Sage Journals: Discover world-class research

Abstract

This study used interview and focus group discussion data to explore why journalists in Ghana feel reluctant to pursue investigative journalism. The study highlights the precarious nature of investigative journalism in Ghana, exposing safety and security concerns faced by journalists. The effects of increasing attacks on journalist’s practices and behavior include constant fear, anxiety, psychological stress, post-traumatic stress, and financial concerns. These challenges force many journalists to self-censor by avoiding investigative reporting altogether. The study advocates for the effective implementation of the Right to Information Act, robust legal protections, training, and insurance coverage for investigative journalists.

Keywords

investigative journalism undercover reporting Ghanaian media politicians assault

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Adeoye-Olatunde

O. A.

Olenik

N. L.

(2021). Research and scholarly methods: Semi-structured interviews. Journal of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy, 4(10), 1358–1367. https://doi.org/10.1002/jac5.1441

Adjin-Tettey

T. D.

(2023a). Ghana’s Right to Information (RTI) Act of 2019: Exploration of its implementation dynamics. The African Journal of Information and Communication, 32, 1–17. https://doi.org/10.23962/ajic.i32.16223

Adjin-Tettey

T. D.

(2023b). Safety of journalists in Ghana. University of Ghana Press.

Ahmad

S. S.

(2024). Investigative and interpretative reporting in the digital age: Tools and techniques. Journal of Communication and Management, 3(01), 44–50. https://doi.org/10.58966/JCM2024316

Appiah-Adjei

(2018). Grounds for disparities in levels of press freedom in democratic Ghana and Nigeria [Doctoral Dissertation].

Atuire

C. A.

Addison

Owusu

S. A.

Kingori

(2021). “Covid Cure (1)”: Anas’s investigative journalism and the ethics of uncovering fakes in African Spaces. Journal of African Cultural Studies, 33(3), 312–319. https://doi.org/10.1080/13696815.2021.1940887

Aziamor-Mensah

Adobea-Owusu

Awuni

M. A.

(2023). 10-Year questionable contract by Finance Minister gives SML over $100 million annually despite false claims. https://thefourthestategh.com/2023/12/18/10-year-questionable-contract-by-finance-minister-gives-sml-over-100-million-annually-despite-false-claims/

Azure

M. A.

(2023). Investigative journalism in Africa. Premium Times, Nigeria.

Bebawi

(2023). Investigative journalism and media pluralism: Voices from the Global South. In Media pluralism and online news (pp. 179–196). Intellect.

10.

Birnbauer

(2015). Non-profit investigative reporting in American journalism, 2007–2015 [Doctoral dissertation], Swinburne University of Technology Australia.

11.

Bisilki

Opoku

R. O.

(2019). Investigative journalism in Ghana, challenges and ethical contentions. Journal of Social Science Studies, 6(1), 68–81.

12.

Braimah

(2022). The aversion to critical investigative journalism in Ghana. https://jamlab.africa/the-aversion-to-critical-investigative-journalism-in-ghana/

13.

Bridge

(2004). A story to die for. British Journalism Review, 15(4), 35–40. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956474804050760

14.

Bryman

(2016). Social research methods. Oxford university press.

15.

Charmaz

(2014). Constructing grounded theory. SAGE Publications Ltd

16.

Creswell

J. W.

Creswell

J. D.

(2017). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches. Sage publications.

17.

Dagba

Opoku

Amankwa

M. O.

Nyadera

I. N.

(2022). Investigative journalism and anti-corruption: Public perception on Anas’s approach in Ghana. Journal of African Media Studies, 14(3), 363–383. https://doi.org/10.1386/jams_00083_1

18.

Danso

(2025). Media and politics: Investigating government interests, ownership influence and media independence in combating corruption in Ghana. Cogent Social Sciences, 11(1), 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311886.2025.2483391

19.

Darko

S. A.

(2020). Investigative journalism in Ghana: Balancing public interest and individual privacy. Cogent Social Sciences, 6(1), 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311886.2020.1772444

20.

de Burgh

. (2008). Investigative journalism. Routledge

21.

de Burgh

. (2023). Investigative journalism is global. In different global journalisms: Cultures and contexts (pp. 155–171). Springer International Publishing.

22.

Deavours

Heath

Miller

Viehouser

Palacios-Plugge

Broussard

(2023). Reciprocal journalism’s double-edged sword: How journalists resolve cognitive dissonance after experiencing harassment from audiences on social media. Journalism, 24(11), 2454–2473. https://doi.org/10.1177/14648849221109654

23.

Dilshad

R. M.

Latif

M. I.

(2013). Focus group interview as a tool for qualitative research: An analysis. Pakistan Journal of Social Sciences, 33(1), 191–198.

24.

Dogbevi

E. K.

(2022). In Ghana, only a handful of journalists are able to do critical reporting. Nieman Reports, 76(3), 48–50.

25.

Duffy

Cheng

(2022). “It’s complicated”: cognitive dissonance and the evolving relationship between editorial and advertising in US newsrooms. Journalism Practice, 16(1), 87–102. https://doi.org/10.1080/17512786.2020.1804986

26.

Festinger

(1957). A theory of cognitive dissonance. Stanford University Press.

27.

Galvao

(2023). The power and importance of investigative journalism: Uncovering truths for a better world. Journal of Mass Communication & Journalism, 13(4), 1–3.

28.

Hanusch

Hanitzsch

(2019). Modeling journalistic cultures: A global approach. In Worlds of journalism: Journalistic cultures around the globe (pp. 283–308). Columbia University Press.

29.

Kallio

Pietilä

A. M.

Johnson

Kangasniemi

(2016). Systematic methodological review: Developing a framework for a qualitative semi-structured interview guide. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 72(12), 2954–2965. https://doi.org/10.1111/jan.13031i

30.

Kitzinger

(1995). Qualitative research: Introducing focus groups. BMJ, 311(7000), 299–302. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.311.7000.299

31.

Kovach

Rosentiel

(2014). The elements of journalism: What news people should know and the public should expect (3rd ed.). London Routledge

32.

Lamnek

(2010). Qualitative sozialforschung. Psychologie Verlags Union.

33.

Larnyoh

M. A.

(2018). 13 times Anas Aremeyaw Anas went viral for exposing corruption in Ghana. https://www.pulse.com.gh/news/local/anas-expose-13-times-anas-aremeyaw-anas-went-viral-for-exposing-corruption-in-ghana/6tq6f14

34.

Littlejohn

S. W.

Foss

K. A.

(Eds.). (2009). Encyclopedia of communication theory (Vol. 1). Sage.

35.

Mark

(2015). Ghana’s top undercover journalist masters disguise to expose corruption (p. 24). The Guardian.

36.

Media Foundation for West Africa. (2022). The state of safety of investigative journalists in Ghana. https://mfwa.org

37.

Mikkonen

Kääriäinen

(2020). Content analysis in systematic reviews. In Kyngäs

Mikkonen

Kääriäinen

(Eds.), The Application of Content Analysis in Nursing Science Research (pp. 105–115). Springer.

38.

Mishra

(2016). Focus group discussion in qualitative research. Techno Learn, 6(1), 1–5.

39.

Mudavadi

K. C.

(2025). Despite lower pay, Kenyan journalists express higher job satisfaction: A decade later. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 1–29. https://doi.org/10.1177/10776990251351645

40.

Munoriyarwa

(2021). When watchdogs fight back: Resisting state surveillance in everyday investigative reporting practices among Zimbabwean journalists. Journal of Eastern African Studies, 15(3), 421–441. https://doi.org/10.1080/17531055.2021.1949119

41.

Natow

R. S.

(2020). The use of triangulation in qualitative studies employing elite interviews. Qualitative Research, 20(2), 160–173. https://doi.org/10.1177/1468794119830077

42.

Ntibinyane

(2018). Investigative journalism in Africa: An exploratory study of non-profit investigative journalism organizations in Africa. Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism, Oxford.

43.

Nyarko

Akpojivi

(2017). Intimidation, assault, and violence against media practitioners in Ghana: Considering Provocation. Sage Open, 7(1), 1–12 https://di.org/10.1177/2158244017697165

44.

Nyarko

Teer-Tomaselli

R. E.

(2018). The interface between media funding and agenda setting: The conduit for media independence. Journal of Creative Communications, 13(1), 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1177/0973258617743620

45.

Ofori-Parku

S. S.

Botwe

(2020). “This is (not) journalism”: Corruption, subterfuge, and metajournalistic discourses on undercover journalism in Ghana. Journalism Studies, 21(3), 388–405. https://doi.org/10.1080/1461670X.2019.1664928

46.

Oluwasola

(2020). The normative theories of the press in the digital age: a need for revision. https://ssrn.com/abstract=3678282.

47.

Omona

(2013). Sampling in qualitative research: Improving the quality of research outcomes in higher education. Makerere Journal of Higher Education, 4(2), 169–185. https://doi.org/10.4314/majohe.v4i2.4

48.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF). (2018). World Press Freedom Index.

49.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF). (2022). World Press Freedom Index: Journalism, the vaccine against disinformation, blocked in more than 130 countries. 2021 World Press Freedom Index: Journalism, the vaccine against disinformation, blocked in more than 130 countries | RSF

50.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF). (2023). World Press Freedom Index.

51.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF). (2024). World Press Freedom Index.

52.

Rothenberger

Konow-Lund

Hellmueller

(2024). Attempts on conceptualizing cross-border journalism. In The Palgrave Handbook of cross-border journalism (pp. 51–66). Springer International Publishing.

53.

Serwornoo

M. Y. W.

(2024). Safety and security of journalists in Ghana: Policies and journalists’ perception of stakeholders, issues and practices. Journal of African Media Studies, 16(3), 285–301. https://doi.org/10.1386/jams_00125_1

54.

Serwornoo

M. Y. W.

Azanu

Quashigah

Fosu

(2021). Ghana: The double-bind of media freedom. In The Global Handbook of media accountability (pp. 335–344). Routledge.

55.

Shah

S. F. A.

Archiwal

Hussain

(2025). Journalism in chains: A field theory approach to understanding the lived experiences of Afghan journalists. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 102(3), 642–667. https://doi.org/10.1177/10776990241304416

56.

Showkat

Baumer

E. P.

(2021). Where do stories come from? Examining the exploration process in investigative data journalism. Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction, 5(CSCW2), 1–31.

57.

Skjerdal

(2024). Journalistic roles and political parallelism in a transitional society: The case of Ethiopia. Journalism Practice, 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1080/17512786.2024.2379891

58.

V-DEM Institute, (2022). Democracy report 2022: Autocratization changing nature? https://v-dem.net/media/publications/dr_2022.pdf (accessed 8 April 2023).

59.

Vogl

(2013). Telephone versus face-to-face interviews: Mode effect on semi-structured interviews with children. Sociological Methodology, 43(1), 133–177. https://doi.org/10.1177/0081175012465967

60.

Yengibaryan

(2023). Differences in cross-border investigative journalistic practices in the Global North and South [Master’s thesis, HMKW University of Applied Sciences]. Hochschule für Medien, Kommunikation und Wirtschaft.

61.

Yin

(2008). Beyond the four theories of the press: A new model for the Asian & the world press. Journalism & Communication Monographs, 10(1), 3–62. https://doi.org/10.1177/152263790801000101

I Promise I Will Never Be an Investigative Journalist: Narratives of Journalists in the Ghanaian Media

Abstract

Keywords

Get full access to this article

References