I’ve been doing a lot of academic-related research in recent months. Three new books have chapters authored by me reflecting different areas of my research interests:

The first is a timely look at investigative journalism in the UK in the last 12 months, including a chapter by me researching the state and development of teaching investigative journalism in the UK higher education institutes. ‘Investigative Journalism: Dead or Alive?’ is available here.

The second is an examination of the life and work of photographer Tim Hetherington who was killed working in Libya last year. He co-directed the brilliant ‘Restrepo’ documentary about US soldiers in Afghanistan with well-known author/director Sebastian Junger who gave me an exclusive interview about his colleague. I believe that this chapter is the first serious academic assessment of Hetherington’s astonishing, visionary output: ‘Mirage in the Desert: Reporting the Arab Spring’ is available here.

The third book, which is not out yet, is called ‘The Phone Hacking Scandal: Journalism on Trial?’ and will be available in February. I have a chapter in it which uses my own professional output as raw data for testing my thesis which argues that robust and engaging investigative journalism can be carried out and have powerful impacts, within current legal and ethical frameworks and examines the notion that ultimately investigative journalists should regard themselves as being, what has been termed, ‘custodians of conscience.’ This chapter was based on research I did for a paper I delivered in London in October 2011 at the annual International Communication Ethics conference.

This is a new article I did for The Guardian on the Scottish Fingerprint Inquiry which reported yesterday. It’s a landmark report which essentially recategorises fingerprint evidence as ‘opinion rather than fact’ – a massive shift. The whole inquiry was kick-started because of the wrongful accusations made against former policewoman Shirley McKie. She gave her last press interview to me for The Guardian in 2006. Link here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/dec/14/fingerprint-evidence-opinion-fact

This is an article I did which appeared on the Justice Gap website, a brilliant new initiative run by Jon Robins, a formidable journalist specialising in legal issues. This essay will also appear in a new book Jon is editing.Click here for article ‘Why Investigative Journalism Matters’.

This is the weird story of Scottish man Gary McKinnon who hacked into the Pentagon in his search for ETs. He had gone to ground in London when I finally managed to get him to agree to speak to me. It had taken weeks of phone calls from me in the USA (where I was on an assignment at the time) to organise the interview. When I flew back from the States I was grumpy and tired and not in the mood for crazy stories of ETs, secret technology and Gary’s tales of 3 am, stoned-on-cannabis hacking adventures. But when met in a nice bar in Camden, I liked him immediately and settled down for an interview. Little by little, I started thinking I was in the presence of a really, really paranoid guy. By the end of the interview, he had me half-convinced that the few customers in the bar were spying on him. I told him that it was unlikely and few really cared or felt threatened by his bizarre actions. I now admit I was 100% wrong.

Let’s just say that even after the Prime Minister (then Gordon Brown) spoke to the US secretly about the case, the USA were still intent on extraditing him. I thought it was ludicrous and, to be honest, I now think that – seriously – a couple of people in the bar that day were in fact keeping him and me under surveillance.

Anyone who knows me will tell you I am a great believer in the ‘Cock-Up’ rather than ‘Conspiracy’ view on life… but sometimes I really do need to keep my mind a bit more open to the realities that I encounter…. even when I am jet-lagged, sweating on a hot summer’s day and not looking forward to a connecting Easy Jet flight back to Edinburgh.

Link to PDF of article here: GOLIATH