What Investigative Journalism Remains In The Press?

It's still fair to say that, although there's been a decline in investigative journalism, it is still practiced. In newspapers, the Sunday broadsheets still provide numerous revelations about crime, defence and health. In October 2004, the Sunday Telegraph disclosed that the British Pregnancy Advisory Service were sending women who were over 24 weeks pregnant for "illegal" late term abortions in Spain. The investigation was carried out by a pregnant undercover reporter, posing as a woman wanting an abortion. Extensive covert video and audio recordings exposed an underground industry in which women carrying healthy foetuses beyond the 24-week legal cut-off. The story led to a government inquiry coupled with a police investigation into the allegations.

The Sunday red tops, particularly the News of the World, are keen on investigations, usually into celebrities and criminals. Recent stories include a sting by a "fake sheikh" on Sven Goran Eriksson, revealing the England manager's future plans, and the publication of pictures following the whereabouts of a recently released "lifelong sex offender". Although sensationalist, these stories are just a couple of many examples of investigative reporting in the modern day British press.