Forbidden Stories

🇨🇩 They risk their lives to uncover the truth. In the #DRC, reporting on cocoa plundering, armed group financing, and illegal logging often comes with a deadly price for journalists. Last month, at our SafeBox Network workshops, participants shared their (forbidden) stories. Since then, 15 independent journalists have joined our Network to safeguard their ongoing investigations. 👉 What threats do journalists face on the ground? How are they silenced? And which stories are too dangerous to tell? Watch our video to hear their powerful testimonies. ___ Ils risquent leur vie pour révéler la vérité. En #RDC, enquêter sur le pillage du cacao, le financement des groupes armés et l'exploitation illégale du bois peut avoir des conséquences mortelles pour les journalistes. Le mois dernier, lors d'ateliers #SafeBoxNetwork, les participants ont partagé leurs histoires (interdites). Depuis, 15 journalistes indépendants ont rejoint notre réseau pour protéger leurs informations sensibles. 👉 À quel type de menaces les journalistes font-ils face sur le terrain ? Comment sont-ils réduits au silence ? Et sur quels sujets est-il le plus dangereux d'enquêter ? Regardez notre vidéo et écoutez leurs témoignages inédits. Badylon Kawanda Tchèques Bukasa Honneur-David W'EKA SAFARI Paulin Aganze MOUSSA DIDY BUNAKIMA Jonas Kiriko Seros Muyisa

Bangalore, September 5, 2017. Journalist Gauri Lankesh is shot dead, two days before her editorial titled, “In the Age of False News” was supposed to be printed. What her murderers didn't know was that we would team up with over 100 journalists from 30 media outlets to expose the inner workings of the global and secretive world of disinformation mercenaries. Each day leading up to the #EndImpunity day, we will highlight a Forbidden Story until the enemies of the press realize that whatever they were trying to hide has been magnified. Going undercover, we traced disinformation narratives back to their original sources and one of our major revelations was the existence of #TeamJorge, an ultra-secret Israeli company that worked with #CambridgeAnalytica and claims to have manipulated over 30 presidential elections worldwide. Through this investigation, we exposed how disinformation can threaten democracy and press freedom by destabilizing elections, destroying reputations, inciting violence against journalists, and burying the truth around the world. Our findings reached the halls of power, with Knack presenting evidence to the Belgian Parliament, Le Monde and Radio France briefing the French National Assembly, and our team addressing the #EuropeanParliament. Together with our consortium partners, we reached more than 55 million people worldwide—4.400 times more than the readership of slain journalist Gauri Lankesh’s weekly. As long as journalism remains under attack, we will need your help—link below. #EndImpunity 👉 https://lnkd.in/dn-jeiC

Malta, October 16, 2017. Journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, the country’s most renowned corruption reporter, is brutally killed in a car bombing. What her murderers didn't not know is that we would team up with 45 journalists from 15 countries to make sure her work lived on. Each day leading up to the #EndImpunity day, we will highlight a Forbidden Story until the enemies of the press realize that whatever they were trying to hide has been magnified. Following her leads on corruption at the highest state level, the #DaphneProject revealed that the minister of Tourism and the Prime Minister’s chief of staff planned to secretly receive up to 2 millions euros from an offshore company. Our consortium has also continued to break down the darkest parts of Malta - a strategic spot for organized crime to secretly operate their smuggling networks and a lucrative "Passport for Sale" industry for the Maltese state. After our findings were published, tens of thousands protested in Malta demanding accountability, sparking an enormous political crisis in Malta. Two years later, the Prime Minister announced his resignation, while three other members of the government had to step down for their possible link to the murder. The Daphne Project reached far beyond Malta. More than 74 million people heard about her work, a staggering 53-fold increase compared to her blog's readership before her assassination. As long as journalism remains under attack, we will need your help—link in bio. #EndImpunity

At the ACOS Alliance Annual Safety Coordination Meeting in London, Haruna Mohammed Salisu, a #SafeBoxNetwork member just shared a powerful message about our mission: "We are sending a signal: killing us, jailing us or arresting us is not a solution to silence our stories." 👉 https://lnkd.in/gfVcjU6A

#Impact | The #GazaProject is cited in Irene Khan's United Nations report 'Global threats to freedom of expression arising from the conflict in Gaza', in which she highlights how attacks on media facilities have severely compromised journalists' ability to share vital information. ⤵️ https://lnkd.in/emejGREg

Ever wondered how Forbidden Stories came to be and how we fight corruption, organized crime, and disinformation? Tune into the Columbia Global Paris Center Atelier’s podcast with Laurent Richard for a behind-the-scenes story of our mission!

Today, we remember two brave journalists, Daphne Caruana Galizia and Rafael Moreno, who were murdered for their fearless reporting. Both paid the ultimate price for investigating corruption and organized crime in Latin America and Europe, reminding us that no region is immune to threats against press freedom. At Forbidden Stories, our mission is to ensure that these stories live on. By carrying forward the work of Daphne, Rafael, and many others, we ensure that information of public interest is widely accessible: killing the journalist won’t kill the story. Read the Rafael & Daphne Projects here : 👉 https://lnkd.in/eFhFgPms 👉 https://lnkd.in/eaGH2BA6

We are grateful to have participated in the #AfricaFactsSummit2024, where we introduced the #SafeBoxNetwork to journalists and fact-checkers. Securing their sensitive information through this tool with Forbidden Stories will enable us to continue their work if they are silenced. Africa Check

🗞️ Months after publishing the #GazaProject, we are still waiting for a response from Maxar Technologies. Despite repeated requests, they have yet to grant us access to the satellite imagery crucial for our investigation. Together with 13 media partners involved in this project, we are calling on Maxar Technologies’ CEO, Dan Smoot, to provide access to this specific image, which is essential to determine the location of Israeli army forces on a specific date. paper trail media GmbH ARIJ Network Le Monde The Guardian AFP +972 Magazine Radio France DER SPIEGEL DER STANDARD ZDF Tamedia

Thanks to Otto Brenner Stiftung for acknowledging our efforts and those of our partners on the #GazaProject. This award is yet another reminder of the critical need to open the war zone to the press and highlights the dire conditions remaining Palestinian journalists face in Gaza.