The idea to establish a network of investigative reporters in one country was conceived in 1975 by a group of U.S. journalists. They formed Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE). In 1976, one of the founding members was killed by a car bomb in Phoenix, Arizona in the U.S. As are result, IRE formed a team to complete that member's investigations into organized crime and public corruption. The Arizona Project, as the team was known, published a 23-part series in 1997 that detailed the extent of corruption and demonstrated how journalists can come together to show that you can kill a journalist, but you can't kill the story. Over the years, other groups similar to IRE formed and in 2001 the group DICAR, composed of Danish journalists, and IRE helped organize the first global conference of such organizations in Copenhagen. At the second conference in 2003, in Copenhagen, the groups created the Global Investigative Journalism Network to keep the groups in touch and sharing information between conferences. A steering committee, composed of a representative from each organization, receives membership requests and selects conference sites. The Swiss investigation network is a member of the steering committee. The global network web site is coordinated by Nils Mulvad and Brant Houston, who co-founded the network and oversaw the first two conferences.
The network has organized several Conferences since 2003 with growing success and which have involved international reporters, from various media. Geneva will then be the 6th Conference, after Lillehammer (2008), Toronto (2007), Amsterdam (2005).
The goal of these Conferences is for investigative journalists from around the world to exchange, during four days, their experiences, tips and professional practice in a way which is strictly non-academic and very much focused on the « how to do » and the « need to know », rather than the « nice to know ». During the Conferences, there are an average of 60 to 100 panels, conferences, round tables and workshops and each evening is devoted to informal networking and socialising.
The Conferences mean success: from Copenhagen to Lillehammer, close to 600 reporters now attend the event, from veteran investigative reporters working for prestigious outlets, to young talents from various places around the globe. A lot of attention is devoted to sharing experiences and mutual exchanges with our brave colleagues from dangerous and exposed places. The Conferences have also had more and more significance amongst top leaders and the public, as they have been the catalyser for trans-national investigative projects, international funds, awards and solidarity tools.