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The News blog: shining a light on wrongdoing

 

BRIAN_FLYNN

The Sun Investigations Editor Brian Flynn reflects on the stories he's most proud of and believes now has never been a better time to be an investigative journalist.

As Investigations Editor, I don't care whether Sun customers read my story in print, online or watch it on video. Each medium helps me tell the story in a different way. Often it can take six months or more to reach the point where we can publish, so I want to engage as many readers as possible. Our multi-platform strategy helps me to do that.

My job is to expose wrongdoing, often shining a light on the dark underbelly of society that readers may not experience directly in their lives. Much of this public interest journalism lends itself naturally to new media. Gathering the proof needed to print without fear of a libel lawsuit or IPSO watchdog complaint often involves undercover filming that automatically makes for dramatic online footage, ideal as exclusive Sun Plus content.

Critics often try to dismiss The Sun as just showbiz, sport, and trivia but investigative journalism has always been at its heart and we invest heavily in it. In my 18-odd years at the paper I've read since I was a kid, I've never once had an investigation turned down on cost grounds. I'm proud of what I do, particularly my campaign to hunt down wanted World War II Nazis trying to evade justice and enjoy a carefree retirement their innocent victims never lived to see. I've also put many people behind bars from an international baby-selling gang in the Czech Republic to a bent Labour politician, from an evil doctor trying to frame the pregnant lover he had tried to poison to a gang dubbed The History Men that were selling counterfeit passports and work documents to illegal immigrants..

Recently, a drug dealer making the Class A hallucinogen DMT in his own homemade lab - just like Walter White in the TV drama Breaking Bad - was sentenced to two years' prison, suspended for two years. Just knowing he was at it wasn't enough. One of my undercover team posed as a potential business partner to buy a sample from him as he bragged of his plans to expand his empire. It was all filmed on a hidden video camera and documented by one of our highly-skilled stills photographers. I then drove the sample straight to a Home Office lab, where scientists confirmed it was DMT and held it as police evidence.

There are established protocols covering legitimate drug-buying by journalists and News UK has a policy that ensures we can carry out such vital public interest journalism safely. The newspaper and website story was backed up by a dramatic video package for subscribers showing this man dealing the drugs and boasting of how he "cooked" it himself. It gave readers extra insight into how he was operating - and added proof to any doubters that the story was spot-on!

We handed all our evidence to the police before publishing, giving them a chance to raid his house before he went to ground. That was nearly six months ago, but the story didn't end there. I was lined up as a key prosecution witness until he wisely chose to plead guilty in the face of overwhelming evidence.

Another day, another criminal brought to book. But sadly there are plenty more out there for The Sun to expose - and rest assured, we will keep on doing it.