Books: Primer On Investigations Uncovers New Archive on Vietnam Massacres

In a new book, The War Behind Me, U.S. journalist Deborah Nelson gives an insightful play-by-play account of her investigation of newly available U.S. Army records on internal investigations into massacres of civilians in the Vietnam War. Useful as history and a primer on investigative techniques from a pro. Here is a review in the Seattle Times.

TAGS: military, investigations, books, Vietnam

The Biz: Fear Not the Internet; Web 2.0 Tools for Journos

It's a tough time for newsrooms, but some journos are using the web to do exciting stuff. Here are some examples: CopyCamp: An Unconference for News Organizations (the idea is to "turn the newsroom into a community center, so news outlets can work with their audience to tackle community issues"), the Carnival of Journalism project, which offers tons of resources and good discussion of the way forward for media (see here for lots of stuff on student journalism), and these interesting discussions at DigiDave.org on linking and social networking for journalists. I've posted these and other links in my "resources" box for "CAR, Web 2.0 and Citizen Journalism" in the right-hand column of this page.

TAGS: Web 2.0, future of journalism, the biz, online journalism

Investigations: How Citigroup Engineered Its Own Mess

Some of the best-paid bankers in the U.S. "were overrated dopes who had no idea what they were selling, or greedy cynics who did know and turned a blind eye," says Thomas Friedman in this New York Times column on an interesting investigation by the same paper of how Citigroup masterminded its own mess leading up to the Panic of '08. "But it wasn’t only the bankers," Friedman adds. "This financial meltdown involved a broad national breakdown in personal responsibility, government regulation and financial ethics."

TAGS: markets, investigations