Photo of multiple cabinets, a large wooden cabinet and an smaller, open metal cabinet in Sheriff Mike Fisher's office.

This is the secret system that covers up police misconduct — and ensures problem officers can get hired again

Katey Rusch ('20) and Casey Smith ('20) uncover the secret system that hides police misconduct throughout California.

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Joselyn Smith, a white woman with blonde hair, leans against the wall looking directly into the camera.

Pediatricians’ obesity guidelines rest on shaky evidence about eating disorder risks

Kate Raphael ('24) investigates how new pediatric guidelines for treating obesity could fuel the development of eating disorders for STAT news.

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Painting of a woman looking through a barred window at a pigeon.

They Earned Parole. A Court Order Keeps Them From Returning Home

Cayla Mihalovich ('24) investigates how a court order is keeping people incarcerated in California, even after they have been approved for parole.

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Logo for the Investigative Reporting Program at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism. The words "Investigative Reporting Program" are split diagonally, with the top part in dark gray-blue and the bottom part in a lighter gray, symbolizing Berkeley Journalism’s commitment to deep-dive reporting.

We are committed to producing stories that expose injustice and abuse of power while training the next generation of journalists in the highest standards of our craft.

The Investigative Reporting Program at UC Berkeley's Graduate School of Journalism is a nonprofit newsroom and teaching institute led by four-time Pulitzer Prize winner David Barstow.

Through the IRP, Berkeley Journalism students gain real-world experience under expert guidance. Our professional staff of practicing investigative reporters and editors advise students as they conceive and execute on ambitious reporting projects. This student-centered approach has resulted in high-impact investigations for media outlets such as the Washington Post, Reveal from The Center for Investigative Reporting, The New York Times and PBS Frontline. Read our most recent stories here.

We are proud to be part of Berkeley Journalism’s efforts to expand who is given the opportunity to become a reporter. For the IRP, this means we are dedicated to making investigative reporting accessible to all Berkeley Journalism students as we actively work to diversify the profession.

Read Our Stories

Dappled light falls on the brightly colored quilt.

Audio documentary: Forced Sterilization Survivors Undertake Own Healing After Feeling 'Silenced Again' by State

Cayla Mihalovich ('24) reports how, feeling dismissed by the state, survivors of forced sterilization in California are creating their own memorialization project. 

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Photo of multiple cabinets, a large wooden cabinet and an smaller, open metal cabinet in Sheriff Mike Fisher's office.

This is the secret system that covers up police misconduct — and ensures problem officers can get hired again

Katey Rusch ('20) and Casey Smith ('20) uncover the secret system that hides police misconduct throughout California. 

READ MORE
Illustration of a piece of paper with the side-profile of a police officer outlined in red, a post it note paperclipped to the sheet that says "Clean Record." On one side of the agreement are dollar bills and on the other a check being signed.

How California police agencies dole out disability pensions to problem officers: Key takeaways from our investigation

The IRP's Katey Rusch reports on how law enforcement agencies throughout California have doled out tax-free pensions in order to get rid of problem officers.

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Meet Our People

A middle-aged man with gray hair, wearing a light blue checkered shirt, stands outdoors in front of green foliage and a beige building. With a neutral expression, he looks directly at the camera, embodying the thoughtful composure often seen in Berkeley Journalism professionals.

David Barstow

Reva and David Logan Distinguished Chair in Investigative Journalism

David Barstow leads the Investigative Reporting Program at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism. He is a former senior writer at The New York Times and the first reporter to ever win four Pulitzer Prizes.

View faculty profile

Bernice Yeung
Managing Director/Managing Editor

Christine Schiavo
Local News Editor

Garrett Therolf
Senior Reporter & Contributing Editor

Gisela Pérez de Acha
Reporter

Kathryn Hurd
Reporter

Kate Raphael 
Reporter

Sasha Schell
Reporter

Lisa Pickoff-White
Director of Research, California Reporting Project

Katey Rusch
Record Requests Manager and Data Journalist

Yasmin Rafiei
Reporter in Residence

Aysha Pettigrew
Director of Operations

Lowell Bergman
Founder

 

Student Reporters

Lili Cortes ('25)

Elizabeth Santos ('25)

Julian Wray ('25)

Our Partners

Our Funders

We receive major support from these foundations

The IRP was founded with a gift from Reva and David Logan, which created an endowed faculty position, the Reva and David Logan Distinguished Chair in Investigative Journalism. The IRP offices are sponsored by a generous gift from the Heising-Simons Foundation to the University of California, which allowed the university to purchase a building for the IRP and The Daily Californian.

Individual donors also provide major program support and have long been the base of our funding.

If you are interested in supporting the IRP, donations can be given to specific programs or general operations.

The Logan Symposium brings together a Who’s Who of top investigative journalists to address the critical issues confronting the field. The event also convenes newsroom leaders, as well as media attorneys, academics, major foundations and philanthropists who support journalism in the public interest. Hosted by Berkeley Journalism’s Investigative Reporting Program since 2007, this intimate gathering is held in honor of Reva and David Logan, whose generosity helped establish the IRP. The Logan Symposium is an invitation-only event. If you'd like to attend, please reach out to the Investigative Reporting Program directly.

The Logan Symposium

Open Source Investigative Reporting

Open Source Investigations

The Investigative Reporting Program has partnered with Berkeley Law's Human Rights Center to develop and pilot the nation’s first open source investigative reporting class at a university. We've been refining, experimenting and mastering how to teach what has never been taught – the art and science of integrating cutting-edge OSINT techniques into traditional shoe-leather investigative reporting for all mediums.

Contact Us

Investigative Reporting Program
Graduate School of Journalism
2481 Hearst Avenue, Berkeley, CA 94709
Phone: (510) 643-1386
Email: ucberkeleyirp@berkeley.edu

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