investigative business journalism - finding and using public documents by alec klein
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Presented by Alec Klein Professor, Medill School of Journalism Northwestern University Madison, Wis., Sept. 28, 2013
What documents to look for and where to find them
¡ The secret to investigative business reporting is…
¡ Start with: § Lexis-‐Nexis § Google
¡ You don’t need to know where all the public documents are.
¡ You need to know what questions to ask to find them.
¡ To wit: 192.com
¡ Baltimore Sun investigation: Supermarket bankruptcy
¡ Words of wise editor: “The good reporters know what’s missing.”
¡ Thinking: I never know what’s missing. ¡ Did you check for hidden depositions? ¡ Not in court record: wads of cash in brown paper bags ¡ Before the jump on A1
¡ What are they? ¡ Where do you get them? § SEC's Edgar § Company website
¡ 10-‐K
¡ 10-‐Q: What’s the first thing to look for?
¡ Proxy: What’s the first thing to look for?
¡ SEC public filings only go so far.
¡ What is considered “material” to investors?
¡ Material: Any information related to a particular business that might be relevant to an investor's decision to buy, sell or hold a security
¡ A company can slice its business into small sectors that don’t require disclosure.
¡ To wit: AOL
Check out Robin Phillips’ webinar on LinkedIn, sourcing through social networking at http://businessjournalism.org/2012/02/29/getting-‐linkedin-‐sourcing-‐through-‐social-‐networking-‐self-‐guided-‐training/.
¡ Former employees ¡ Sworn testimony ¡ Copies of contracts ¡ Business strategy
¡ Where to find lawsuits § State and federal suits ▪ Many online
§ If not online, check Lexis-‐Nexis § If not there, check Pacer for federal
suits
§ http://pacer.psc.uscourts.gov (not free)
¡ Pulling documents § Big issue? § Money
¡ Gold mine § Pacer
¡ For what? § Creditors, assets, debts, lawyers, suppliers, vendors
¡ Key kinds? § Chapter 7: liquidation § Chapter 11: reorganization
¡ SEC
¡ FCC
¡ FDA
§ Key: on almost every investigative business story, there is a government body that has some connection to it.
¡ Congressional Testimony ¡ Contradictions ¡ Remember the tobacco
executives who claimed they didn’t know anything about the addictive power of cigarettes?
¡ Company email ¡ Internal newsletters § Get on the mailing list, if possible.
¡ Remember: Don’t steal, don’t lie, don’t break into computer system. § Chiquita Banana case
¡ Wall Street analyst reports
¡ Property records: § County or other local office
§ Many online § Good to check for:
§ Size, details of executive’s home
¡ Other great resources: § Planning department § Zoning § Construction § Driver records ▪ Depends on state; e.g., Maryland, need permission of driver for records
¡ Better Business Bureau § Consumer complaints
¡ Uniform Commercial Code § State records, secretary of state usually; shows who has borrowed money, what used as collateral, etc.
¡ Incorporation records § Usually secretary of state; records of founding of the business, including who owns it, its executives, etc.
§ Reynolds guide to where to find them in 50 states ¡ Hoovers: Hoovers.com ¡ OpenCorporates.com: company records from 75 jurisdictions around the world
¡ Can get detailed tax filings—990s—of their finances from the nonprofits themselves
¡ Or try Guidestar at www.guidestar.org
¡ Airplane-‐ownership search § Landings.com
¡ Finding lawyers § Martindale.com
¡ Message boards, blogs
¡ Website ownership § http://www.whois.sc/
¡ Internet archive: old websites § www.archive.org
¡ HARO: Helpa ReporterOut.com
¡ ProfNet: email queries for experts. § www.profnet.com
¡ Referenceusa.com ¡ Superpages.com ¡ AnyWho.com ¡ Switchboard.com ¡ Infobel.com: international directory
¡ Lexis and other pay sites: § Expensive § Even at The Washington Post: key holder
§ But good resource for investigative or beat reporting ▪ Personal information: telephone numbers
▪ Neighbors ▪ Legal judgments
¡ Opensecrets.org: Center for Responsive Politics
¡ Tray.com: Political Moneyline
¡ Publicintegrity.org: Center for Public Integrity
¡ Followthemoney.org: National Institute on Money in State Politics
¡ Lobbyists and Other Legislative Resources:
§ http://www.fara.gov/ lobbying on behalf of foreign entities
§ Congressional Research Service: http://www.opencrs.com
§ GAO Reports: www.gao.gov § Thomas website:
http://thomas.loc.gov/: basic legislation, Congressional reports and records
¡ www.reporter.org/desktop/tips/johndoe.htm § Born, married, died § Previous addresses, relatives, associates
§ Lawsuits, bankruptcies, divorce, criminal, traffic
§ Home phone § Attended college § Real estate § Etc.
¡ Courtesy of Duff Wilson
¡ Truth About Criminal Records: § There is a national criminal
record database, but it is not available to the public.
§ FBI database § Public access to criminal
records controlled at the state level
§ Each state has different rules about who may access records and what records will be available.
§ Some records handled at the county level.
¡ FOIA: the good and the bad § Secret bonuses § “Oh, that bonus” § Reprocessors ▪ List of reprocessors ▪ No List ▪ List ▪ Names missing from list
¡ FOIAs can be used to acquire data. Check out The Seattle Times’ Michael J. Berens' Oct. 22-‐23 webinar, Data Journalism 101, at http://businessjournalism.org/2013/03/11/data-‐journalism-‐101-‐online-‐oct-‐22-‐23/.
¡ Beware:
§ They might leave stuff out. § Of fishing expeditions § Of unexpected costs
¡ Sample FOIA letters: www.nfoic.org/sample-‐foia-‐letters
¡ FOIA-‐letter generator: www.rcfp.org/foialetter/index.php
¡ Not public
¡ They may say “Confidential.”
¡ You need to interpret, analyze, translate.
¡ Please feel free to contact me at alecklein@gmail.com.
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