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Lecture by Scilla Alecci on #FinCEMFiles: The New Frontiers of Investigative Journalism
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Rupsha Chatterjee
5:30
Hello and welcome to the lecture on #FinCEMFiles: The New Frontiers of Investigative Journalism by Scilla Alecci.
Alecci is an investigative reporter and video journalist for the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ). In 2016, she was a member of the Japanese reporting team that took part in the Pulitzer Prize-winning Panama Papers investigation.
5:31
5:34
Alecci starts by talking about the International Consortium of Investigative Journalism (ICIJ).
5:36
She thows light on the importance of the data and documents that are required for investigative journalism.
5:38
While talking about the functioning of ICIJ, she points out the importance of Trust Technology and teamwork behind its operations.
5:41
Alecci goes on to speak about prominent reports that have come out of ICIJ, such as Luanda Leaks and Panama Papers.
"The investigations we tackle and problems we tackle are not local but global, because it affects people everywhere," says Alecci. She adds that countries were able to claw back over 1 million dollars after the release of the Panama Papers
5:43
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"So the idea behind every ICIJ project is 'Radical Sharing'. It is very rare for investigative journalists. They do not want to share their findings. But we break this pattern," asserts Alecci.
5:45
Alecci goes on to talk about leaks in database and the need for transparency.
She says: "The goal is to be transparent. We saw that lack of transparency in a lot of jurisdictions allowed a lot of criminals to hide their funds. So the idea is to contribute to the transparency and raise awareness about the implications."
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Alecci adds that the lack of transparency has often helped criminals hide their crimes.
5:50
She gives the example of Buzzfeed and Suspicious Activity Reports (SAR) to track the beginning of the unravelling of a case.
5:51
Alecci further elucidates the global banking grievances. Taking the illegal transfers into consideration, she talks about SARs and other means to monitor money laundering and illegal transactions.
5:52
In the light of existing problems, Alecci shares her insights regarding ICIJ's mining tool 'Datashare'. ICIJ and 108 other media partners in 88 countries spent 16 months organizing and analyzing documents.
5:54
She puts forward the importance of fact checking taking the current context into consideration.
5:56
Alecci talks about 'FinCEN Files' and other tracking measures. 2000 Suspicious Activity Reports were filed by 90 banks and other financial firms with the U.S. Department of Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN).
"This is a very small fraction of what actually happens," she adds.
5:57
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Alecci throws light on the challenges of working with data and talks about the kind of work her data team does. She adresses the hardships faced during the mining and extraction of  data.
6:01
Alecci explains the functioning of ICIJ. She expounds on the importance of fact checking, which is a top priority of the organisation, and the latest fact-checking tool the ICIJ technical team has developed.
Is fact-checking is the most important tool for journalists?
Yes (94.4% | 17 votes)
 
No (0% | 0 votes)
 
Can't say (5.6% | 1 vote)
 
Total Votes: 18
6:07
Banks like JPMorgan Chase, HSBC, Standard Chartered Bank, Deutsche Bank, and Bank of New York Mellon have moved illicit cash. More than 2 trillion dollars in payments between 1997 and 2017 were deemed suspicious. Alecci asserts that this draws attention to the impunity of such large organizations.
6:08
She talks about how half of the FinCEN Files reports didn't have information about one or more entities behind the transactions in banks. "Banks do not maintain clear records of beneficiaries' information," adds Alecci.
6:10
Alecci talks about political aides, gangsters, sanctioned oligarchs, and suspicious shell companies who were among these suspicious clients. She highlights how cases of Ponzi schemes were also evident.
6:11
"Thanks to our reporting, we were able to get some more information regarding these illegal transactions," adds Alecci. She proceeds to use detailed reports to discuss the famous Ali Moulaye money laundering case of the UK.
6:14
Alecci talks about a collaboration between ICIJ and the Indian Express in the form of a podcast to unveil suspicious transactions that occurred in 44 Indian banks.
6:17
'We have to be transparent if we want transparency from business people and politicians'. Do you agree with this statement?
Yes (64.3% | 9 votes)
 
No (0% | 0 votes)
 
Can't hold common people and elites on the same pedestal. (35.7% | 5 votes)
 
Total Votes: 14
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She further talks about the impact of ICIJ has had on the existing investigating system, especially in the UK, US, and India.
6:23
"We are journalists. We are not policy makers. We can't tell politicians what to do. We are not activists. So we can only publish the information we have. And they have to decide if they want to take actions. It's up to them, the countries and citizens to find a solution," says Alecci.
6:24
Alecca sums up the lecture by sharing a formula: J= Mc^a. She clarifies that J stands for journalism, M for matter, C for collaboration, and A for acceleration.
It's time to take questions from the audience.
6:27
"Banks are the first line of defense to alert money laundering, but they are not the only ones responsible. A stronger international network is needed," responds Alecci to a question from a student.
6:29
On being questioned about the problems faced by ICIJ journalists, Alecci answers focusing on collaboration and facts.
"One of the core principles in ICIJ is trust. When you do a collaboration, you need to trust the collaborator. Especially if your are doing investigative journalism," she adds.
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