An undercover report is an investigative technique that involves concealing a journalist’s identity to expose misconduct, illegal activities, unethical behavior, and other societal injustices that are hidden from public view. It can be a powerful tool in the fight for press freedom, but it’s often considered a last resort, used only when other methods fail to uncover critical information and when the danger of breaching trust or privacy is justified by the public interest.
Many countries have laws against secret filming and recording without consent, which can put reporters in life-threatening situations or facing lengthy legal action or even prison time. And when the ruse is discovered, journalists can face lawsuits from the people they were pretending to be.
GIJN member Patryk Szczepaniak, who works for the Polish news program Superwizjer, explains that undercover reporting requires careful preparation. He advises reporters to consult outside advisors to discuss the legal risks, acceptable strategies, and publishable facts before starting an operation. It’s also important to have a plan for when the reporter is exposed—and a backup system, such as having a detachable colleague who can alert them to an emergency.
One of the first undercover journalists to gain prominence was Victorian newspaper reporter Nellie Bly, who pretended to be insane to expose conditions at Blackwell’s Island asylum. More recently, Mother Jones reporter Shane Bauer’s Goldsmith Award-winning work My Four Months as a Private Prison Guard and Szczepaniak’s investigation into industrial baking companies posing as temp workers were both notable examples of this form of journalism.