Amman-based, regional network nurtures investigative reporting in the Arab region by supporting reporters unfolding in-depth reports on all aspects of society today

Since 2005, Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism (ARIJ) have provided hands-on support to Arab journalists who are interested in researching and reporting investigative pieces in consultation with Arab and international experts.

Universally, media is often referred to as the fourth estate of society – or the watchdog of society to establish that the most prominent role of the media sector is to keep citizens abreast with developments nationally as well as internationally that may have an impact on the lives of people.

Stimulating new trends

The emergence of an active community of journalists working with pan-Arab or foreign-based media and the accessibility of satellite TV in the Arab world are providing good journalists with outlets for their products. In addition a small number of genuinely independent media outlets are propping up in many Arab countries. Furthermore, the Internet is also providing new possibilities for access to information in societies where access to public and private sources, files and archives is still limited and often legally restricted.

Feeding into this development, ARIJ was established in 2005 by IMS in close cooperation with Arab media activists and media organisations and the Danish Association for Investigative Reporting to help journalists making full use of these new opportunities. In Arabic the acronym ARIJ reads "nice scent" .

Investigative reporting offers a professional tool whereby journalists produce and publish investigative reports based on facts. With this tool, journalists are able to unfold matters that call for public attention either because they were previously neglected, concerns the weak groups of society or because they raise debate in society about what is and is not acceptable behaviour.

ARIJ supports all stages of investigative reporting

Besides offering new opportunities to journalists, ARIJ also presents a new approach to training journalists as it is designed to supporting the individual reporter through the entire process of investigating and producing an investigative report.

First step for ARIJ fellows is to be accepted as an ARIJ fellow based on an idea for an investigative story. Following this, the reporter will attend an introductory workshop where he or she receives instruction on the tools of investigative reporting. The fellow will then get individual coaching throughout the entire process of investigating and writing an investigative story.

Before finalizing the report, ARIJ will ensure both the journalistic quality as well as ensure that there are no legal issues in relation to the content of the report before it is published.

On a daily basis, ARIJ is run by a secretariat located in Amman, Jordan which offers support to journalists from all over the Arab region. The secretariat is headed by executive director Ms. Rana Sabbagh-Gargour, who is responsible for the day to day running of ARIJ. The executive director enacts the decisions taken by the ARIJ board which is composed of media experts from the Arab region and Denmark and congregates twice a year.

ARIJ is financed through IMS with support of public Danish Funds.