Investigative Reporters & Editors (IRE) is providing free access to training resources designed to give journalists the knowledge and tools they need to dig deeper into stores.

Investigative Reporters and Editors Inc. is, according to the organization’s website, “a grassroots nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the quality of investigative reporting. IRE was formed in 1975 to create a forum in which journalists throughout the world could help each other by sharing story ideas, newsgathering techniques and news sources.”

I’ve been a member of IRE for about 30 years, and have found it’s many resources to be an invaluable.

The first newly resource is a set of live and recorded webinars designed to aid reporters in their work during this unprecedented crisis. These programs should also be of interest to anyone interested in the hard work and ongoing educatio and training that goes into news reporting.

One of the recorded webinars is likely to be useful to a wider audience of bloggers, journalists at all levels, and anyone trying to reach a wider digital audience.

TV and radio broadcasting from home
(Co-hosted with RTDNA)

Speakers: Eric Flack, investigative reporter at WUSA9 Washington; Danielle Leigh, investigative reporter at ABC7 New York/WABC; and Lee Zurik, director of investigations for Gray Television and chief investigative reporter at WVUE in New Orleans. Hosted by Cindy Galli, chief of investigative projects for ABC News and Denise Malan, deputy executive director of IRE.

Step inside the living rooms of veteran local TV and radio investigative reporters to see how they’ve adapted to “work from home.” So how do you do it? How are we all broadcasting from home? What do you need gear-wise? What are best practices for Skype interviews? How do you make TV or radio without a studio? Can you actually create a green screen in your apartment? (Hint: yes, we’ve done it).

There is a tip sheet accompanying this webinar that surveys useful software and hardware. Well worth check out if you have any interest in reaching an online audience.

Here are a few of the other topics covered by the webinar series so far.

Investigating higher ed amid COVID-19

Speakers: Elizabeth Brixey, Missouri School of Journalism; Michael Vasquez, Chronicle of Higher Education; Shera Avi-Yonah, The Harvard Crimson; and Mike Hiestand, SPLC’s senior legal counsel. Hosted by David Herzog, IRE & Missouri School of Journalism; Sarah Hutchins, IRE; Denise Malan, IRE.

Covering job losses and economic fallout from coronavirus

Speakers: Paul Overberg, The Wall Street Journal; Keith Taylor, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis; Wendi C. Thomas, MLK50

Fact-checking coronavirus stories
(Co-hosted with Society of Professional Journalists)

Speakers: Rachana Pradhan, Kaiser Health News; Samantha Sunne, independent journalist; Cristina Tardáguila, International Fact Checking Network; Claire Wardle, First Draft News

IRE Chat: Janine Zacharia on covering disinformation

Speakers: Janine Zacharia, journalist and lecturer at Stanford University; interview conducted by IRE training director Cody Winchester.

Fighting for open records during the COVID-19 crisis
(Co-hosted with Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press)

Speakers: Adam Marshall and Gunita Singh, Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press; Jason Leopold, BuzzFeed News; hosted by Denise Malan of IRE

I’ll review the other newly available resource library tomorrow.