Join us for a Mastercourse on "Investigating the Influence Industry in Elections" between 18 - 30 April 2024. Designed as a series of connected workshops, the Mastercourse will provide investigation methods, resources and skills for covering upcoming, or recently run elections. The mix of training, discussions, and skill-sharing will be run by Tactical Tech’s The Influence Industry Project and Exposing the Invisible teams as part of the Collaborative and Investigative Journalism Initiative (CIJI: ciji.info).
We are inviting journalists, researchers and civil society investigators with a passion for conducting investigations into the political influence industry and how personal data and data-driven technologies are used to influence voters, elections and political processes.
Deadline to apply: 7 April 2024.
What to expect
The "Investigating the Influence Industry in Elections" mastercourse will cover:
- tools and tactics that political actors and the companies they work with are using to conduct political influence,
- investigation techniques and cases specific to researching the political use of data-driven technologies and their surrounding industry,
- networking and skill-sharing opportunities among participants to encourage connections with each other’s work and to advance this area of knowledge and investigation.
The mastercourse will be a mix of lectures and guest speakers, hands-on workshops, and discussion-based activities. The online sessions will be accompanied by resources provided by Tactical Tech's Influence Industry Project.
Dates, times, agenda
Online workshops will take place between 18 - 30 April 2024 from 09:00 to 12:00 CET (Central European Time). The sessions will take place on five half-days as listed below:
The mastercourse will run on:
- 18 April (Thursday) | 09:00 to 12:00 CET
- 23 April (Tuesday ) | 09:00 to 12:00 CET
- 24 April (Wednesday) | 09:00 to 12:00 CET
- 25 April (Thursday) | 09:00 to 12:00 CET
- 30 April (Tuesday) | 09:00 to 12:00 CET
See a Proposed Agenda of this Mastercourse here
Who is this mastercourse for?
Apply if you are:
- an independent journalist working with independent media organisations or as a freelancer
- a civil society/'citizen' investigator or researcher
- a member of an NGO or other research organisation using and benefiting from investigation methods in the public interest
- an academic or student researching a related topic
- any other member of civil society with a demonstrated passion and curiosity for applying investigative methods and standards to document, verify and expose issues of public interest.
We particularly encourage you to apply if:
- you are working in or with communities across Europe either locally or across borders
- you have interest in or work on local/regional issues and have fewer opportunities to access cross-national collaboration and skill-sharing events
- you wish to gain more skills and knowledge from others and connect with a network of experienced investigators and practitioners
- you are passionate about starting your own investigations and want to learn more about techniques you can apply.
How to apply
Call closed
Applicants will be accepted on a rolling basis. Acceptances confirmed to participants on 10th April.
Please Note – this workshop provides a free learning and collaboration opportunity, and we do not provide stipends or grants for attending the online sessions.
Contact
With questions about the masterclass and related application process, please get in touch with us by email at eti@tacticaltech.org, using the subject-line "Influence Masterclass".
About the hosts
The Influence Industry Project is lead since 2016 by Tactical Tech’s Data and Politics team addressing the pervasive data-driven technologies used by political groups within elections and political campaigns. We’ve unpacked the technical processes of campaign apps, examined the spending on campaign and communication consultants, and worked with partners to investigate how data-driven tools are used in elections worldwide.
Tactical Tech’s Exposing the Invisible (ETI) project promotes and enables the safe and ethical use of investigative techniques to expose wrongdoing and promote transparency. ETI provides regular workshops, investigation and training institutes, has been developing an online Kit for investigators, and facilitates a growing network of journalists, community investigators, artists, researchers, activists, technologists and NGOs who believe in the power of investigation as an important form of public engagement.
This event is part of the CIJI project co-funded by the European Union.
Disclaimer:
Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.