You’ve seen it in movies, but what does undercover reporting actually look like in real life?

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. 

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. 

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. 

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.

Investigations mentioned: 

Surveillance Secrets 

Secret plan against Germany

Wildlight

Hosts: Beatriz Ramalho da Silva, Tessa Pang

Sound editing and design: Spoovio - Audiovisual Productions 
Website - X - BlueSky - Instagram - and you can email us at backlight@lighthousereports.com