ABSTRACT
From the early days of WikiLeaks, to Edward Snowden’s NSA Files, to the ongoing leaks of financial data, including Offshore Leaks, Luxembourg Leaks and the Panama Papers, journalists have employed very different methodologies to understand these large datasets and to wring stories from them. Journalists are trained in cross-referencing to check stories, in cultivating sources and relying on experts when it comes to handling complex data. This chapter explores the recent history of data journalism and the emergence of massive data leaks and shows how journalism and journalists have adapted to exploit these invaluable sources of information. The financial secrecy at the centre of the Panama Papers required journalists with specialist financial knowledge, including politics, corruption, money-laundering and tax evasion. The global nature of the dataset also made location a key consideration.
