Burnout among investigative journalists : causes and solutions

Abstract

Investigative journalism is a hard profession. The job usually requires months of intense digging, seeking out wrongdoing committed by powerful people and organizations. By its nature, it requires reporters to closely examine some of the worst that society has to offer. It is at odds with the business interests of most news organizations. It can be isolating. In a word, the job can stage its practitioners for burnout. During semi-structured interviews with nine investigative reporters from both for- and non-profit print and digital outlets, we identified multiple factors that contribute to burnout among investigative reporters. We conclude by outlining three key responses that can mitigate the effects of these factors: improved management practices by editors; a faster pace for investigative work; and increased collaboration across the newsroom.