How to become an undercover reporter

<p>You’ve seen it in movies, but what does undercover reporting actually look like in real life?</p><p>In this episode of Backlight, we go behind the scenes of two undercover investigations and explain everything you need to know: from how to build your cover identity to what planning an undercover operation really looks like. </p><p>Beatriz and Tessa talk to their Lighthouse colleagues, Crofton Black and Emmanuel Freudenthal, about their recent undercover investigation, Surveillance Secrets. They walk us through the creation of their character, a shady businessman named Albert, and the prep work in their back office before the big day. </p><p>Next, they speak with Jean Peters, a senior reporter at Correctiv, about how he infiltrated a secret meeting with neo-Nazis and members of Germany’s far-right party, AfD. He talked us through the process of creating a fake persona while his colleagues followed him from a sauna boat. </p><p>Finally, they speak to Veena Holkar, director of the non-profit organisation, Wildlight, who explained why it’s crucial to master your gear before going undercover and why women often make the best undercover reporters.</p><p>Investigations mentioned: </p><p><a href="https://www.lighthousereports.com/investigation/surveillance-secrets/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">Surveillance Secrets </a></p><p><a href="https://correctiv.org/en/top-stories/2024/01/15/secret-plan-against-germany/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">Secret plan against Germany</a></p><p><a href="https://www.wildlight.global/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">Wildlight</a></p><p>Hosts: Beatriz Ramalho da Silva, Tessa Pang</p><p>Sound editing and design: <a href="https://spoovio.com/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">Spoovio - Audiovisual Productions</a> <br><a href="https://www.lighthousereports.com/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">Website</a> - <a href="https://x.com/LHreports" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">X</a> - <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/lhreports.bsky.social" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">BlueSky</a> - <a href="https://www.instagram.com/lighthousereports/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">Instagram</a> - and you can email us at backlight@lighthousereports.com <br></p>