The Leonard C. Goodman Institute for Investigative Reporting

The next deadline for applications is April 10, 2023. Submission guidelines are here.

The Leonard C. Goodman Institute for Investigative Reporting is dedicated to providing editorial and financial support to journalists pursuing in-depth investigative projects that align with In These Times’ mission of advancing democracy and economic justice, informing movements for a more humane world, and providing an accessible forum for debate about the policies that shape our future.

Through the Institute, supported by a generous grant from Chicago attorney Leonard C. Goodman, In These Times funds and publishes investigative journalism that challenges — and changes — the status quo. Inspired by Progressive Era muckrakers such as Upton Sinclair, Ida B. Wells and Lincoln Steffens — who helped usher in reforms like women’s suffrage, an eight-hour workday and an end to child labor—In These Times has remained committed to its founding belief that, working together in a democracy, a crusading press and an informed public can create change.

As newsroom budgets shrink and media becomes increasingly conglomerated, it’s becoming more and more difficult for journalists to support themselves through reporting — especially those journalists interested in pursuing stories that serve the public interest, not corporate interests. The Leonard C. Goodman Institute for Investigative Reporting was established in recognition of this and of the tremendous amount of time and labor that goes into investigative reporting. The Institute is committed to compensating writers fairly for their work. Journalists whose investigative proposals are accepted by the Institute will thus receive story fees of up to $10,000 and compensation for travel and other expenses incurred during reporting.

Selected stories

The Missing Native Vote, by Stephanie Woodard
Winner of the 2015 “Best Feature” award in the Non-Native division from the Native American Journalists Association

Update: In Rare Move, The Justice Department Drafts a Bill of Its Own – To Restore Native Voting Rights

The Real War on Families, by Sharon Lerner

Pregnant Behind Bars by Victoria Law

The Police Killings No One is Talking About by Stephanie Woodard
Third place winner of the 2017 “Best Feature” award in the Non-Native division from the Native American Journalists Association*

This story was also recognized as among The Marshall Project’s favorite criminal justice reporting in 2016

Cruel and Unusual Healthcare by Katie Rose Quandt and James Ridgeway

How Chicago’s Police Union Contract Ensures Abuses Remain in the Shadows by Adeshina Emmanuel
Produced in partnership with CityBureau

Who Owns Puerto Rico’s Debt, Exactly? We’ve Tracked Down 10 of the Biggest Vulture Firms. by Joel Cintron Arbasetti and Carla Minet, Centro De Periodismo Investigativo, and Alex V. Hernandez and Jessica Stites, In These Times

Behind Janus: Documents Reveal Decade-Long Plot to Kill Public-Sector Unions by Mary Bottari
Winner of the March 2018 Sidney Award

Here’s Exactly Who’s Profiting from the War on Yemen by Alex Kane

The “Collateral Damage” of the U.S.’s Unofficial War in Somalia by Amanda Sperber

Treated Like Meat by Lauren Gurley

The Catholic Church Siphoned Away $30 Million Paid to Native People for Stolen Land by Mary Pember, in partnership with Type Investigations

The City That Kicked Cops Out of Schools and Tried Restorative Practices Instead by Andy Kopsa

Call for Proposals

The Institute encourages journalists to submit story proposals for consideration. We prioritize investigations with the potential to expose wrongdoing and evidence of the harm it has caused.

The next deadline for applications is April 10, 2023. Submission guidelines are here.