necessary to keep those in power in check, politicians and corporations alike. The discussion included crowdsourcing and Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)-requests, as well as audience engagement.

Bas van Beek, co-founder of Platform Authentieke Journalistiek presented the Shell Papers, focusing on the use of strategy within politically sensitive FOI procedure, while Blanka Zöldi, journalist at Direkt36, presented their investigations on Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s family businesses. The event was moderated by Pulitzer-Prize winner CMDS Fellow, Dean Starkman.