Notas Interpretative

Lecture 1.
- Defining
Investigative Reporting (IR)
◼ What is investigative journalism?
◼ Differences with traditional reporting
◼ Dangers and pressures involved in IR
◼ The public impact of IR
◼ A brief history of IR
Lecture 1.- Defining Investigative Reporting
What is Investigative Journalism?

◼ Shouldn’t we talk about just… good journalism?
◼ Well… yes… but IR is more than just good journalism
◼ IR goes one step beyond verifying data (fact-checking), it
looks purposefully into what some people or institutions
want to hide or keep in the dark.
◼ IR goes in-depth and demands time, dedication, constant
search for answers.
◼ “Good journalism shows us a photo of reality, whereas IR
shows us an X-Ray examination, a bone scan of reality”
(Ricardo Arqués, quoted by Caminos, 1997: 17)
Caminos Marcet, 1997

The Picture of Dorian Gray (1945 movie directed by Albert Lewin)


◼ Three main characteristics of IR:
◼ 1.- It is the result of the personal initiative of the journalist.
◼ Should we consider reports based on leaks as IR?
◼ 2.- It deals with high impact matters for the community in
question (local, regional, national… international)
◼ Local/regional: poisoned water in Flint, Mich.
◼ National: Enron scandal (US), los GAL (Spain)
◼ International: money laundering, Panama Papers.
◼ 3.- It deals with issues that people or institutions want to
keep secret.
◼ The more relevant the issue, the bigger the obstacles you’ll have to
overcome.
Scanella, quoted in Caminos Marcet, 1997: 20

◼ The usual topics covered by IR
◼ Government/Public corruption or wrongdoing.
◼ A city mayor gets money from a gardening company because he/she
awarded this company the contract for keeping the public parks.
◼ Fraud and embezzlement at big corporations.
◼ Energy company Enron hid its losses from investors with the help of
Arthur Andersen, an accounting firm.
◼ But also more local, down-to-earth topics, such as…
◼ The collapse of primary care (exodus of doctors and nurses)
◼ The non-profit orgs behind private schools
◼ The pollution of rivers by discharges from a nearby factory…


Daily, routine journalism Investigative reporting
Deals with highly public figures Deals with sources who do not
(politicians, CEOs…) want to be named
Relies on official sources Relies on extra-official sources
Complicit with sources Independent from sources
Passive: waits for the Active: she/he makes the news
information to arrive
Deals with issues known by Deals with exclusive info
competitor media outlets unknown to competitors
Daily work cycle No daily closing time
Caminos Marcet, 1997: 25-27.
Dangers and pressures

◼ You won’t be making friends as an IR
◼ Those whom you expose for wrongdoing may seek redress in
the courts of justice
◼ A small mistake in an overall good piece could be fatal
◼ You may receive threats, targeting you or your family
◼ Your own employer might find that publishing what you
have discovered is not in the interest of the owners of the
publication.
◼ Your exclusive exposé, which you thought might lead to
resignations and social indignation, may not have such an
impact. So you may risk your life and well-being for nothing.
Dangers and pressures

◼ To become an IR, you’ll need…
Boldness Organizational
Curiosity
capacity
Accuracy Passion
for writing Initiative
Integrity Prudence
Aggressiveness
Critical Shrewdness Tenacity
thinking
Discretion
The public impact of IR

◼ You are here to uphold the public interest, specially
when the Government goes against it.
◼ IR is sometimes the last resort citizens have against abuse
from power
◼ IR educates citizens, turns them into more critical
individuals, empowering them.
◼ Your job is to expose corruption, but punishing the
corrupt is not your task.
◼ If the police do not chase or prosecute them, or if citizens do
not cast a negative vote on them, however frustrating, that’s
not your problem. Crime does not always pay.
A brief history of IR in the USA

◼ The mukrackers (early 20th Century)
◼ Exposure of political and institutional corruption
◼ Term coined by president Roosevelt in 1906.
◼ Mostly published on magazines like Cosmopolitan, Collier’s,
McClure’s Magazine, Everybody’s Magazine…
◼ Key figures:
◼ Jacob Riis (How the other half lives)
◼ Upton Sinclair (The jungle)
◼ Lincoln Steffens (The shame of the cities)
◼ Ida Tarbell (Standard Oil Company)


◼ The rebirth of IR (1970s)
◼ The New York Times
◼ The Pentagon Papers (1971)
◼ Leak by Daniel Ellsberg
◼ My Lai Massacre (1972)
◼ Seymour Hersh
◼ The Washington Post

◼ The Watergate scandal (1972)
◼ Robert Woodward & Carl Bernstein


◼ The rebirth of IR (1970s)
A brief history of IR in Spain

◼ Three main outlets:
◼ Diario 16
◼ El Mundo
◼ Interviú
◼ Famous cases
◼ Caso GAL (1983-1995)
◼ Caso Filesa (1989)
◼ Caso Roldán (1993-1994)
◼ Investigative reporters
◼ Ricardo Arqués, Melchor Miralles, Antonio Rubio, Manuel
Cerdán Caminos Marcet, 1997
A brief history of IR in Spain

Lecture 2.- The legal limits to
investigative reporting
◼ 2.1.- Who is a journalist?
◼ 2.2.- Laws affecting journalism practice in Spain
◼ 2.2.1.- Section 20 of the Spanish Constitution
◼ 2.2.2.- The reporter’s rights:
◼ Conscience clause (Cláusula de conciencia)
◼ Confidentiality of sources (Secreto profesional)
◼ 2.2.1.- Limits to freedom of expression:

◼ Felonies against personal intimacy
◼ Felonies against honor (libel)
◼ 2.4.- Professional codes of conduct

Lecture 2.- The legal limits to
investigative reporting
◼ 2.4.- Dealing with secrecy
◼ 2.4.1.- State secrets
◼ 2.4.2.- Summary secrets
◼ 2.5.- The right to know
◼ 2.5.1.- Ley de Transparencia (Spain, 2013)
◼ 2.5.2.- Freedom of Information Act (USA, 1966)
Lecture 2.- The legal limits to investigative reporting
Who is a journalist?
◼ Who is a journalist?
◼ Who can become a journalist?
◼ Does a university degree in Journalism confer exclusive
access to the profession, as it happens with physicians,
lawyers or architects?
◼ Does a journalist enjoy more legal rights or privileges
than any other regular citizen?
◼ Do you know them? Are they journalists?
◼ Two meanings:
◼ Generic: Someone who contributes regularly to a media outlet
(reporter, columnist, correspondent, stringer…)
◼ Professional journalist: somebody whose regular, main or
unique occupation is to report on current affairs to the public.
◼ Two employment patterns:
◼ Employee (e.g. a rank-and-file reporter like Clark Kent)
◼ Free-lance (e.g. A free-lance photojournalist like Peter Parker)
◼ A graduate in Journalism who is not working as a journalist… is a

journalist?
◼ Are journalists born, or are they made?
◼ Which competences and knowledge must a journalist have?
◼ Are journalists born, or are they made?
◼ They are made. To be fair, being good at writing or being curious
help, but all journalists go through a training period, be it a one-year
master’s degree or through a 3 to 4-year undegraduate degree before
entering the profession.
◼ ¿Which competences and knowledge must a journalist have?
◼ Competences: verbal (reading, writing and oral skills) and numerical
(basic math, statistics)
◼ Knowledge: history, economics, law… scientific method
◼ For specialized reporters: business, science and technology, health
and the environment, culture and the arts...
◼ Does a Journalism degree grant an exclusive access
to the profession?
◼ Does a Journalism degree grant an exclusive access
to the profession?
◼ No, it does not, at least in Spain (and many other countries).
A university degree in Journalism does not entitle you to practice
journalism the same way a degree in Medicine or Law would
entitle you to become a doctor or a lawyer.
◼ Why? Several reasons:
◼ Legal imperative: Under Spanish Constitution (Art. 20) we
all have the right to communicate accurate information
freely.
◼ Professional porosity: The skills and knowledge required are
not arcane or excessively complex.
◼ A Journalism B.A. has not proved to be superior to an M.A.
◼ Does a journalist have more rights or obligations
than a regular citizen?
◼ Does a journalist have more rights or obligations
than a regular citizen?
◼ More rights? Yes. The 1978 Spanish Constitutions endows media
professionals with two extraordinary rights:
◼ Clause of conscience (Cláusula de conciencia)
◼ Professional secrecy (Secreto profesional)
◼ More obligations? Not legally, but morally, yes:
◼ Codes of conduct
Laws affecting journalism practice

◼ Legal framework of the journalistic profession in Spain
Source: Constitución Española, 1978, Art. 20


◼ The right to communicate is:
◼ Active and passive: Right to communicate and receive truthful information
◼ Universal: Anyone can do it
◼ As compared to the times of the Franco dictatorship, you do not need
an official credential to be a journalist. This is still the case in countries
like France or Italy, where you need an government-issued accreditation.
◼ The so-called ‘Ley Fraga’ (1966), was a turning point during
the dictatorship:
◼ It eliminated censorship (but not self-censorship)
◼ It ’allowed’ media outlets to name their own editors
◼ ‘Parliament of paper’
◼ Cuadernos para el diálogo, Triunfo, Cambio 16…
◼ Madrid, El País, Diario 16…
Source: Armentia Vizuete y Caminos Marcet, 2009, p. 11


◼ Professional secrecy
Fuente: Armentia Vizuete y Caminos Marcet, 2009, p. 18-22


◼ “It is the right journalists have to not reveal their sources of
information and keep the secrecy of their personal notes, recorded
tapes and other reporting material” (Armentia Vizuete and
Caminos Marcet, 2009: 18).
◼ It is mentioned in the Constitution, but has not been legally
developed.
◼ Some proposals to limit journalists’ professional secrecy:
◼ When a journalist is required as a witness in a murder trial.
◼ When a journalist knows about sensitive matters related to national
security.
Source: Armentia Vizuete y Caminos Marcet, 2009: 18-22


◼ “It is the right journalists have to not reveal their sources of
information and keep the secrecy of their personal notes, recorded
tapes and other reporting material” (Armentia Vizuete and
Caminos Marcet, 2009: 18).
◼ It is mentioned in the Constitution, but has not been legally
developed.
◼ Some proposals to limit journalists’ professional secrecy:
◼ When a journalist is required as a witness in a murder trial.
◼ When a journalist knows about sensitive matters related to national
security.


◼ Plame affair
◼ https://youtu.be/MpMGQgXbOgA
◼ http://www.nytimes.com/video/opinion/1248069063668/wh
at-i-didn-t-find-in-africa.html
http://content.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,465270,00.html

◼ Confidentiality of sources in the US: Federal law is
behind states’ law
◼ New York Times reporter Judith Miller refused to reveal her
sources to a grand jury and was jailed for contempt.
◼ Most states respect the s0-called ‘reporter’s privilege’ to keep
the confidentiality of her/his sources under ‘shield laws’.
However, the Federal law does not allow journalists to hold on
to their ‘professional secrecy’.
https://youtu.be/8LsOF6WsBck

◼ Clause of conscience
Fuente: Armentia Vizuete y Caminos Marcet, 2009: 18-22


◼ It is the journalist’s right to terminate her/his contract with the
media company if it substantially changes its editorial line.
◼ Legally developed: L.O. 2/1997, de 19 de junio, de Cláusula de
Conciencia de los Profesionales de la Información:
◼ The journalist may apply for compensation, by hook (agreed in
contract) or by crook (unfair dismissal).
◼ ‘Byline refusal’: The journalist may decline to participate in the
reporting of news or to write her/his byline on news that have been
edited by the media company without her/his consent or agreement.


◼ Anecdote:
◼ “Any resemblance between an
article in Time and anything
written by this correspondent is
purely coincidental.” (Theodore
H. White, China correspondent
for Time magazine, complaining
for the doctoring of his reports by
publisher Henry Luce)
Sources: Swanberg, W.A., 1972, Luce and his empire, New York: Scribner.;
Image: http://www.biography.com/imported/images/Biography/Images/Profiles/W/Theodore-H-White-40304-1-402.jpg

◼ Limits to freedom of expression
◼ Felonies against personal intimacy
◼ The Preysler-Lecturas (1989-2003) case, which involved the
publication of intimate information
◼ Breaking into a house or wiretapping a phone
◼ Revealing personal data from private files (Anido-Irago case)
◼ Felonies against honour (Libel)
◼ Slander (Calumnia) e.g. ‘he’s a thief’ –but you cannot prove it.
◼ Defamation (Injuria) i.e. Época: Marichalar a cocaine addict?
◼ Libel against the Royal Family or State institutions (e.g. Demation of
the Prince, El Jueves magazine)
◼ Spreading fake news to alter stock prices

SPANISH CRIMINAL CODE
TITLE XI
Felonies against honour (Delitos contra el honor)
CHAPTER I
On slander (De la calumnia)
CHAPTER II
On defamation (De la injuria)
Source: Spanish Criminal Code, http://www.sanchezcervera-abogados.com/en/files/2012/06/Criminal_Code_Código_Penal.pdf

SPANISH CRIMINAL CODE, TITLE XI
CHAPTER I
On slander (De la calumnia)
Article 205.- Slander involves accusing another person of a felony while knowing it
is false or recklessly disregarding the truth.
Article 206 .- Slander shall be punished with imprisonment of six months to two
years or a fine of twelve to twenty- four months, if propagated with publicity and,
in other cases, by a fine from six to twelve months.
Article 207 .- Whoever is accused of the offence of slander shall be exempt from all
punishment by proving the criminal act of which he has accused the other
person.


SPANISH CRIMINAL CODE, TITLE XI
CHAPTER II
On defamation (De la injuria)
Article 208.- Defamation is the action or expression that harms the dignity of another person,
detracting from his reputation or attacking his self-esteem.
Only defamation that, due to its nature, effects and circumstances, is considered serious by the public
at large, shall be deemed to constitute a felony.
Defamation consisting of attributing acts to another shall not be deemed serious, except when this has
been carried out knowingly of the falsehood thereof or with recklessly disregards of the truth.
Article 209 .- Severe defamation perpetrated with publicity shall be punished with the penalty of a fine
from six to fourteen months and, otherwise, with that of three to seven months.
Article 210 .- Whoever is accused of defamation shall be exempt of all accountability by proving the
truth of the statements when these are against civil servants concerning events in exercise of their
duties of office or referring to the commission of criminal or administrative offences.

◼ A libel case?
Época, 2 de octubre de 2009


◼ Organic Law 1/1982 of 5 May 2007 on the civil
protection of the right to honour, personal and family
privacy and self-image.
◼ Ley Orgánica 1/1982, de 5 de mayo, de protección civil del
derecho al honor, a la intimidad personal y familiar y a la propia
imagen.
◼ Official publication: Boletín Oficial del Estado ( B.O.E ); Number:
115/1982; Publication date: 14/05/1982; Page number: 12546-12548


◼ Under article 7 of LO 1/1982, the following shall be held to constitute
infringement of the right to one’s own image:
◼ installing devices capable of listening to or recording people’s private lives;
◼ using devices to gain knowledge of people’s private lives and private statements or documents
not intended for the user, and recording and reproducing same;
◼ disclosing details of a person’s or family’s private life that affect his or her reputation and good
name, and disclosing the content of private written documents;
◼ disclosing a person’s or family’s private details gained through the business or official activities
of the disclosing party;
◼ using any process to capture, reproduce or publish a person’s image in a private place or at a
private time or otherwise, except where the persons involved hold a public position and the
limitations established by law are respected;
◼ using a person’s name, voice or image for advertising, commercial or similar purposes;
◼ attributing deeds or making value judgments in a manner that damages another’s dignity,
discrediting his or her fame or attacking his or her self-esteem; and
◼ a guilty party’s use of his or her offence to achieve public notoriety or for financial gain, or the
disclosure of false information on the criminal deed where this damages the victim’s dignity.
https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=9620f59c-7210-447a-a59d-c3acde2f8e92

◼ Codes of conduct/ethics
◼ “Rules that define good professional practice, as well as that
behaviour to be avoided (…) by journalists” (Armentia y Caminos,
2009: 21)
◼ Attention, please: Codes of ethics are not law!
◼ Three types of codes of conduct:
◼ Issued by international associations.
◼ Issued by professional associations from a given country.
◼ Issued by individual media outlets, included in their Editorial statutes
or their style guides.
◼ Anecdote: The style guide of El País forbids reporting about boxing, as
this publication deems this sport as a practice related to criminal or
dubious activities.
Dealing with secrecy

◼ State secrets
◼ Despite all democratic states operate under the principle of
publicity, some matters might be declared ‘classified’. These are
the so-called ‘state secrets’, which in Spain are regulated by the
Ley de Secretos Oficiales de 7 de octubre de 1978.
◼ Classified materials are those which are expressively declared as
such by the Council of Ministers or the National Security
Council. These may be documents, data or objetcs whose
knowledge by non authorized individuals might damage or
endagner the security and the defense of the State.
◼ So can the Spanish press publish leaked classified materials, as The New
York Times did with the Pentagon Papers?


◼ State secrets (II)
◼ The State Secrets law of 1978 is about to be replaced by new
legislation. The draft text –yet to be passed or amended by
Parliament, includes the following novelties:
◼ The time-lag for disclosing clasified information: between 4
and 50 years, extendable. With the current law, some
documents could be considered secret forever.
◼ For the first time in Spanish history, documents shall be
automatically de-clasified after a given time, depending on
their clasification category.
◼ State information may be clasified into four categories: Top
Secret, Secret, Confidential, Restricted.
https://www.mpr.gob.es/servicios/participacion/audienciapublica/Paginas/anteproyecto-de-ley-de-inf-clasificada.aspx

◼ State secrets (III)

◼ State secrets (IV)
◼ Who can clasify a document as secret?
◼ Only the Council of Ministers can clasify a document as
Secret or Top Secret.
◼ But other authorities may clasify a document as confidential
or restricted: individual Ministers, secretaries of State,
Government delegates in the provinces, the director
National Intelligence Center (CNI), or the chief of National
Police…
◼ The draft law foresees the creation of a National Authority for
the Protection of Classified Information, which shall be
responsible for guarding all clasified documents.

◼ Summary secrets
◼ Criminal processes have two phases:
◼ The summary
◼ When prosecutors and police authorities gather evidence to decide
whether there is case to be taken to trial.
◼ This phase may be declared secret by the judge, although leaks to
the press are frequent.
◼ The oral trial
◼ When accusation and defense make their respective cases
◼ It is usually public, althouth some hearings might be held with

restrictions to publicity if minors or victims of domestic violence
are involved. Also, witnesses or judicial experts might need to have
their identities protected to avoid potential retaliations.

The right to know

◼ The Ley de Transparencia (Spain, 2013)
◼ Ley 19/2013, de 9 de diciembre, de transparencia, acceso a
la información pública y buen gobierno
◼ https://www.boe.es/eli/es/l/2013/12/09/19/con
◼ Act 19/2013, of 9 December, on Transparency, Access to
Public Information, and Good Governance
◼ https://tinyurl.com/2ejnu7sf

The right to know

◼ The Ley de Transparencia (Spain)
◼ The Act works under two principles:
◼ Active publicity
◼ Public administrations will will have to disseminate certain
information without waiting for a specific request by citizens.
◼ The Transparency Portal: https://transparencia.gob.es/
◼ The right to access information
◼ All persons are entitled to this right, which may be exercised
without need to justify a request.
◼ This right shall only be limited in cases in which this is necessary
given the nature of the information— resulting from the provisions
of the Spanish Constitution—or when it comes into conflict with
other protected interests.
The right to know

◼ Other features:
◼ Short response time to requests of information
◼ “Decisions in which access is granted or denied must be sent to the
applicant and to those affected third parties that have so requested
within a maximum of one month after receipt of the request by the
body responsible for taking a decision.”
◼ First appeals are dealt by the Council on Transparency
and Good Governance
◼ “An optional appeal made be lodged with the Council on
Transparency and Good Governance regarding any express or
presumed decision regarding access, prior to its being challenged in
an Administrative Court.”
The right to know

◼ Is it working?
◼ https://www.access-info.org/2019-12-10/spain-five-years-of-the-
transparency-law/

The right to know

◼ The Freedom of Information Act (USA, 1966)
◼ https://www.foia.gov/
◼ It is a federal law, created to give the public Access to the
government’s operational records. It is mirrored by similar laws at
the state level.
◼ The federal FOIA has power only over the records of the
executive branch of the federal government. To get local records,
a citizen must use the state act.
◼ Two means of requesting information:
◼ By filling out a form at the government agency in possession of the
documents requested.
◼ By writing a letter, stating the request is provided for under the FOIA. This
letter need never plead the case or explain its purpose.
Source: Gaines, 2007: 28-29
The right to know

Lecture 3: Primary and
secondary sources
◼ 3.1.- The investigative process
◼ 3.2.- Secondary sources
◼ 3.3.- Primary documents
◼ 3.4.- People trails
Lecture 3.- Primary and secondary sources
The investigative process

◼ Where do I begin?
◼ How does one come up with a good topic for
investigation?
Source: Houston & Horvit, 2021


◼ There are the usual, nearly universal topics:
◼ Government corruption
◼ Unsafe workplaces
◼ Shoddy construction
◼ Medical malpractice
◼ Environmental hazards
◼ Homelessness
◼ Exploitation of women
◼ Abuse of children or the elderly


◼ But what’s the starting point?
◼ A tip from a longtime source or a stranger.
◼ Daily reporting: you are assigned a story that deserves
more research on knowing why something isn’t working.
◼ Playing with databases might reveal some interesting
patterns or give context to an old problem.
◼ Basic daily observations.

‘Working from the outside in’
Houston & Horvit, 2021, page 2


◼ The hypothesis
◼ A hypothesis is a prediction/hunch/intuition that explains how things
might be working, or not working, in the real world. It is a theory that is
yet to be supported or refuted by empirical evidence.
◼ Most investigations come down to two things:
◼ A process did not work
◼ People did not follow the guidelines
◼ So the questions you may ask before launching a Project are:
◼ How is the system supposed to work?
◼ How well is the sytem working?
◼ Who is benefiting and who is suffering because of the way the system works?
◼ E.g. Buying a burial plot / Can I set up my own cemetery?
◼ E.g. Becoming a university professor
Houston & Horvit, 2021


◼ The cost of getting laid… underground
◼ In Galicia, Spain:
◼ https://www.lavozdegalicia.es/noticia/sociedad/2017/09/03/adquirir-nicho-galicia-
puede-oscilar-500-2200-euros/0003_201709G3P29991.htm
◼ https://www.lavozdegalicia.es/noticia/sociedad/2019/11/01/precio-descanso-eterno-galicia-
vendo-piso-incluyo-nicho-regalo/0003_201911G1P21992.htm
◼ https://www.milanuncios.com/anuncios-en-galicia/nicho.htm
◼ https://www.diariodepontevedra.es/articulo/pontevedra/nicho-pontevedra-cuesta-casi-tanto-
metro-cuadrado-vivienda/201811021212391007420.html
◼ In Chicago, IL, USA:
◼ http://www.thecemeteryexchange.com/tce-chicago-il.htm
◼ https://www.ebay.com/b/Illinois-Cemetery-Plots/88741/bn_18975173
◼ https://www.catholiccemeterieschicago.org/
◼ https://plotbrokers.com/
◼ Burial plots outside cemeteries (legislation?):
◼ https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/more-people-opting-for-forest-burials-as-a-cheaper-
option-to-traditional-grave-plot-40867021.html

◼ From secondary to primary documents
◼ Secondary sources are stories that have already been published.
They usually refer to primary documents (the original information):
◼ Court and legislative hearings
◼ Real estate deeds
◼ Board minutes
◼ A lawsuit filing
◼ A political candidate’s campaign finance report
◼ How do you get news stories on a given topic?


◼ Secondary sources are stories that have already been published.
They usually refer to primary documents (the original information):
◼ Court and legislative hearings
◼ Real estate deeds
◼ Board minutes
◼ A lawsuit filing
◼ A political candidate’s campaign finance report
◼ How do you get news stories on a given topic?
◼ Google News
◼ The news website’s own search engine (e.g. elpais.com, elmundo.es)
◼ Databases


◼ Databases for news stories at our university
◼ Library Guide for Journalism:
◼ https://uc3m.libguides.com/guias_tematicas/Periodismo_Comunicacion_Audiovisual
◼ Two main databases for news:
◼ MyNews (it won’t circumvent paywalls)
◼ ProQuest Central:
◼ Canadian Newstream
◼ U.S. Newstream
◼ International Newstream > European Newstream > Spain >

El Mundo, El País, Cinco Días (full text since september 2008)


◼ Human sources
◼ Human sources are key to see primary documents in a new light.
◼ E.g. Ms. Sullivan wrote a will leaving everything she had to her maid
because…
◼ When investigating an organization or an individual, do not stick to
those holding current positions, the “formers” (the former spouse, the
former accountant, the former minister…) might have kept relevant
documents or might give you good insights on how things work.
◼ Beware! Some might have scores to settle and might mislead you!
◼ Usually, it is better to leave the key subjects of our investigation towards
the end of the research process:
◼ It is then when we have documents and information that might contradict
what this subject says.


◼ Parallel backgrounding
◼ A method coined by journalist Dennis King, consists of
merging:
◼ Paper trails
◼ People trails
◼ If the main target of your investigation is an organization, do
background research on its people:
◼ Has the company’s CEO been fined for illegal spying on workers?
◼ If the main target of your investigation is an individual, do
background research on her/his organization/s:
◼ City public Works files on Mr. Smith’s contracting firm might include
information suggesting bid rigging.


◼ Organizing the information
◼ Prepare digital files or paper folders to catch the information as it comes:
◼ History of the company
◼ CEO’s CV
◼ Company board members profiles
◼ Court sentences
◼ Lawsuit filings
◼ Trade Union complaints
◼ Set a chronology of:
◼ A person’s life
◼ An institution’s history
◼ An issue’s progression


◼ Storyboarding

◼ Storyboarding
◼ Paul William’s 11-step way to
storyboarding:
◼ 1.- Conception
◼ 2.- Feasibility study
◼ 3.- Go/No-Go decision
◼ 4.- Base building
◼ 5.- Planning
◼ 6.- Original research
◼ 7.- Reevaluation
◼ 8.- Filling the gaps
◼ 9.- Final evaluation
◼ 10.- Writing and rewriting
◼ 11.- Publication or airing of the story
and follow-up stories


◼ Storyboarding
◼ Examples of an assignment at Liberty University (JOUR 485 Investigative
Reporting): Watch the film ‘All the President’s Men’ (Alan J. Pakula,
1976) and comment on it following Paul William’s 11 steps to
storyboarding:
◼ https://jessigreeen.medium.com/midterm-blog-post-all-the-presidents-men-a78fa03b8294
◼ https://medium.com/@briannasbaker/jour485-all-the-presidents-men-d19611fb5579

Secondary sources
◼ Websites
◼ The ‘about’ section of a company’s website
◼ Google Advanced Search
◼ Finding a mention to a given individual within a given domain (e.g. uc3m.es)
◼ Searching for specific types of documents (e.g. PDFs, Powerpoints)
◼ Understanding Boolean Logic Search

◼ Operating words like “and,””or” and “not” will narrow down or expand a
search
◼ The Wayback Machine (archive.org)
◼ Has been collecting and saving web pages for decades.

Secondary sources
◼ Newspaper archives
◼ Any Project should begin with a review of what’a already been published,
you don’t want to re-discover the wheel.
◼ Some commercial databases that file the full text of main newspapers:
◼ NewsBank
◼ Factiva
◼ LexisNexis
◼ ProQuest
◼ Legal notices, police reports and classified ads
◼ Industry newsletters
◼ Dissertations and theses (ProQuest’s Dissertations and Theses Global,
TESEO)
◼ Books (Base Datos ISBN España –since 1970)… and their authors!
Secondary sources
◼ Libraries
◼ Some libraries have subject-matter experts (e.g. experts on demographic
information, on maps, on old engravings and illustrations, etc.)
◼ Directories
◼ LinkedIn
◼ Who’s Who listings
◼ Agendas de la comunicación
◼ National listings of professionals belonging to an association
◼ Which companies work on a particular trade/sector?

◼ Directorio Ardán (Zona Franca Vigo): https://www.zfv.es/ardan/index.html
◼ Private Fleet Directory (USA): companies who transport their own freight.
◼ InfoCIF (Gedesco Fintech): Financial reports on Spanish companies.
Primary documents
◼ Any credible investigative reporting should count on primary
documents. Some examples include the following:
• Memos • Certificates
• Emails • Property deeds
• Letters • Loans
• An oficial social media account • Databases
• City council meeting minutes or • Video or audio recordings
recordings • Tax liens (a government claim on
• Transcripts property due to a person or business’s
• Licenses failure to pay taxes on it)

Primary documents
◼ Document guides
◼ MuckRock (https://www.muckrock.com/)
◼ Provides free sumaries and links to public récords guides throughout the U.S.
◼ Collates Freedom of Information requests and the documents resulting from
those requests
◼ Hosts DocumentCloud, which holds millions of searchable public documents
posted by journalists.
◼ IRE (Investigative Reporters and Editors) Resource Center:
◼ https://www.ire.org/resources/
◼ Global guide to freedom of information laws (by the Global Investigative
Journalism Network):
◼ https://gijn.org/gijns-global-guide-to-freedom-of-information-resources/

Primary documents
◼ Primary documents on people
◼ While investigating an individual, we should try to examine every public
record concerning this person, such as:
◼ Property records
◼ Loans and credit reports
◼ Property taxes
◼ Licenses (to drive, to be a doctor, to sell property, to be a hairdresser…)
◼ Voter’s registration (where applicable)
◼ Liens and lawsuits, including any divorse or probate court proceedings
◼ Traffic tickets
◼ Vital records:
◼ Birth and death certificates
◼ Marriage licenses and divorce decrees
◼ Online database pay services (in the USA):
◼ Intelius (https://www.intelius.com/)
◼ Accurint (https://www.accurint.com/)
Primary documents
◼ Primary documents for businesses and institutions
◼ EIN (Employer Identification Number), issued by the IRS (Internal
Revenue Service), similar to an individual’s SSN (Social Security
Number).
◼ Professional licenses and accompanying disciplinary records might give
you information on the company for which an individual works.
◼ Property records (porperty might be owned by companies, not just
individuals).
◼ The Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) filings are the equivalent to an
individual’s mortgage: the company borrows money to repay on schedule.
The statement is filed under the borrower’s name and can be accessed at
the secretary of state’s office in each state.
◼ Liens placed against the property of those companies who fail to pay
local property taxes.
◼ The property can be foreclosed and sold at auction. Houston & Horvit, 2021
Primary documents
◼ Government databases and documents
◼ In the USA:
◼ Searchsystems.net
◼ https://publicrecords.searchsystems.net/
◼ Commercial databases
◼ LexisNexis
◼ WestLaw
◼ National Archives and Records Administration (NARA)
◼ In Spain:
◼ Portal de Archivos Españoles (PARES)
◼ https://pares.culturaydeporte.gob.es/inicio.html
◼ Databases for jurisprudence (sentences)
◼ CENDOJ (Centro de Documentación Judicial): http://www.poderjudicial.es/search/indexAN.jsp
◼ Aranzadi Digital (Thomson Reuters): http://www.aranzadidigital.es

How to follow document trails

Interviewing sources
◼ Be aware of who is the source and how far it is from
the events she/he is reporting on.
◼ News filters:
◼ Firsthand account. The story is based on direct

observation by the reporter.
◼ Secondhand account. The story is based on the
account passed on by a participant or witness.
◼ Thirdhand account. The story is based on
information supplied by a source who was
informed by a participant.
Source: Mencher, 2003: 38
◼ Your stories must be…
◼ Properly attributed: The reporter identifies his or her
sources of information.
◼ Statements are attributed to the person making them.
◼ Information about the events not witnessed by the

reporter is attributed to the source of the information.
◼ What if a source requests anonymity?
◼ Anonymity should be the exception. By default, all

information must be on the record.
◼ If you accept the condition of anonymity, you must
keep your word. [Vid. Reporter’s privilege, Lecture 1]
◼ Four types of attribution:
◼ On the Record.
◼ On Background.
◼ On Deep Background.
◼ Off the Record.

◼ On the Record. All statements are directly quotable
and attributable, by name and title, to the person
who is making the statement.
◼ On Background.
◼ Off the Record.

◼ On the Record.
◼ On Background. Alll statements are directly

quotable., but they cannot be attributed by name or
specific title to the person commenting. The type of
attribution to be used should be spelled out in
advance: “A White House official”, ”an
Administration spokesman”.
◼ Off the Record.

◼ On the Record.
◼ On Background.
◼ On Deep Background. Anything that is said in the

interview is usable but not indirect quotation and not
for attribution. The reporter writes it on his or her
own.
◼ Off the Record.

◼ On the Record.
◼ On Background.
◼ Off the Record. Information is for the reporter’s

knowledgeonly and is not to be printed or made
public in any way. The information also is not to be
taken to another source in hopes of getting
confirmation.

◼ Caution!
◼ Don’t accept charges of accusations from unnamed
sources.
◼ Background and off-the-record informations are
problematic, as they are often used to float trial
balloons. Some sources want to test public reaction
without being held responsible for what they say.
◼ Reporters might be held responsible for libelous
statements attributed to secondhand or thirdhand
sources. Attribution is not verification.
Lecture 4: Dealing with
databases
◼ 4.1.- Journalism in a datafied society
◼ 4.2.- Obtaining and producing databases
◼ 4.3.- Precision journalism in the USA and
Spain
◼ 4.4.- Legislation
◼ 4.5.- Open-source intelligence
◼ 4.6.- International collaborations
Lecture 4.- Dealing with databases
Journalism in a datafied society

◼ Database analysis has become an integral part of IR:
◼ We may speak to human sources…
◼ We may get access to primary documents…
◼ And, since the generalization of computers (1980s), we
can mine databases to search for patterns (e.g. these are
the geographical areas where you are more likely to die
of covid19) or discover unexpected connections
between people (e.g. our town major has his wife,
brother and niece as municipal employees!) or between
people and objects (e.g. our town major owns three
mansions built by a municipal contractor!)

◼ Never before we’ve left so much data behind…
◼ You take the train or metro (data trail!)
◼ Pay your coffee and muffin with a credit card (data trail!)
◼ Check Instagram for pictures of kittens, your favorite
actor or singer, and your preferred crafts (data trail!)
◼ … And never before it’s been easier to process such
data…
◼ There’s free programming software to crawl, download
and analyze all those data trails, even as they are being
generated, live!

◼ “In the age of
information abundance,
the key to sucess is…
pattern recognition”
(Marshall McLuhan)
◼ Historical example:
◼ Yahoo directory versus
Google search

◼ Obviously, we have legislation protecting the access and
analysis of our data, either by the state or private
companies…
◼ But as journalists we have two easily available sources
of data:
◼ Data generated by users during public interactions on social media
(Which politicians do you like the most? What’s your opinion
about abortion or the quality of health care?)
◼ Data stored by the Government or public agencies that might be
made available proactively (already published on a website) or by
request (after a FOIA/Ley de Transparencia request)
Databases: How to get them

◼ 1.- Download available databases
◼ Just go the website of interest (dot.gov) and download
the data (.csv, .txt, .mdb)
◼ 2.- Scrape data to build your own database
◼ Write a script to crawl the university website to build a
table with the names and contacts of all faculty members
◼ 3.- Obtain paper or digital records and build your own
database by entering the information manually into a
spreadsheet or other software
◼ Paper invoices, letters…
Tools for CAR (Computer-Assisted Reporting)
◼ Basic tools:
◼ Finding and downloading data
◼ Spreadsheets (.csv, .xls, .txt)
◼ Database manager: Microsoft Acces, MySQL
◼ Data visualization (basic: Excel charts)
◼ Advanced tools:
◼ Data visualization (advanced: Tableau, ArcGIS Online)
◼ Statistical software (R, Stata, SPSS, JASP, jamovi)
◼ Social Network Analysis software (NodeXL)
◼ Coding (R, Python)

Websites to look for (USA)

◼ .gov (Official Government Web Sites)
◼ www.ftc.gov (Federal Trade Commission)
◼ Consumer protection, identity theft, Internet commerce, credit,
automobile sales and telemarketing.
◼ www.fbi.gov (Federal Bureau of Investigation)
◼ Mostly historic reports, with news releases on current investigations
◼ www.usda.gov (U.S. Department of Agriculture)
◼ Lists the recall of food products by name of manufacturer and runs the
National School Lunch Program
◼ www.hhs.gov (Department of Health and Human Services)
◼ Includes the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which provides information
about the clinical tests registered with NIH (e.g. covid19 vaccines).
Source: Gaines, 2008


◼ www.dot.gov (Department of Transportation)
◼ Enforces rules on railways, highways, trucks and school buses
◼ Posts online detailed accident investigations
◼ www.faa.gov (Federal Aviation Administration)
◼ Provides a registry of airplanes and their owners:
◼ https://amsrvs.registry.faa.gov/airmeninquiry/
◼ www.ssa.gov (Social Security Administration)
◼ www.fec.gov (Federal Election Commission)
◼ Campaign reports
◼ Complaints and commission findings about those complaints
◼ www.fedstats.gov

◼ www.gao.gov (Government Accountability Office)
◼ The GAO is an independent agency that answers requests from
Congress.
◼ To Access the notes of a GAO investigator, a FOIA request is
necessary.
◼ www.sec.gov (U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission)
◼ For-proft companies that sell stock across at least one state line must
file financial information with the U.S. SEC.
◼ Companies must file reports to conform with federal law about
informing stockholders or potential stockholders of their financial
situation.
◼ Look for annual reports (form 10-K).

◼ .org (Not-for-Profit Organization Web Sites)
◼ American Red Cross:
◼ www.redcross.org
◼ OpenSecrets, fun by the Center for Responsive Politics:
◼ www.opensecrets.org
◼ Special interest groups:
◼ www.prochoice.org
◼ www.plannedparenthood.org
◼ www.nrlc.org


◼ .edu (Educational Institution Web Sites)
◼ Universities, local schools…
◼ .com (Commercial Web sites)
◼ Self-interested information that companies want to
advertise… but also most news media websites… and their
archives.

Databases by topic (USA)

◼ Local data sources
◼ Politics
◼ Business and economy
◼ Property and tax records
◼ Crime and guns
◼ Education
◼ Courts and jails
◼ City and county government
◼ Infrastructure


◼ Politics:
◼ Voter registration database
◼ Campaign finance reports
◼ Disclosures on business and personal finances by officeholders
◼ Business and economy
◼ Database of business licenses issued by the city or county (names of
operators and types of businesses)
◼ Uniform Commercial Code records, to see loans obtained by
businesses for equipment or other assets.
◼ Database of building permits


◼ Property and tax records
◼ Tax delinquency records
◼ Crime
◼ FBI Uniform Crime Reports database
◼ Education
◼ School enrollment and test score databases
◼ Courts
◼ Databases on bail and sentences, digital civil and criminal dockets.
◼ City and county government
◼ Vendor database (listing companies and individuals supplying good and
services to the municipality

◼ State and federal sources:
◼ Accidents
◼ Highways, Aircraft, Railroads, Boating…
◼ The environment
◼ Toxic Release Inventory kept by both state agencies and the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency
◼ Demographic data
◼ Census data
◼ Cross-tabulations and correlations:
◼ Lottery ticket sales and income data (the poor gamble the most)
◼ House mortgage denails and racial data (racial disparity)
◼ Toxic waste sites and income (the poor areas get the toxic dumps)

◼ State and federal sources:
◼ Accidents
◼ Highways, Aircraft, Railroads, Boating…
◼ The environment
◼ Toxic Release Inventory kept by both state agencies and the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency
◼ Demographic data
◼ Census data
◼ Cross-tabulations and correlations:
◼ Lottery ticket sales and income data (the poor gamble the most)
◼ House mortgage denails and racial data (racial disparity)
◼ Toxic waste sites and income (the poor areas get the toxic dumps)
Precision journalism in the USA

◼ ‘Precision’ journalism
◼ A term coined by journalist Everette Dennis in 1971 to define the
journalism that results from using social science research methods.
◼ Philip Meyer would become the academic that popularized this trend,
inviting journalists to study statistics to analyze all sorts of quantitative
data (e.g. public opinion surveys) and to discover social trends that remain
dormant in databases that are waiting to be properly queried.
◼ Some renowned precision journalism works:
◼ Racial segregation in public housing, Dallas Morning News, 1985
◼ Racial discrimination in mortgages, ‘The color of money’, Bill Dedman,
Atlanta Journal Constitution, 1988
◼ Helicopter accidents, Andrew Schneider, Pittsburgh Press, 1987
◼ Medical malpractice that went unpunished, The Indianapolis Star, 1990
Source: Caminos Marcet, 1997

The color of money (1988)
http://powerreporting.com/color/
Precision journalism in Spain

◼ Some landmark precision
journalism investigations:
◼ Poverty in Spain (El País, 1987)
◼ Members of Congress private
interests (El País, 1988)
◼ Agricultural subsidies and support
for the Socialist Party (El Mundo,
1990)
◼ Quality of life in Spain, by province
(El País)
◼ https://elpais.com/diario/1993/04/11/espana/7
34479220_850215.html
Precision journalism in Spain

◼ Some recent database journalism examples:
◼ Spain’s housing is mostly vertical (eldiario.es)
◼ https://especiales.eldiario.es/espana-vive-en-pisos
◼ Inditex owner evades taxes by registering his superyatch in
Malta instead of Spain (infolibre.es)
◼ https://www.infolibre.es/noticias/politica/2021/09/20/amancio_ort
ega_monto_tres_sociedades_malta_para_pagar_menos_impuestos_p
or_superyate_millones_124646_1012.html
◼ War of terraces in Madrid (elconfidencial.com)
◼ https://www.elconfidencial.com/espana/madrid/2021-09-12/guerra-
terrazas-madrid-ruidos-vecinos-datos_3283186/

Legislation
◼ General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
◼ https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/law-topic/data-protection_es
◼ Ley Orgánica 3/2018, de 5 de diciembre, de Protección de Datos
Personales y garantía de los derechos digitales.
◼ https://www.boe.es/buscar/doc.php?id=BOE-A-2018-16673
◼ Ley Orgánica 7/2021, de 26 de mayo, de protección de datos
personales tratados para fines de prevención, detección,
investigación y enjuiciamiento de infracciones penales y de
ejecución de sanciones penales.
◼ https://www.boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-2021-8806

Open-source intelligence
The Murder Accountability Project (by Thomas Hargrove)
http://www.murderdata.org/
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2017-02-08/serial-killers-should-fear-this-algorithm
Open-source intelligence
◼ Geo4Nonpro
◼ https://nonproliferation.org/g
eo4nonpro-project/
◼ Bellingcat
◼ https://www.bellingcat.com/
Source: https://www.economist.com/briefing/2021/08/07/open-source-intelligence-challenges-state-monopolies-on-information
International collaborations
◼ Wikileaks Cablegate (2010):
◼ https://wikileaks.org/plusd/?qpro
ject[]=cg&q=#result
◼ Panama Papers (2016):
◼ https://www.icij.org/investigation
s/panama-papers/
◼ OpenLux (2021)
◼ https://www.occrp.org/es/openlu
x/
◼ Pandora Papers (2021)
◼ https://www.icij.org/investigation
s/pandora-papers/
Source: https://www.economist.com/briefing/2021/08/07/open-source-intelligence-challenges-state-monopolies-on-information
Lecture 5: Writing your
investigative report
◼ 5.1.- Pitching your story idea
◼ 5.2.- Guiding rules for writing
◼ 5.2.1.- Story structures
◼ 5.2.2.- Outlining your story
Lecture 5.- Writing your investigative report
Pitching your story idea

◼ The basic elements of an investigative report:
◼ It will be about a revelation, it will uncover a failure
(systemic, personal, or both) whose publication might
shame those involved and may cause public indignation
and force institutional change.
◼ Reporting for the story will be challenging, purposeful,
relentless, corageous, tenacious, resourceful… because:
◼ You’ll have to get people to speak on a sensitive issue
◼ You’ll have to obtain internal operational documents that
support your tesis (e.g. there’s something wrong here)
◼ You’ll have to access, compile and process large amounts of data.


◼ The basic elements of an investigative report:
◼ No matter how interesting your findings are, they won’t
have an impact if you can’t communicate them
gracefully, making your writing attractive without ever
sacrificing accuracy. Your text should include:
◼ Vivid quotes
◼ Rich, thick descriptions
◼ Data visualizations
◼ Original internal documents, properly redacted/edited if needed
◼ A clear takeaway: this is what’s wrong, this is why it is wrong, these are the
people who are responsible and, if at all possible, this is what could be done
to improve it/solve it.


◼ Nobody said investigative reporting would be easy!
◼ You know the ideal elements and outcomes… now you
have to try to include as many elements as you can.
Example:
Back in 2001, the regional government of
Galicia in Northwest Spain issued an
international contest to design a building
complex known as The City of Culture,
including a library, a newspaper archive, an
opera hall, history and technology
museums… A group of students decided to
do an investigation on this fancy architectural
project, which involved millions of public
funds and was heavily criticized by civic and
cultural associations.

◼ What did students do?
◼ They interviewed…
◼ the mayor of Santiago de Compostela, the city for which these
buildings were planned
◼ the regional minister for Culture
◼ members of the regional Parliament
◼ architects, historians, civic associations
◼ lawyers advising the owners of the properties that would be

expropiated for the construction of the buildings

◼ What did students do?
◼ They sought original documents…
◼ the projects that competed for the architectural contest to build
the City of Culture
◼ the statutes establishing the Foundation that would oversee the
development of the project
◼ the environmental impact assessments that are
compulsory before construction begins
◼ transcripts from the regional parliament sessions where
this issue was discussed

◼ What was wrong with this Project?
◼ The winning project (by Peter Eisenman) was so
undefined and over-ambitious that just six of the nine
buildings initially planned would be initiated.
◼ The regional government hid from the public the
dissenting vote of one of the architects in the jury that
decided over the winning project (Wilfred Wang): he
warned about all the indefinitions that plagued the
construction of the buildings in the years to come.
◼ It took 20 years to finish the complex, and only two
of the original buildings were kept.

◼ What was wrong with this project?
◼ The winning project was so undefined and over-
ambitious that just six of the nine buildings initially
planned would be initiated.
◼ The regional government hid from the public the
dissenting vote of one of the architects in the jury that
decided over the winning project: he warned about all
the indefinitions that plagued the construction of the
buildings in the years to come.
◼ It took 20 years to finish the complex, and only two
of the original buildings were kept.

◼ The original idea from 1999 (9 buildings)…

◼ The actual building plan from 2001 (6 buildings)
Source: xornal.com, 11 January 2011


◼ The complex today, in 2021 (6 buildings, on 2 from the
original plan, the ones inaugurated in 2011)
Source: https://www.cidadedacultura.gal/sites/default/files/users/user_11592/gaias_acceso_ap9_feb2019_cast.pdf

◼ Papers serendipituously found back in 2001…

◼ Promoting your story idea to an editor
◼ You should present an argument for your idea’s:
◼ Suitability
◼ Is my topic of interest for the readers or viewers?
◼ Importance
◼ How many people are significantly affected?
◼ Practical execution
◼ Can I complete the story with my limitations of
resources and time?


◼ William Gaines’ memorandum for a story outline
◼ Title
◼ Subject
◼ Scope
◼ Need
◼ Methods
◼ Sources
◼ Presentation
◼ Follow-up


◼ Title: Give the story a name (e.g. Armed and dangerous)
◼ Subject
◼ Scope
◼ Need
◼ Methods
◼ Sources
◼ Presentation
◼ Follow-up


◼ Title
◼ Subject: expands on the title and gives a straight and

simple explanation of the story. If the story cannot be
explained in fewer than 8 words, it cannot be told.
(Example: “Untrained security guards endanger public
safety”)
◼ Scope
◼ Need
◼ Methods
◼ Sources
◼ Presentation
◼ Follow-up

◼ Title
◼ Subject
◼ Scope: explains what the story is going to include and

the liminations of the story: It is about the lack of
regulation of security guards. It is not an essay about
whether guards should be able to carry guns.
◼ Need
◼ Methods
◼ Sources
◼ Presentation
◼ Follow-up


◼ Title
◼ Subject
◼ Scope
◼ Need: Why should we do this story? Because public

safety is jeopardized.
◼ Methods
◼ Sources
◼ Presentation
◼ Follow-up


◼ Title
◼ Subject
◼ Scope
◼ Need
◼ Methods: What’s the best approach to this story? A

series of interviews, a documents story, or both?
◼ Sources
◼ Presentation
◼ Follow-up


◼ Title
◼ Subject
◼ Scope
◼ Need
◼ Methods
◼ Sources: You should list all the documents you expect to

find and speculate about where they might lead you.
◼ Presentation
◼ Follow-up


◼ Title
◼ Subject
◼ Scope
◼ Need
◼ Methods
◼ Sources
◼ Presentation: Explain how the story will be told. If it’s

for a newspaper, how many days you’ll need? What will
be the subject for each day? Suggest ideas for pictures
and graphics.
◼ Follow-up


◼ Title
◼ Subject
◼ Scope
◼ Need
◼ Methods
◼ Sources
◼ Presentation
◼ Follow-up: Assess realistically what could happen upon

successful completion of the presentation.
◼ Will laws be introduced or amended, will officials announce
crackdowns in enforcement, will wrongful operators cease their
wrongful practices? What do we want to happen?
Guiding rules for writing

◼ Two techniques: chronologies and outlines
◼ Building a chronology is an effective way to manage the
information because it organizes information linearly
and helps a reporter find connections that otherwise
might be hidden.
◼ An outline is a skeleton for the story that need not be
chronological. You just compile a list of the materials
you have (quotes, statistics, anecdotes…) and group the
parts that fit together. Order those parts in a way that
makes sense and… that’s it, your writing can proceed
more fluidly.
Source: Houston & Horvit, 2021: 84-93

◼ A single story… or a series of stories?
◼ When all the material is tightly interconnected, it’s better
to stick to a single story.
◼ A series cna be appropriate if the Project involves
separate ideas or components that make sense when
packed together. Each piece should be able to stand
alone, although a summary may be published at the
beginning of each episode to explain where the
particular story fits into the whole narrative.


◼ Story structures (Carole Rich)
◼ The high fives formula:
◼ News: what happened or is happening.
◼ Context: the background of the event or trend.
◼ Scope: the local event as part of a national event or trend.
◼ Edge: where the news is leading, what happens next.
◼ Impact: why anyone should care.


◼ The Wall Street Journal formula:
◼ From the specific to the general:
◼ The story opens with an anecdotal, descriptive, or
narrative lead (specific examples)
◼ The nut graf follows the lead and generally explains
the lead (this example is part of a larger trend)
◼ The body of the story is supporting information
(quotes, facts, developments)
◼ The ending includes another anecdotal or description
of the people/person featured in the story
Example: https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/21/AR2009022101863.html

◼ The hourglass story:
◼ Provides the most important news at the top, and then
procedes chronologically.


◼ The pyramid structure:
◼ Good for investigative pieces. Consists of:
◼ Lead
◼ Foreshadowing
◼ Chronological storytelling
◼ Climax


◼ The sections structure:
◼ Is akin to a book with well-crafted chapters, each with a
lead, body and kicker.
◼ At the end of each section, readers should be compeled to
move to the next section.
◼ The beginning of each section uses a list technique to
introduce and summarize key points.


◼ Other structures
◼ Functional structure:
◼ When you disect the workings of an institution section by
section.
◼ For example: U.S. Agriculture Department:
◼ Part 1.- Meat inspection
◼ Part 2.- Farm supports.
◼ Part 3.- Rural housing assistance.


◼ Other structures
◼ Organic structure:
◼ Part 1.- The complication
◼ A member of your family suffers an accident and you need to
seek help from the public health system.
◼ Part 2.- Development of the main “carácter” as she or he
tries to resolve the complication.
◼ Legally your family member is entitled to home-care, but your
local authorities do not provide such service.
◼ Part 3.- The resolution.
◼ The public health ombudsperson launches an investigation into
the faulty local provision of services envisioned by the law.

◼ Outlining your story:
◼ Focus statement
◼ Point of view
◼ Leads: The opening sentences
◼ Middles: Flow and momentum
◼ Endings


◼ Focus statement: a one-sentence summary of your
story, of no more than 25 words. You should
foresee tension (between individuals or between
individuals and institutions) and resolution
(sometimes it may happen after publication).
◼ Point of view
◼ Endings


◼ Focus statement
◼ Point of view (the vantage point from which the

story will be narrated) and tone (formal,
conversational, dramatic, skeptical, ironic).
◼ Endings


◼ Focus statement
◼ Point of view

◼ Hard-news summary lead
◼ Descriptive lead
◼ Narrative lead
◼ Anecdotal lead
◼ Endings


◼ Focus statement
◼ Point of view

◼ Writing in scenes
◼ Transitions
◼ Pacing
◼ Skillfully rendered dialogue
◼ Foreshadowing and flashbacks

◼ Endings


◼ Focus statement
◼ Point of view
◼ Endings
◼ An ending should leave Deep thoughts and
emotions in the minds of readers, without
editorializing or preaching.
◼ In any case, the ending of a story should not feel
forced or phony.
Lecture 6: Investigating public
administrations
◼ 5.1.- Public administrations in Spain: an
overview
◼ 5.2.- How corrupt are public administrations
in Spain?
◼ 5.3.- Municipal corruption in Spain: mayors,
developers and citizens
◼ 5.4.- The financing of political parties
◼ 5.5.- Public corruption: criminal types
Lecture 6.- Investigating public administrations
Public admin in Spain: overview

◼ The concept of ‘public administration’ (PA)
◼ PA is the specialized organizational aparatus serving
political power whose main goal is to execute (run)
Government’s programs.
◼ PA emerges historically along with the State, during the
Renaisance (Modern Age). PA is what allows any
contemporary state to act and fulfil its goals.
◼ PA is the intermediary structure that connects
Government and society.
Source: Pastor Albaladejo, 2018


◼ The State has grown bigger, and so has PA
Traditional functions of the liberal State New functions of the Welfare State
• International relations • Education
• Taxation • Healthcare, public health
• Defense • Social Services/Work
• Justice
• Public order
◼ Obradoiro Square in Santiago de Compostela: Four powers

◼ https://www.turismo.gal/fotos/IMAGENES/FLASH/ARQUITEC
TURARELIGIOSANP/vtour_santiago/index.html


◼ PA is different from other social orgs (e.g. private
companies):
◼ Seeks/Pursues the general interest
◼ Its remit is defined by law/estatutes
◼ It has a direct relationship with political power
◼ Executes public power formally (e.g. traffic ticket)
◼ Inefficiency is unlikely to make it disappear, but will certainly
jeopardize the political system, lowering the state’s popular
legitimacy.


◼ PA misson in Spain is defined in the 1978 Constitution
(Art. 103 CE): To serve the general interest, by
◼ Guaranteeing citizen rights and freedoms
◼ Avoiding any kind of discrimination to enable social cohesion


◼ PA’s organizing principles:
◼ Hierarchy
◼ Coordination
◼ Deconcentration
◼ Decentralization
◼ Efficiency
◼ Legality
◼ Objectivity


◼ Hierarchy
◼ PA is structured vertically. Higher levels have a commanding
power over lower levels.


◼ Coordination
◼ PA’s functions are rationally distributed among the different
organs so as not to invade each others’ competences.


◼ Deconcentration (a competence is transferred elsewhere,
among hierarchically dependent organs, but remains
within the same public administration)
◼ Competences are transferred from a higher to a lower organ
(functional deconcentration): e.g. from a Minister to a
Secretario de Estado or a Director General.
◼ Competences are transferred from a central to a peripheral
organ (territorial deconcentration): e.g. from the Interior
Minister to the ‘Delegado del Gobierno’ on a given
autonomous community.


◼ Decentralization (a competence is transferred to a
different public administration)
◼ Functions are transferred to another public administration
located elsewhere (territorial decentralization): from the central
administration to the autonomous communities
◼ Competences or services are transferred to other public
agencies (functional decentralization): e.g. AENA (airport
administration), ADIF (railway administration)


◼ Efficiency
◼ Aims/Goals have to be met.


◼ Legality
◼ Any action carried out by the PA has to be in compliance with
law.


◼ Objectivity
◼ PA shall operate with neutrality, with no bias or discriminations
against citizens.


◼ Public administrations in Spain by geographical level:
◼ Central (~Federal) Administration (Administración General
del Estado)
◼ The Ministries
◼ The peripheral and exterior Administrations
◼ State Administrations (Administraciones autonómicas)

◼ The regional ministries (Consejerías)
◼ Local Administrations (Administraciones locales)
◼ Provincial
◼ Municipal


◼ Functional/Instrumental administrations:
◼Agencies
◼ Consortiums
◼ Public bodies
◼ Public companies
◼ Foundations
◼ Other public administrations:

◼ Supportive administrations (Parliament, Judiciary…)
◼ Electoral administration


◼ Administración General del Estado
◼ It is the organization serving the executive power at the
national (~federal) level of Government.
◼ It is composed by:
◼ A central administration (the Government Ministries)
◼ A peripheral administration (Government delegates in
each Autonomous Community)
◼ An external administration (in other countries: diplomatic
missions)


◼ It is the organization serving the executive power at the
national (~federal) level of Government.
◼ It is composed by:
◼ A central administration (the Government Ministries)
◼ A peripheral administration (Government delegates in
each Autonomous Community)
◼ An external administration (in other countries: diplomatic
missions)


◼ The Government Ministries








◼ The Autonomous Communities (Regional PA)
◼ The Consejerías (Regional Government Ministries)


◼ The structure of regional governments in Spain (I)


◼ The structure of regional governments in Spain (II)


◼ Local Administrations in Spain
◼ Types of local administrations


◼ Typical structure of a town council in Spain


◼ Public municipal services by population size

How corrupt are public admins?

◼ What is corruption and why it matters
◼ Corruption may be defined as the abuse of power for
private benefit.
◼ Corruption matters because it is usually linked to:
◼ Less economic growth
◼ Less income per capita
◼ More economic inequality
◼ More unemployment
◼ Lower environmental sustainabilty
◼ Lower life expectancy
Source: Lapuente, 2016, coord.


◼ How does Spain rank in terms of corruption?
Source: Lapuente, 2016, coord., Worldwide Government Indicators, The World Bank




Source: Lapuente, 2016, coord., Eurobarometer, 2019
















◼ Perception of corruption in Spain
◼ Spain is outstanding among European countries in
having a majority of citizens who think corruption is a
widespread phenomenon in their country.
◼ Experience of corruption in Spain
◼ However, few Spaniards claim to have experienced or
suffered corruption first hand
◼ Acceptability of corruption in Spain
◼ Spaniards are notable among Europeans for their strong
rejection of the idea of buying favors from the public
sector (paying bribes) Source: Lapuente, 2016, coord.

◼ Political (high) vs. administrative (low) corruption
◼ For Spaniards, corruption is mostly a something done by
politicians, not by civil servants.
◼ Interesting paradox: Spaniards perceive corruption as
being systemic, but few experience it in their daily lives.
◼ Anti-corruption pact in 2016:
◼ https://youtu.be/0yAAsKVeFx0


◼ Modern administrations may be described by resorting
to two axis:
◼ 1.- Politicization vs. professionalism
◼ Spanish administration is highly politicized:
◼ To become a high-ranking civil servant, one must align with any
of the ruling parties
◼ Most cabinet members (ministers) are high-ranking civil servants
(e.g. abogados del Estado)
◼ 2.- Flexibility vs. bureaucratization
◼ Spanish administration is highly bureaucratic
◼ Lack of autonomy in managing human resources

A theoretical model of Public Administrations according to two dimensions
Open Closed
Integrated 1.- Clientelist 2.- Corporatist
E.g. ‘Machine’ politics E.g. France, Spain, Italy, Japan,
(Tammany Hall, USA, 19th where bureaucracies are highly
Century), Western Europe politicized and politics is highy
during the 19th Century, most bureaucratized.
emerging countries nowadays.
Separated 3.- Managerial 4.- Autonomous
E.g. Australia, Canada, New E.g. Germany or South Korea,
Zealand, Sweden, where where there exist limits to the
public Jobs resemble private politicization of administration
ones, and the professional and the bureaucratization of
careers of politicians and politics.
bureaucrats are separated.
Source: Dahlström and Lapuente, 2018, p. 60


Municipal corruption in Spain

◼ Most corruption cases in Spain have happened at the
municipal (local) level.
◼ There are three sources of municipal corruption:
◼ The way town councils are run
◼ The way town councils are financed
◼ The way urban planning is made


◼ How town councils are run
◼ Most councils (63%) are run by a strong mayor
(relatively few coalition governments)
◼ Power is not shared with council managers (Ireland,
Australia, Canada, Norway) or committee leaders (UK,
Denmark, Sweden)
◼ Town councils are typically small (average
population of ayuntamientos is 4,800 inhabitants),
which are usually less transparent and more corrupt.


◼ How town councils are financed
◼ The taxes raised by Spanish councils only manage to
finance circa 60% of their expenditures
◼ 36% comes from taxes on housing
◼ 9% comes from taxing traffic
◼ 9% comes from taxing construction
◼ 6% comes from taxing businesses (Impuesto de Actividades

Económicas)
◼ The rest comes from transfers from upper
administrations

◼ How urban planning is made
◼ Costa del Con: Marbella’s local council stands
accused of sanctioning illegal construction projects
in exchange for large bribes.
◼ https://youtu.be/mB75cKPmnvU

The financing of political parties

◼ Main features of Spanish political parties
◼ Very few Spaniards (1.2%) are affiliated to a political
party, a figure lower than the European average
(8.5%)
◼ According to surveys, ¾ of Spaniards would not
give any money to a political party of their liking
even if the party asked them so.
◼ So, if few Spaniards are willing to pay for the
existence of political parties, how to fund them?

Source: IDEA, 2014, p. 224

Source: OECD, 2014, p. 26


◼ Main features of Spanish political parties
◼ The funding of Spanish political parties is mixed, but
mostly public.
◼ According to figures from 2012, Spanish political
parties expenditures were:
◼ 210 million EUR for their usual functioning
◼ 63 million EUR for electoral expenses
◼ 71 million EUR came from private sources
◼ Outstanding debt to banks: 240 million EUR


◼ Council of Europe recommendations
◼ Transparency of parties’ accounts (including satellite
foundations)
◼ Supervision of parties’ finances by an independent
authority
◼ Effective economic sanctions for non-compliance


◼ Council of Europe recommendations
◼ Transparency of parties’ accounts (including satellite
foundations)
◼ ES: Private donors might give money to foundations
◼ Supervision of parties’ finances by an independent
authority
◼ ES: The Tribunal de Cuentas publishes its reports with a
long delay (5 years)
◼ Effective economic sanctions for non-compliance
◼ ES: No sanctions for not publishing their financial
accounts online. Source: Lapuente, 2016, coord.
Public corruption: criminal types

◼ Bribery
◼ Against impartiality
◼ Influence peddling
◼ Administrative prevarication
◼ Documentary falsehoods
◼ Embezzlement of public funds

Lecture 7: Investigating
education and non-profits
◼ 7.1.- The education system in Spain
◼ 7.1.1.- A shared competence
◼ 7.1.2.- The role of the Church: ‘concerted teaching’
◼ 7.2.- The third sector in Spain

◼ 7.2.1.- The role of the Church in social assistance
◼ 7.2.2.- Statistical overview and historical evolution
◼ 7.2.1.- The big three: Fundación ONCE, Cáritas, and

Cruz Roja Española
Lecture 7.- Investigating education and not-for-profit organizations
Edu system in Spain: overview

◼ Education, a shared competence?


◼ Education is nowadays a shared competence
between the central State and the Autonomous
Communities, but 1978 CE (Art 149.30) mentions
education as part of the State (national)
competences.
◼ It was a 1980 law (LOECE), aimed at regulating the
legal regime of public and private schools, which
stated in an additional provision (disposición adicional)
the sharing of education competences between the
State and the Autonomous communities.
Source: Foces Gil, 2017



◼ The LODE (Ley Orgánica del Derecho a la Educación, 1985)
adds consultation and coordination organs:
◼ The State School Council (Consejo Escolar del Estado),
the main consultation body.
◼ The Conference of Regional Ministers of Education
(Conferencia de Consejeros de Educación de las Comunidades
Autónomas), to ensure the coordination of education
policy.


◼ The LOGSE (Ley de Ordenación General de Sistema
Educativo, 1990), will:
◼ Extend compulsory education until 16 years of age
(previously it was 14 years old)
◼ Emphasis on the role of the Autonomous
Communities in developing this law:
◼ Between 35% and 45% of the curriculum could be set by
the Autonomous Communities.
◼ By 2000, education competences had been transferred to
all Autonomous Communities.


◼ LOCE (Ley Orgánica de Calidad de la Educación, 2002)
◼ Emphasis on system evaluations and indicators
◼ LOE (Ley Orgánica de Educación, 2006)
◼ Emphasis on cooperation between administrations
◼ LOMCE (Ley Orgánica para la Mejora de la Calidad
Educativa, 2013)
◼ Reduces the range of competences by the Autonomous
Communities (faculty and school council)
◼ The sharing of competences in setting up the curriculum
depends on the quality of the subjects:
◼ Core subjects are all defined by the State

◼ LOMCE (2013)


◼ LOMLOE (Ley Orgánica por la que se modifica la LOE de
2006, 2020), two polemic aspects:
◼ Language of instruction
◼ No mention of Castillian (Spanish) as main language
◼ Concerted teaching (private schools with public
funding)
◼ No additional charges allowed (payments to the school
owner by families)
◼ Special education
◼ Progressive integration into regular schooling

Education in Spain: statistics

◼ Schematic diagram of the Spanish edu system

◼ By 2 y.o., 60% of children are already in school
Source: Anuario Estadístico de España, Instituto Nacional de Estadística, 2020


◼ Two-thirds of early childhood education is public


◼ Share of public/private primary education in Spain


◼ Share of public/private primary education in Madrid


◼ Share of public/private secondary education in Spain


◼ Share of public/private secondary education in Spain

The role of the Church

◼ Key in certain regions like Madrid and Catalonia
◼ The Catholic Church is in charge of 73% of concerted
education in Spain.
◼ One third of Spain’s schools (33%) are ‘concerted’, that is, are
private centers financed with public funds.
◼ The presence of concerted teaching varies among
Spanish regions, with Madrid and Catalonia having 50%
of their schools under the ‘concerted’ scheme.
◼ Concerted schools take 12.5% of public spending in
education at the national level, but 25% in the Basque
Country, and close to 20% in Madrid and Navarre.
Source: González de la Cuesta, J.M. (2020, 26 November), infolibre.es

◼ Polemic issues: extra fees, fewer immigrants
◼ Close to 90% of concerted schools charge families extra
fees, which goes against the law.
◼ Average fees in Catalonia are 202 EUR per month,
followed by Madrid (133.25 EUR per month) and the
Basque Country (84.97 EUR).
◼ While concerted schools have 29% of Spanish students
in compulsory education, they only take 15.5% of
immigrant students, 13.5% less than they should.
Source: infolibre.es

◼ Four segregating mechanisms against immigrants:
◼ Most charge fees disguised as donations.
◼ The Catholic ideology is not appealing to students from
other religious backgrounds, so most immigrants taken
by concerted schools come from Latin America, who
speak Spanish and are easier to assimilate. North
Africans are taken by the public schools.
◼ The children or siblings of former students have priority
(more points) in admissions.
◼ Late registration (common among immigrants) is only
tolerated by public schools.
Source: infolibre.es

◼ The Church in university education
https://www.universidadsi.es/las-cifras-de-la-universidad-publica-y-la-universidad-privada-en-espana-1983-2019/



◼ Leading religious orders in University education
◼ Jesuits:
◼ University of Salamanca, Universidad Pontificia de Comillas
ICADE/ICAI, Loyola, ESADE, Ramón Llull
◼ Asociación Católica de Propagandistas:
◼ CEU Madrid, Valencia, Barcelona
◼ Opus Dei:
◼ Universidad de Navarra, IESE, Universitat Internacional de
Catalunya, Universidad Villanueva
◼ Legionarios de Cristo:
◼ Universidad Francisco de Vitoria
◼ Camino Neocatecumenal (so-called ‘kikos’)
◼ Universidad Católica de Murcia
The role of the Church: history

◼ The alliance with the Bourgeoisie during the
Restoration of the Monarchy in 1874
◼ The secular political revolution that began in 1868 left
the aristocracy Catholic burgeoisie alarmed by the
prospect of social revolution.
◼ Instead of supporting state-based education, they
entrusted the task to religious orders:
◼ Males: Society of Jesus (Jesuits), Salesians, Capuchins…
◼ Females: Company of Mary, the Society of the Sacred
Heart…
Source: Callahan, 2000, pp. 217-239

The role of the Church: history

◼ Education for the elites, not the masses
◼ As late as 1920, Spain spent more on the military tan on
public education.
◼ So Catholic schools educated the well-off for university
entrance AND for advancing the cause of Catholicism within
politics and society.
◼ Girls schools provided instruction in typing and a variety of
domestic tasks.
◼ Still today, the concerted schools get less immigrant students
than they should, so Catholic teaching still has a mark of
elitism.
The Third Sector in Spain

◼ The religious orders and social assistance
◼ Charitable work was the main reason for religious orders to
justify their existence.
◼ Orders have a centuries-old tradition of activities in hospitals,
orphanages, asylums, and old age homes.
◼ With the disamortizing legislation of the 1830s, the liberal
State assumed full jurisdiction over public health and poor
relief. The State began building hospitals… but sought the
help of (female) religious orders to staff them, as it had not
enough money to pay salaried employees. Actually, money
was so short that religious orders had to put their inmates to
work (printing, carpentry, shoemaking…)

◼ Thanks to the Orders, the State confined the poor
◼ In collaboration with the liberal State, religious orders
removed mendicants, the sick, abandoned children, orphans,
and the elderly from the streets and public view.
◼ At the turn of the century (1899), the Cánovas government
encouraged the creation of private giving, resulting in a
massive expansion of charitable foundations. Most were
funded by wealthy Catholic families and staffed by the
religious orders.
◼ The goal was more to protect urban social order tan to
resolve the fundamental causes of poverty.

◼ Evangelizing missions and international cooperation
◼ Catholic missionaries may be considered the predecessors of
international development NGOs, as besides bearing the
Word of Jesus they also engaged in teaching and social
assistance.
◼ Intermon Oxfam traces its origins to the Jesuits, and Caritas
and Manos Unidas are two of the most visible Catholic
NGOs for international cooperation.

Overview and historical evolution

◼ Definition
◼ By ‘Third Sector’ we understand the group of volunteer non-
profit organizations that have become more relevant within
market economies over the last decades of the 20th Century.
◼ These organizations might take the form of associations or
foundations, and are distinguishable because they do not seek
to defend corporate interests, as some other social
organizations do (e.g. trade unions, professional associations)
◼ Origin of the term: the Commission on Private Philantropy
and Public Needs (1973-1977), who provided a
comprehensive account of the non-profit sector in the USA.
Source: Pérez-Díaz & López Novo, 2003

◼ Main functions of the Third Sector
◼ 1.- Providing services or solutions to social problems
◼ Preventing social exclusion (elderly, disabled, drug-addicts…)
◼ 2.- Contributing to social governance
◼ Identifying deficits in welfare provision by the State
◼ Forging alliances to mobilize support for their causes
◼ Social guidance: sensitizing public opinion, orienting the political
agenda…
◼ 3.- Creating a sense of community
◼ Mere participation (e.g. as a volunteer) contributes to developing a
sense of community (we’re in this together)


◼ How big is the
Third Sector?
Source: Center for Civil Society Studies,

John Hopkins University,
http://ccss.jhu.edu/publications-
findings/?did=308

◼ How big is the Third Sector in Spain?
Chapter 8 of Global Civil Society: Dimensions of the Nonprofit Sector, Volume 1. Resulting from the second stage of the Johns Hopkins Comparative
Nonprofit Sector Project, this chapter analyses the scope, size, composition, and financing of the civil society sector in Spain. Data is circa 1995.








◼ State involvement
◼ The State may contribute to the Third Sector in two ways:
◼ By incentivizing donations through fiscal exemptions
◼ By giving public funds to finance their social action initiatives
◼ In many countries, Spain among them, the State is the main
source of funding. This collaboration might be ruled by any
of these two institutional arrangements:
◼ Delegation: When the State funds Third Sector organizations who are
active in the policy areas that are a priority for the Government’s
agenda (e.g. domestic violence)
◼ Contracting: The State issues a public tender for providing services
under contract with organizations that might be for or non-profit.
Third Sector organizations must compete to get that funding.
Source: http://www.pwc.es/fundacion

◼ Two types of Third Sector expressions
◼ Pillarized
◼ When the Third Sector is mostly financed by public funds, unable to
establish solid linkages with civil society.
◼ State dependence foces Third Sector organizations to integrate
themselves in a State pillar that would protect them from political
changes in government.
◼ Mushroom field
◼ When the Third Sector is hardly reliant on public funds and is
properly embedded into civil society.
◼ Its social action initiatives are bottom-up, without the sponsorhip or
oversight of the State (they pop up like mushrooms).
◼ These organizations actively seek donations and are less likely to be
manipulated by the government.

◼ Forerunners of the Third Sector in Spain
◼ Social Municipalism
◼ Savings Banks (Cajas de Ahorros)
◼ Mutual Aid (Mutuas de Socorro)
◼ Social Catolicism
◼ Philantropic Foundations
◼ The nascent Welfare State


◼ Social Municipalism
◼ After desamortization (1830s) many of the charitable
buildings that belonged to the Church were transferred to
city councils and the provinces.
◼ The so-called Juntas Municipales were formed by local
notables, representatives of municipal administrations and
neighbourhoods. They would act as deliberative and
action-oriented forums, but they were poorly funded.


◼ The Cajas de Ahorros y Montes de Piedad
were born out of the initiative of local
notables and the Church. Their goal was
to become nonprofit financial
institutions for the lower working
classes.
◼ Their two main functions were:
◼ Cheap credit for the popular classes
◼ Charitable local actions


◼ The Cajas de Ahorros became a major powerhouse in
Spain for funding cultural, assistance, health, teaching and
research activities.
◼ However, the 2008 financial crisis finished with most of
them. They had engaged in dangerous financing of real
estate operations beyond their original local territories and
were heavily infiltrated by politicians.
https://www.vozpopuli.com/economia_y_finanzas/desaparicion-cajas-ahorros_0_1397260927.html

◼ Mutual Aid (Mutuas de Socorro)
◼ Mutual Aid organizations provided assitance in case of
illness, disability or death. Most were urban and were
located in Catalonia, where most of Spanish industry was
in the 19th Century.
◼ Some were transformed into private insurance companies,
and others became absorbed by the State social security
system.



◼ Forerunners of the Third
Sector in Spain
◼ In 1891 Pope Leo XIII
promulgated the encyclical
Rerum novarum, sanctioning
the birth of social catolicism,
aimed at creating Catholic
associations among industrial
and urban workers.




◼ Philantropic Foundations
◼ Modern philantropy is the byproduct of the new
industrial, commercial and financial burgeoise.
◼ In Spain many of the foundations created in the 19th
Century perished when State decrees issued in 1899 and
1908 compelled foundations to transform all their liquid
assets into State debt bonds. The currency depreciation
that followed meant that many of those foundations went
bankrupt.


◼ The nascent Welfare State
◼ At the turn of the 20th Century the State tried to
encourage the private insurance of all workers.
◼ The breakout of the Civil War in 1936 prevented the
passing of a new law of compulstory social security. Spain
wouldn’t have a social security system until 1963.
◼ Until 1964, the Franco regime forbid freedom of
association, which delayed the creation of private
associations until the arrival of democracy in the late
1970s.

Source: Pérez-Díaz & López Novo, 2003, p. 97

The big three

◼ Organización Nacional de Ciegos de España (ONCE)
◼ Founded in the midst of the Spanish Civil War, in 1938, after
the initiative of a group of blind individuals led by Javier
Gutiérrez Tovar, who sought the creation of a national
organization aimed at caring for the blind, promoting their
employment and social inclusion.
◼ Two privileges granted by be Franco regime make ONCE
unique:
◼ It has the monopoly of representation of the interests of blind people.
◼ It organizes a lottery (Cupón pro-ciegos) with a double aim:
◼ Providing employment for the blind
◼ Funding its activities

The big three

◼ Organización Nacional de Ciegos de España (ONCE)
◼ When democracy arrived, other collectives of disabled
individuals demanded their own lottery. To accommodate
those demands, ONCE:
◼ Created in 1988 the Fundación ONCE, administering a solidarity
fund for all kinds of disabled people, not just the blind.
◼ All kinds of disabled people could sell the lottery, not just the blind.
◼ ONCE has its own group of companies, ILUNION, whose
goal is to give employment for all kinds of disabled people:
◼ https://www.ilunion.com/es

The big three

◼ Cáritas
◼ Founded in the early 1940s within Acción Católica to
coordinate the charitable works of the Church in Spain.
◼ During the postwar years, Cáritas coordinated the
distribution of food, clothes and medicines among the poor
and among those affected by disasters.
◼ From the 1950s until 1968, Cáritas was designated by the
Government to channel all the aid provided by the U.S.A.

The big three

◼ Cáritas

The big three

◼ Cáritas
◼ In the 1970s, Cáritas created the Fundación FOESSA
(Fomento de estudios Sociales y de Sociología Aplicada),
whose reports on poverty in Spain became a key reference
indicator.
◼ Towards the end of the 20th Century, Cáritas reoriented its
action towards special programmes on the unemployed,
drug-addicts, the elderly living on their own, and immigrants.

The big three

◼ Cruz Roja Española
◼ The Red Cross was founded in Geneva, Switzerland, in 1864,
during a diplomatic conference attended by 11 countries,
Spain among them. The goal of the meeting was to
encourage the creation of national organizations of
volunteers who would assist the wounded in times of war.
◼ In 1868, the Spanish Government established the Spanish
chapter of the Red Cross, giving expresión to this
international humanitarian movement guarded by States. It is
a hybrid organization, both public (State supported) and
private (relies on volunteers).

Lecture 8: Investigating
agriculture and the environment
◼ 8.1.- Common European policies
◼ 8.1.2.- Common Agricultural Policy
◼ 8.1.2.- Common Fisheries Policy
◼ 8.1.2.- Environmental Policy
◼ 8.2.- Issues in agriculture and fisheries
◼ 8.2.1.- Big agri-business vs small producers
◼ 8.2.2.- Sustainability of the seas
◼ 8.3.- Issues in environmental policy
◼ 8.3.1.- Water management
◼ 8.3.2.- Animal farming and global warming
Lecture 8.- Investigating agriculture and the environment
Common European policies

◼ Common policies are those for which norms are
approved at the EU level and are applied to all
member states:
• Common agricultural policy • Environment policy
• Forestry policy • Consumer protection and public
• Common fisheries policy health
• Regional and cohesion policy • Energy policy
• Transport policy • Culture and education
• Trans-European networks • Economic and monetary union,
• Industrial policy taxation and competition policies
• Social and employment policy
Source: European Parliament, 2019

Common Agricultural Policy (CAP)
◼ Most of European countries are services economies, but... the
Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) accounts for 1/3 of the EU
Budget, with some 50 billion EUR in farming subsidies going to
the 27 member states each year.
https://tinyurl.com/mh8bk49w
Source: Robert Schuman Foundation
◼ The CAP is one of the largest subsidy programs in the world. No
other region in the globe subsidizes farmers more than the EU.
◼ As comparison, the EU spends 3 times as much as the United
States on farm subsidies each year.
◼ The CAP was set out in one of the founding treaties of what
would eventually become the EU, the Treaty of Rome (1957),
and established in 1962.
◼ The goal was twofold: a) to boost farming salaries (ensuring that
farmers would make a reasonable living) and b) to ramp up food
production after the devastation of the Second World War.
◼ To reach such goals, the EU would buy all agricultural
production at above-the-market prices.
Source: Deutsche Welle, 2020; Datadista, 2021
◼ Since farmers knew that they would have a guaranteed price for
everything they would manage to produce, they ended up
producing more tan what Europe was able to consume or even
export.
◼ So although the initial goals were met, the CAP became a big
problem:
◼ Since the EU had promised to buy everything farmers would produce, the
CAP budget reached 70% of the EU budget.
◼ To increase production, farmers began to change rainfed crops (cultivos de
secano) for irrigated crops (cultivos de regadío). In Spain, traditional olive oil
producers replaced the traditional rainfed olive tree (olivar de sierra) for a
superintensive irrigated olive tree (olivar superintensivo en seto). This has
meant the drying of ground water (aquifers).

◼ At the turn of the 21st Century, EU member states agree to de-
couple the subsidies from production, encouraging farmers to be
more market-oriented, subsidizing the farmers’ income in case
market prices would not allow for a ‘reasonable’ living.
◼ The new CAP (in Spain came into force in 2006) was based on
two pillars:
◼ First pillar: direct payment to farmers depending on the
amount of land they own, irrespectively of their production.
The bigger the farm, the higher the subsidy.
◼ Second pillar: subsidies for rural development plans (e.g.
encouraging the youth to become farmers) and measures
relating to the climate and the environment.
◼ Problems with the two pillars:
◼ First pillar (direct payments by land size)
◼ Contributes to the decline of small holdings.
◼ Industrial factory farms are the great beneficiaries of subsidies. The
tend to be ‘intensive’ (e.g. macro-farms of pigs) and therefore more
polluting (pestcides, fertilizers, swage sludge...)
◼ Some land owners are part of the gentry and the aristocracy.
◼ Second pillar (rural development and environmentally-
friendly farming)
◼ This pillar is co-financed by member states, so they have to match
any EU subsidy from this pillar with the same amount of its own
resources. So some member states opt for not applying for any funds
under this pillar.

https://www.elconfidencial.com/economia/2015-08-03/de-mercadona-a-la-casa-de-alba-aqui-van-a-parar-los-millones-de-la-pac_946573/
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/sep/29/the-queen-aristocrats-and-saudi-prince-among-recipients-of-eu-farm-subsidies
◼ In 2019, an investigation by The New York Times revealed that
most EU farm subsidies in Central and Eastern Europe
(Hungary and the Czech Republic) go to powerful individuals
connected with the national governments.
◼ In Hungary, the Orban government has auctioned off thousands
of acres of state land to his family members and close associates.
In some cases, these connected individuals were the sole bidders
present at auctions.
◼ In the Czech Republic, one of the main recipients of subsidies is
Andrej Babis, a billionaire agriculturalist who was also the
country’ prime minister until November 2021.
◼ Babis is the founder and owner of the Agrofert group (www.agrofert.cz)
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/03/world/europe/eu-farm-subsidy-hungary.html
◼ All across Eastern Europe, the ‘agricultural Mafia’ beats up
farmers who do not want to sell their lands. If they complain,
they are sent government inspectors.
◼ The NYT defines this situation as “a type of modern feudalism,
where small farmers live in the shadows of huge, politically
powerful interests – and European Union subsidies help finance
it.”
◼ So why doesn’t the EU act against these ‘gangster’ member
states? Because confronting this corruption “would mean
changing a program that helps hold a precarious union together
(...) Bucking that system to rein in abuses in newer member
states would disrupt political and economic fortunes across the
continent.”
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/03/world/europe/eu-farm-subsidy-hungary.html
Common Fisheries Policy (CFP)

◼ The CFP was part of the CAP
in the Treaty of Rome (1957),
but it became autonomous
when member states began
introducing the Exclusive
Economic Zones (EEZ) in the
1970s, by which states reserved
for themselves exclusive fishing
rights within 200 nautical mile
zones from their coast lines.


◼ By adopting the CFP, member states agree to put
their fishing resources in the hands of the EU.
◼ The so-called Territorial sea (12 nautical miles) is
reserved for inshore fishing (pesca de bajura) and the
remaining area, up until 200 miles, may be freely
accessed by any boat from an EU member state.
◼ To avoid overfishing, since 1983 the CFP introduced
the principle of ‘relative stability’, under which the
share of fish stocks doled out to each country is
meant to remain stable in relative terms.


◼ The principle of ‘relative stability’ works like this:
◼ In the treaty of accession to the EU, the member
state (e.g. Spain) receives a national fishing quota,
that is, a permit to fish a given percentage of each
of the species (e.g. you may fish 20% of cod in
European waters, 10% of European carp, etc).
◼ Every December, the European Council, informed
by scientists, sets the Total Allowable Caches (e.g.
120 tones of cod for next year). So you know that,
as a member state, your catches of cod will be
caped at 20% of 120 tones).
The Spanish quotas in the 1986 Treat of Accession to the European Common Market
EU fishing areas

◼ Controversial issues:
◼ Overcapacity: Fishing fletes are 60-80% too large,
so part of the CFP funds are addressed to scrap
vessels and compensate fishermen for being out of
work.
◼ Overfishing: The TAC decided by politicians in
December rarely follow the scientific advice
◼ Instead of national quotas, why not allow
fishermen to hold individual fishing rights that can
be sold or leased to others, as it happens in New
Zealand or Iceland?
Source: The Economist, April 25, 2009

◼ Controversial issues (II):
◼ Discards: what if I catch fish for which I do not
have quota rights? I would have to throw it back to
the sea. What a waste!
◼ To eliminate discards, the landing obligation was
introduced in 2015: you must land all the fish you
have caught and count it against the quotas.
◼ Undersized fish caught and landed should not be used
(sold) for direct human consumption, but for products
such as pet food, fish meal, pharmaceuticals, and food
supplements.
https://youtu.be/JcGTKOefe4o
Environment policy
◼ European law on environmental protection dates back
to 1972, when the European Council agreed on the idea
of setting up a common environment policy, which
would be included as such in the Treaty of Amsterdam
(1997).
◼ The goal has been to set minimum rules on recycling,
water and air pollution. A European Environment
Agency was established in 1990, with its headquarters in
Denmark.
◼ Since then, the EU has tried to be at the forefront of
climate change mitigation.
Environment policy
◼ The parties signing the Kyoto Protocol in 1997 agreed to
seek a reduction of the gases that contribute to climate
change by creating a greenhouse effect, that is, by keeping
the heat that is radiated from the earth's surface and prevent
it escaping into space, causing ‘global warming’.
◼ Human activities that contribute to climate change include
in particular deforestation and the burning of fossil fuels
(such as coal, oil and natural gas) and other fuels, which
leads to the emission of carbon dioxide (CO2), one of the
most important greenhouse gases. Other important
contributors to the recent climate change are methane,
nitrous oxide and fluorocarbons.
Environment policy
◼ In 2008, the EU marked the following aims for 2020:
◼ a reduction of at least 20 % below 1990 levels in
greenhouse gas emissions, which will be scaled up to
as much as 30 % under a new global climate change
agreement if other developed countries make
comparable efforts;
◼ a share of 20 % of renewable energies in energy
consumption and savings of 20 % of energy
consumption through energy efficiency.

Environment policy
◼ In December 2015, governments adopted the first
universal agreement to combat climate change, at
the COP21 in Paris
◼ The Paris Agreement strives to keep the increase in
global average temperature to ‘well below’ 2°C,
while trying to maintain it at 1.5°C above pre-
industrial levels. To accomplish this goal, Parties
aim to reach global peaking of GHG emissions as
soon as possible, and to achieve net zero emissions
in the second half of this century.
Environment policy
◼ The EU Emissions Trading System (ETS), the first and still
the largest international carbon market, is a key EU policy
instrument for fighting climate change.
◼ It is based on the ‘cap and trade’ principle: a ‘cap’ is set on
the total amount of GHG emissions that can be emitted by
the more than 11 000 installations (factories, power
stations, etc.) included in the scheme. Each installation buys
or receives ‘emission allowances’ auctioned by the Member
States. These credits — corresponding to one tonne of
CO2 each — can be traded with other installations if
unused. Over time, the overall amount of allowances is
progressively reduced.
https://youtu.be/yfNgsKrPKsg
Environment policy: Meat

◼ Relative to other food
sources, beef is uniquely
carbon-intensive.
◼ Because cattle emit
methane and need large
pastures that are often
created via deforestation,
they produce seven times
as many GHGs per calorie
of meat as pigs do, and
around 40% more than
farmed prawns do.
https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2021/10/02/treating-beef-like-coal-would-make-a-big-dent-in-greenhouse-gas-emissions
Environment policy: Water
The Economist, Special Report on Water, March 2, 2019




Lecture 9: Investigating energy
and transportation
◼ 9.1.- Energy crises, present and past
◼ 9.1.1.- The present energy crisis
◼ 9.1.2.- The oil crisis of the 1970s
◼ 9.1.3.- The challenge of decarbonization
◼ 9.2.- Transportation regulation
◼ 9.2.1.- Road, rail, air and sea transportation policies
◼ 9.2.2.- EU-driven liberalization
◼ 9.3.- Transportation security: three case studies
◼ 9.3.1.- The Prestige oil spill, November 2002 (sea)
◼ 9.3.2.- The Spanair crash, July 2008 (air)
◼ 9.3.3.- The Alvia derailment, July 2013 (railways)
Lecture 9.- Investigating energy and transportation
Common European policies

◼ Common policies are those for which norms are
approved at the EU level and are applied to all
member states:
• Common agricultural policy • Environment policy
• Forestry policy • Consumer protection and public
• Common fisheries policy health
• Regional and cohesion policy • Energy policy
• Transport policy • Culture and education
• Trans-European networks • Economic and monetary union,
• Industrial policy taxation and competition policies
• Social and employment policy

Energy: What does the EU do?
◼ Each member state defines its own mix of energy sources, but
the EU tries to ensure some coordination so that:
◼ Energy supply at a reasonable cost is guaranteed
◼ Energy production is ever ‘greener’
◼ The EU is at the forefront of de-carbonization, meaning that:
◼ By 2050, energy-related carbon dioxide emissions should be brought to
net zero so as to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 °C.
◼ Net zero refers to the balance between the amount of greenhouse gas (GHG)
produced and the amount removed from the atmosphere. We reach net zero
when the amount we add is no more than the amount taken away.
◼ Why not gross zero? Because it would mean stopping all emissions, which isn’t
realistically attainable. Net zero looks at emissions overall, allowing for the
removal of any unavoidable emissions (e.g. aviation, manufacturing). Removing
GHGs could be via nature, as trees take carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, or
through new technology or changing industrial processes.
Sources: https://www.nationalgrid.com/stories/energy-explained/what-is-net-zero
◼ 70% of GHGs in the EU are related
to the production and use of energy.
So achieving net zero (being carbon
neutral) means changing the way we
produce energy.
https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2021/09/20/what-is-behind-rocketing-natural-gas-prices
https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/cache/infographs/energy/bloc-2a.html
◼ The so-called European Green Deal plans to reduce emissions
by at least 55% by 2030 (in 8 years’ time!!!) – ‘Fit for 55’
◼ The main policy instrument to achieve such goals is the Energy
Union strategy, launched in 2015, with 5 dimensions:
◼ Security, solidarity and trust - diversifying Europe's sources of energy and ensuring
energy security through solidarity and cooperation between EU countries
◼ A fully integrated internal energy market - enabling the free flow of energy through the
EU through adequate infrastructure and without technical or regulatory barriers
◼ Energy efficiency - improved energy efficiency will reduce dependence on energy imports,
lower emissions, and drive jobs and growth
◼ Climate action, decarbonising the economy - the EU is committed to a quick
ratification of the Paris Agreement and to retaining its leadership in the area of renewable
energy
◼ Research, innovation and competitiveness - supporting breakthroughs in low-carbon
and clean energy technologies by prioritising research and innovation to drive the energy
transition and improve competitiveness.
https://ec.europa.eu/energy/topics/energy-strategy/energy-union_en?lang=en
https://ec.europa.eu/energy/sites/default/files/documents/spain_energ-union_factsheet-summary_en.pdf
Energy crises: present
◼ Are we heading towards a global power shortage? Should we be
afraid of a blackout this winter, as the Austrian government has
warned?
◼ https://www.bundesheer.at/archiv/a2021/blackout/blackout.shtml
◼ Energy prices (coal and natural gas) are up because...
◼ There is rising demand... and short supply
◼ On the supply side:
◼ Russia and Norway having technical problems
◼ Lack of wind in the North Sea (unusually still summer)
◼ Rising cost of European carbon permits
◼ On the demand side:
◼ Rising demand of liquified natural gas (LNG) in Asia
◼ High demand of coal from China
https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2021/09/20/what-is-behind-rocketing-natural-gas-prices
https://youtu.be/J_PYJzOEzd0
https://ig.ft.com/europes-gas-crisis-pipelines-explainer/
Lecture 10: Investigating for-
profits, finance and insurance
◼ 10.1.- Macro-economics: the context
◼ 10.1.1.- Main macro-economic indicators
◼ 10.2.- Micro-economics: the companies
◼ 10.2.1.- How to interpret a financial report
◼ 10.3.- The financial sector
◼ 10.3.1.- Centralized and decentralized finance
◼ 10.3.2.- Insurance
◼ 10.3.3.- The (missing) role of investigative journalism

Lecture 10.- Investigating for-profits, finance and insurance
Macro-economics: the context

◼ Macro-economics
◼ The part of economic theory that studies the
behavior of economic agents by looking at aggregate
demand, offer, monetary magnitudes, variables of
national production, etc.
◼ Main macro-economic indicators:
1.- Activity or Production 5.- Balance of payments

2.- Employment 6.- Economic and financial
3.- Prices, wages and income situation
4.- Demand (internal and external) 7.- Public sector
Source: Del Río, 2004


◼ Main macro-economic indicators
◼ 1.- Activity or production (I)
◼ The economy is studied from the point of view of the
offer, analyzing the three main economic sectors of any
country:
◼ Primary (agriculture, farming, fisheries)
◼ Secondary (industry and construction)
◼ Terciary (commerce, transportation, tourism,

communications, public services).


◼ 1.- Activity or production (II)
◼ Most common economic indicators:
◼ Agricultural Production Index
◼ Industrial Production Index (IPI)
◼ Consumption of energy
◼ Construction
◼ Cement production
◼ Projected houses
◼ Number of passengers by means of transportation

◼ Number of tourists
◼ Hotel occupancy

https://www.ine.es/prensa/ipi_prensa.htm

https://www.ine.es/prensa/ipi_prensa.htm

◼ Evolution of mortage lending
https://www.ine.es/dyngs/INEbase/es/operacion.htm?c=Estadistica_C&cid=1254736170236&menu=ultiDatos&idp=1254735576757

◼ Hotel occupancy figures
https://www.ine.es/dyngs/INEbase/es/operacion.htm?c=Estadistica_C&cid=1254736177015&menu=ultiDatos&idp=1254735576863

◼ 2.- Employment
◼ Economically Active Population Survey (EPA)
◼ Number of contributors to Social Security
◼ Registered unemployment by the Instituto Nacional

de Empleo (INEM)

https://www.ine.es/en/daco/daco42/daco4211/epa0321_en.pdf

◼ 3.- Prices, wages, and income
◼ Consumer Price Index (IPC)
◼ Industrial Price Index (IPRI)
◼ Quarterly Labour Cost Survey (ETCL)


◼ Spain inflation rate (CPI variation)
https://tradingeconomics.com/spain/inflation-cpi

◼ Quarterly Labour Cost Survey (ETCL)
https://www.ine.es/dyngs/INEbase/en/operacion.htm?c=Estadistica_C&cid=1254736045053&menu=ultiDatos&idp=1254735976596

◼ 4.- Demand (where do we spend the money on?)
◼ Internal/Domestic/National
◼ Consumption: Expenditures on goods or services
within the country’s borders (included imported
goods, e.g. a German car)
◼ Investment: public (salaries of public employees) or
private (capital goods)
◼ External/Foreign
◼ Exports of goods and services

https://www.caixabankresearch.com/en/economics-markets/activity-growth/domestic-demand-adds-growth-spain
https://www.ine.es/en/daco/daco42/daco4214/cntr0321a_en.pdf

◼ 5.- Balance of payments
◼ It is the balance of all transactions (by individuals,
companies, the state) between a given country and the rest
of the world during a period of time, usually a quarter or a
year.
◼ Example: Funds entering a country from a foreign source
are booked as a credit and recorded in the BOP. Outflows
from a country are recorded as debits in the BOP. For
example, say Japan exports 100 cars to the U.S. Japan
books the export of the 100 cars as a debit in the BOP,
while the U.S. books the imports as a credit in the BOP.
https://www.investopedia.com/terms/b/bop.asp

◼ 6.- Economic and financial situation
◼ Most common economic indicators (beyond those already
considered so far):
◼ Gross Domestic Product (GDP)
◼ Gross National Product (GNP)
◼ Per Capita Income (PCI)
◼ Purchasing Power Parity (PPP)


◼ Gross Domestic Product (GDP)
◼ GDP is the monetary value of all finished goods and
services made within a country during a specific period.
◼ GDP provides an economic snapshot of a country, used
to estimate the size of an economy and growth rate.
◼ GDP can be calculated in three ways, using
expenditures, production, or incomes. It can be adjusted
for inflation and population to provide deeper insights.
https://www.investopedia.com/terms/g/gdp.asp

◼ GDP (PPP) per capita in 2021, by country
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(PPP)_per_capita

◼ 7.- Public sector
◼ Public Budget Balance (as % of GDP) [Déficit Público]
◼ Is the overall difference between government revenues and
spending
◼ This balance is negative for Spain (circa -10% of GDP in
2021)
◼ Gross Public Debt (as % of GDP) [Deuda pública]
◼ Is the total amount of debt the government has issued
◼ This amount of issued debt is bigger than Spain’s GDP
(circa 120% of GDP in 2021)

◼ Macroeconomic forecast for Spain (published by
the European Commission)
https://ec.europa.eu/info/business-economy-euro/economic-performance-and-forecasts/economic-performance-country/spain/economic-forecast-spain_en

◼ Cuadro macroeconómico para 2021 y 2022
https://www.lamoncloa.gob.es/consejodeministros/resumenes/Documents/2021/210921-situacion_macro.pdf
Micro-economics: the companies

◼ For-profit, limited liability for share-holders
◼ A commercial company or a business is an entity
funded with capital whose main goal is to make a
profit.
◼ The capital is usually contributed by the share-
holders (accionistas), who may be completely alien to
the day-to-day operations of the company.
◼ In most cases, shareholders enjoy a limited liability:
if the company goes bankrupt, they’ll just pay its
debts up to the value of their shares, not with their
own personal assets.

◼ Incorporation documents
◼ Whenever a company is established, its creators will have fill a series of
legally certified documents that contain information on the formation,
constitution, and legal structure of the company.
◼ Incorporation documents are the primary rules governing the functioning
and management of the company:
◼ Certificate of Incorporation: A document that contains the company’s registration
number and date of incorporation, issued by a government or a legal entity
◼ Memorandum of Association: A statement made by every shareholder explaining
their intention to form and be a part of the company
◼ Articles of Association: A set of rules governing the operations, management and
ownership of the company
◼ Share Certificates: A document certifying ownership of the registered shares of the
company
◼ Statutory Registers: A set of official books for maintaining information on the
company’s members, shares, directors and secretaries
https://www.ansarada.com/business-readiness/corporate/incorporation-registration-information

◼ Who is behind a company (in Spain)?
https://librebor.me/

◼ Who is behind a Company (in the USA)?
https://www.sec.gov/edgar/searchedgar/companysearch.html

◼ Regulated by commercial law
◼ The activity and legal structure of
private companies is regulated by
commercial law (derecho mercantil).
◼ Commercial law defines the
accounting requirements, the
obligations of managers and
administrators, and the rights of
shareholders.

◼ Main types of companies in Spain
◼ Sole trader (autónomo o empresario individual)
◼ Limited liability company (Sociedad Limitada, SL)
◼ Stock corporation or Public Limited Company

(Sociedad Anónima, SA)
◼ Cooperative (Sociedad cooperativa)

◼ Interpreting financial statements
◼ All companies must file certain summaries of their
accounts on at least a yearly basis. These are the
main financial statements a journalist may check:
◼ Income Statement / Profit & Loss / Earnings Report
(Cuenta de Resultados ó Cuenta de Pérdidas y Ganancias)
◼ EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and
Amortization)
◼ Balance Sheet / Assets & Liabilities / What you own vs.
What you owe (Balance de Situación)
◼ Statement of Cash Flows (Estado de Flujos de Efectivo)

https://youtu.be/N6ZgIVAQeXQ?t=42

◼ Income Statement (Cuenta de Resultados)
◼ An income statement is a report that shows how much
revenue a company earned over a specific time period
(usually for a year or some portion of a year).
◼ An income statement also shows the costs and expenses
associated with earning that revenue.
◼ The literal “bottom line” of the statement usually shows
the company’s net earnings or losses. This tells you how
much the company earned or lost over the period.
https://www.sec.gov/reportspubs/investor-publications/investorpubsbegfinstmtguidehtm.html

◼ Income Statement (Cuenta de Resultados)
https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/knowledge/accounting/income-statement/
Sample income statement
Sample income statement

◼ Example: Microsoft
https://youtu.be/Hq-44PHgAiU?t=124

◼ Balance Sheet (Balance de Situación)
◼ A balance sheet provides detailed information about a
company’s assets, liabilities and shareholders’ equity:
◼ Assets are things that a company owns that have value.
◼ Liabilities are amounts of money that a company owes to
others.
◼ Shareholders’ equity is sometimes called capital or net worth.
It’s the money that would be left if a company sold all of its
assets and paid off all of its liabilities. This leftover money
belongs to the shareholders, or the owners, of the company.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earnings_before_interest,_taxes,_depreciation_and_amortization
Balance sheet sample
https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/knowledge/accounting/balance-sheet/

◼ Statement of Cash Flows (Estado de Flujos de Efectivo)
◼ Cash flow statements report a company’s inflows and
outflows of cash. This is important because a company
needs to have enough cash on hand to pay its expenses
and purchase assets. While an income statement can tell
you whether a company made a profit, a cash flow
statement can tell you whether the company generated
cash.

◼ Cash Flow Statement
• Inflow from costumers paying the company

• Outflow of salaries paid to employees
• Outflow of taxes paid to governments
• Inflow (divestments)
• Outflow (acquisitions)
• Inflow (from loans, from buying back

shares)
• Outflow (paying dividend for shareholders)
https://youtu.be/mZBjsIYrLvM?t=300

◼ Cash Flow Statement
https://youtu.be/mZBjsIYrLvM?t=492
Cash Flow sample statement
https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/templates/excel-modeling/cash-flow-statement-template/

◼ EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes,
Depreciation, and Amortization)
◼ EBITDA is useful to get a view of the profitability of the
operating business alone, as the cost items ignored in the
EBITDA computation are largely independent from the
operating business.
◼ The EBITDA metric is commonly used as a proxy for
cash flow.
◼ A negative EBITDA indicates that a business has
fundamental problems with profitability.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earnings_before_interest,_taxes,_depreciation_and_amortization

◼ EBITDA
https://youtu.be/N6ZgIVAQeXQ?t=85
EBITDA sample
https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/knowledge/finance/what-is-ebitda/
EBITDA sample
https://youtu.be/I7ND6z5eXmo
The financial sector

◼ The financial actors and monetary policy
◼ The Spanish financial system is mostly comprised by
banks (commercial and savings banks) and insurance
companies.
◼ The monetary policy may be defined as the action
taken by economic authorities to control the
variations in the amount of money in circulation and
in the official cost of money (official interest types).
◼ Monetary policy in the EU is set by the European
Central Bank (ECB).
Del Río (2004)

◼ Peculiarities of the European Monetary Union (I)
◼ The countries forming the EU do not constitute an
‘optimal currency area’. Linguistic and cultural
barriers make it more difficult for people to move
between states if they lose their jobs.
◼ Although EU member states have very different
economies, the European Central Bank (ECB) sets a
single official interest rate for the whole Eurozone,
so what might be good for a wealthier country might
not be good for a poorer country.
Stiglitz (2016)

◼ Peculiarities of the European Monetary Union (II)
◼ As compared to a federation like the US, the EU
does not make fiscal transfers to states in trouble, at
least formally. The closest to fiscal transfers in the
EU are the ERDF (European Regional and
Development Funds)
◼ As compared to the US Federal Reserve, the
European Central Bank (ECB) is politically
independent from any government and only cares
about limiting inflation. Encouraging employment is
not within its formal remit.
Stiglitz (2016)

◼ Decentralized finance (DeFi)
https://youtu.be/9hBC5TVdYT8

◼ DeFi is a new ecosystem of financial services.
◼ DeFi runs on blockchains, vast networks of computers that
keep an open, incorruptible common record and update it
without the need for a central authority.
◼ The idea is to make financial operations (give or take loans)
without banks as intermediaries, and without central banks
regulating interest rates or the amount of money in
circulation.
◼ The main blockchain network is Ethereum. In the second
quarter of 2021, the value of its verified transactions reached
$2.5trn, around the same sum as Visa processes.
The Economist (2021)

◼ Ethereum terminology:
◼ Ether: the name of the main currency.
◼ Gas: transaction fee.
◼ NFT (Non-Fungible Token): a
cryptocurrency chit that proves a buyer
owns an intangible marker connected to
a unique piece of digital art, music or
other item.
◼ Wallet: the digital pocket where
cryptocurrencies are stored. They can
work as browser extensions.
◼ MetaMask
◼ Crypto


◼ Common criticisms
◼ Blockchain platforms do not scale easily and the computers they
harness consume wasteful amounts of electricity.
◼ The lack of an external anchor of value: Conventional money is
backed by states with a monopoly on force and central banks that are
lenders of last resort. Without these, DeFi will be vulnerable to
panics.
◼ Contract enforcement outside the virtual world: A blockchain
contract may say you own a house but only the police can enforce an
eviction.
◼ Money-laundering.
◼ Despite the claims of decentralisation, some programmers and app
owners hold disproportionate sway over the DeFi system.

◼ Insurance: definitions
◼ “The insurance industry remains, for me, one of the great
uncovered stories in American business” (Starkman, 2014, p.
XV).
◼ Insurance companies cover the risk of an accident, theft, fire
or death in exchange of an amount of money paid for by an
individual, a society (e.g. a neighborhood committee) or a
company.
◼ The coverage is defined in a policy (póliza) and the fee
charged is called the insurance premium (prima).
Starkman (2014)

◼ Insurance: risky business
◼ In 2018, the premiums paid for property and casualty
insurance worldwide reached $2.4trn.
◼ Climate change is making extreme events more frequent, so
insurers may have to charge ever bigger premium to
policyholders, or declare the assets uninsurable.
◼ Where risks become uninsurable, states and firms may work
hand-in-hand. In Britain, where a sixth of homes are at risk
of flooding, government and insurers have set up Flood Re, a
reinsurer that enables insurers to offer affordable premiums
on 350,000 homes in flood plains.
Starkman (2014)
The insurance industry

◼ ‘Protection gap’
◼ The global gap between
total losses and insured
losses is already wide and
growing. Half of losses
from natural disasters in
2018 were uninsured.
https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2019/09/19/changing-weather-could-put-insurance-firms-out-of-business

◼ Insurance: It’s all about data
◼ To calculate how much they can charge us for their policies,
insurers rely on data predictions (e.g. the older you get, the
more likely it is that you will become sick or die, so the
premium increases as you age).
◼ But insurance companies are not the ones that have more
data. What if Facebook or Amazon decide to get into the
business of insurance?
◼ In China, Artificial Intelligence is used to underwrite
insurance policies within minutes, as all sorts of risks are
calculated within seconds.
https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2019/07/20/the-future-of-insurance-is-happening-without-insurance-firms

◼ Insurance: The 2004 scandal
◼ In 2004, NY’s attorney-general filed civil charges against
Marsh & McLennan, the world’s biggest insurance broker,
and announced settlements of criminal charges with two
employees at AIG, the world’s biggest insurer, and one at
ACE, a big property-casualty insurer.
◼ The broker charged abusive commissions to the insurers to find them
clients, but that would not mean lowering the rates of the clients
insured.
◼ The global brokering business is controlled by three companies:
Marsh, Aon, and Willis.
https://www.economist.com/special-report/2004/10/21/just-how-rotten

◼ Insurance: The AIG rescue in 2008
◼ During the financial crisis of 2007–2008, the US Federal
Reserve bailed the company out for $180 billion and assumed
control, with the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission
attributing AIG’s failure to the mass sales of unhedged
insurance. AIG repaid $205 billion to the United States
government in 2012.
◼ AIG sold a new type of financial product, the ‘Collaterized Debt
Obligations’ (CDO), which bundled together several mortgages, some
of them of the ‘sub-prime’ kind.
◼ When the housing market crashed, foreclosures on home loans rose
to high levels. AIG had to pay out on what it had promised to cover...
making the company insolvent. It was so big that its fall threatened to
bring down part of the world financial system, hence its bail out.
https://www.investopedia.com/articles/economics/09/american-investment-group-aig-bailout.asp

◼ Why did journalists miss the 2008 crisis?
◼ Because ‘access journalism’ prevailed over
‘accountability journalism’. Business news
acted as a market messaging service for
investors (i.e. profiling executives), instead of
being guardians of public interest (i.e.
exposing corrupt corporate behavior).

◼ In the Spanish case...
◼ October 2021 was the month with highest electricity prices ever recorded, with an
average price of 200 EUR per MWh.
◼ Main reasons for this:
◼ Rising prices of international gas
◼ Rising cost of CO2 emission permits
◼ Additional problems:
◼ Two of the seven operating nuclear plants (Almaraz I in Cáceres; Cofrentes
in Valencia) will stop producing in November as they need to refill their fuel
(uranium).
◼ Reservoir reserves at an all-time low.
◼ The main gas pipe connecting Spain with Algeria through Morocco has been
shut due to tensions between Morocco and Algeria.
◼ To meet its natural gas needs, Spain will have to import LNG from other countries (e.g.
Qatar, USA...) and unload it into any of its regasification plants.
◼ https://www.enagas.es/enagas/es/Transporte_de_gas/PlantasRegasificacion
https://www.epe.es/es/economia/20211105/sector-electrico-nucleares-embalses-gasoducto-12676288

◼ Each country’s share of CO2 emissions (2020)
https://www.ucsusa.org/resources/each-countrys-share-co2-emissions
https://www.economist.com/free-exchange/2010/02/03/some-are-more-energy-hungry-than-others
Energy crises: past
◼ Will this energy crisis transform politics like in 1970?
◼ The last major energy crisis was during the 1970s:
◼ An OPEC-orchestrated oil embargo hit oil prices in 1973 and 1974, grounding
industrialized economies to a halt.
◼ This happened in a context of rising inflation and stagnating employment (‘stagflation’).
◼ The oil shock of 1974 had an impact of 3.6% on global GDP
◼ Could the coming energy shock had a similar impact on global GDP?
◼ If energy prices soar partly due to the EU’s green commitments (paying for CO2
emissions), governments might have an incentive to backpedal in their climate change
policy:
◼ France is asking for nuclear energy to be considered part of the ‘green’ mix (as it does not
cause CO2 emissions).
◼ Spain asked the European Commission to leave the European system for setting electricity
prices
◼ If inflation combines with rising energy costs, we could have a similar
crisis to that of the 1970s.
https://counterpoint.uk.com/energy-transform-politics/
https://www.reuters.com/article/spain-energy-eu-idUSL1N2PJ0H1
Is the Paris Agreement doable?
◼ Energy transitions take about 50 years
(Vaclav Smil)
◼ It was not until the 1900s that coal exceded the
share of total energy provided by traditional
biomass (wood), despite the steam engine having
been invented in 1769.
◼ It was not until the 1950s, a century after the first
comercial oil well was drilled in Pennsylvania, that
crude oil came to represent 25% of humankind’s
total primary energy.
◼ But we don’t have that much time! In the
next 30-50 years 90% or more of the share of
the world’s energy now being produced from
fossil fuels will need to be provided by
renewable-energy sources, nuclear power or
fossil-fuel plants that bury their waste.
https://www.economist.com/schools-brief/2020/05/23/the-worlds-energy-system-must-be-transformed-completely
◼ Vaclav Smil’s energy ages
Dominant sources of energy Period

Wood Age Until 1900s
Coal & Oil Age Until 1970s
Coal, Oil & Natural Gas Age, with Our present
small inputs from renewables (less time
than 6% of the total) and nuclear
Carbon neutral By 2050?
https://mitpress.mit.edu/books/energy-and-civilization
https://www.worldenergydata.org/world-total-final-consumption/
◼ Two technological bets for a greener future
◼ Hydrogen
◼ https://youtu.be/fkX-H24Chfw
◼ Nuclear fussion (ITER Project)
◼ https://youtu.be/eoZ9wGtruEU
Transportation regulation
◼ EU’s Single European Market for Transportation
◼ Aviation
◼ Single European Sky
◼ Liberalization > Budget, low-cost airlines (Ryanair, Easyjet)
◼ Railways
◼ Liberalization: European companies can compete in any other EU
member state (e.g. Ouigo, Ilsa, Avlo…)
◼ Sea
◼ European Maritime Single Window
◼ Roads
◼ Trucks can serve outside their countries of registration, reducing
unloaded return trips.
European Commission, 2019

Transportation security: Case studies
◼ The Prestige oil spill, November 2002 (sea)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prestige_oil_spill
https://ignaciotrillo.files.wordpress.com/2012/10/prestige-grafico1.jpg
◼ The Prestige had set sail from St. Petersburg, Russia, without being
properly inspected. A previous captain in St. Petersburg, Esfraitos
Kostazos, complained to the owners about numerous structural
deficiencies within the ship.
◼ The ownership of the Prestige was unclear, making it difficult to
determine exactly who was responsible for the oil spill.
◼ The Spanish government was criticized for its decision to tow the
ailing wreck out to sea — where it split in two — rather than in to a
port. The refusal to allow the ship to take refuge in a sheltered port
has been called a major contributing factor to the scale of the
disaster.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prestige_oil_spill
◼ The Spanair crash, July 2008 (air)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanair_Flight_5022
https://visual.ly/community/Infographics/other/cat%C3%A1strofe-%C3%A9rea-en-madrid
◼ The Spanair crash, July 2008 (air)
◼ The flaps and slaps that enable the airplane to take off were not
deployed. The take-off warning system (TOWS) should have alerted
the pilots, but the warning did not sound.
◼ The Association of Victims of Flight JK5022 and the Official College
of Commercial Aviation Pilots have expressed on numerous
occasions the lack of independence of the current investigative body,
the Comisión de Investigación de Accidentes e Incidentes de
Aviación Civil.
◼ A new multimodal and more independent agency is set to be created
https://desdelacabinadevuelo.com/2021/07/23/la-independencia-en-la-investigacion-de-accidentes-de-transporte-cuales-son-sus-pilares/
◼ The Alvia derailment, July 2013 (railways)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santiago_de_Compostela_derailment
https://elpais.com/elpais/2018/07/19/album/1531994457_358980.html
◼ The Alvia derailment, July 2013 (railways)
◼ Flawed security: high-speed trains usually work with ERTMS, a
system designed to slow or stop a train if the driver ignores signals or
speed limits.
◼ Hybrid train: the railtracks in Galicia are not yet electrified, so the
main engine doubles up as a diesel machine to run over those tracks.
This adds considerable weight to the driving coach. If the train was
fully electric, it may not have derailed, as the diesel driving coach
pulled the rest of the train when it went off the tracks. The hybrid
train was the solution envisioned by the Spanish Government to brag
about a high-speed line in record time.
◼ The European Railway Agency found the investigation carried out by
the Comisión de Investigación de Accidentes Ferroviarios lacking
independence. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santiago_de_Compostela_derailment
https://elpais.com/elpais/2018/07/19/album/1531994457_358980.html
Lecture 11.- Investigating healthcare
Spanish health system in context

◼ Two/Three main models of healthcare systems
Subsidized
Individual
Single-Payer
Mandate
System 1 System 2 System 3

(Beveridge) (Bismark) (Indiv. Mandate)
Countries Britain, Italy, France, Canada, Netherlands,
Spain, Sweden Germany Switzerland
Insurance Public Public Private
Care Public Private Private
Source: Hidalgo Vega et al. 2000; The Economist


◼ The US model
◼ Health insurance has been tied to employment since WWII.
Employers pay for the insurance of nearly 50% of Americans.
◼ It has two single-payer systems:
◼ Medicare (for those over 65)
◼ Medicaid (for those earning below a certain threshold)
◼ Affordable Care Act (‘Obamacare’): a government-subsidized
system of private insurance exchanges with an individual
mandate, like the Netherlands and Switzerland.
◼ Obamacare cut the number of uninsured people from 44m to 28m
◼ Still, 10% of Americans below retirment age are without insurance


◼ The bright side:
◼ Highly efficient (Good value for the money):
◼ With a limited expenditure (circa 6% of GDP), Spain gets Good
results in life expectancy, infant mortality...
◼ The dark side:
◼ Under-funded primary care leads to hospital saturation
◼ Long waiting lists
◼ Lower ratio of beds and ICUs per 1,000 inhabitants
◼ Spanish doctors are amongst the worst paid compared to
their peers in the developed world
◼ No specialized training for emergency care
https://www.bls.gov/ooh/highest-paying.htm
Spain spends less on healthcare than the OECD average
◼ Health spending per person

Expenditure as a share of GDP is close to OECD average
◼ Health spending by percentage of GDP

Spain spends less on healthcare than the EU average
https://www.elconfidencial.com/economia/2020-03-27/radiografia-sanidad-publica-coronavirus_2520620/
Expenditure as a share of GDP is close to OECD average
◼ The US spends the most and yet does not get universal coverage!
https://www.larazon.es/salud/20200405/uaxrmdrhejcmbfbb3zxy7pfami.html
Heath expenditure by in inhabitant in Spain’s regions
◼ Regions with aging and dispersed populations are costlier
Source, El Mundo, 13 November 2022, pages 18-19


◼ Health insurance coverage


◼ Health insurance coverage


◼ Health outcomes: Satisfaction with the system


◼ Health outcomes: Avoidable deaths from preventable and treatable deseases


◼ Health outcomes: Avoidable deaths from preventable and treatable deseases


◼ Avoidable hospital admissions (breathing, heart failure, and diabetes)
https://www.elconfidencial.com/economia/2020-03-27/radiografia-sanidad-publica-coronavirus_2520620/

◼ Health outcomes: Life expectancy


◼ Life expectancy vs wealth


◼ Health outcomes: Infant mortality


◼ Spain, the 3rd most efficient health system in the world after
Hong Kong and Singapore


◼ Average doctor’s yearly salary

◼ The US model makes doctors rich
https://www.bls.gov/ooh/highest-paying.htm

◼ Ratio of hospital beds and ICUs per 1,000 people

◼ Ratio of nurses and doctors per 1,000 people
Doctors in Spain
◼ 70% are on the public system
◼ 30% work on primary care
◼ 60% work on specialist care
◼ 10% work out of specialist care
◼ (mostly on emergency care)
Source, El Mundo, 13 November 2022, pages 18-19

History: from postwar to democracy
◼ Laws towards a public health system
◼ 1849 Ley General de Beneficencia
◼ 1900 Ley de Accidentes de Trabajo
◼ 1904 Instrucción General de Sanidad Pública
◼ 1929 Creación del Seguro Obligatorio de Maternidad
◼ 1936 Propuesta de ley republicana sobre la creación de un
seguro obligatorio de enfermedad
◼ 1942 Establecimiento del Seguro Obligatorio de
Enfermedad
◼ 1966 Creación de la Asistencia Sanitaria de la Seguridad
Social
◼ 1986 Ley General de Sanidad
Source: Guillén, 2000
◼ From voluntary to mandatory insurance
◼ Until the end of the Civil War, public healthcare was mostly
geared to the poor as charity.
◼ Health insurance was voluntary until the establishment of the
Seguro Obligatorio de Enfermedad in 1942
◼ SOE was addressed to low income workers and their families.
◼ By 1963, the SOE was covering half of the Spanish population.
◼ The SOE was funded by contributions from employers and workers.
◼ Most hospitals were private or public, owned by local administrations
◼ The creation of a Social Security system in 1966 expanded the
coverage of the SOE, reaching 81.4% of the Spanish
population in 1975, at Franco’s death.
◼ From workers to citizens
◼ By 1982, the Spanish health system was mostly funded by
employers and workers. Health coverage was provided
because you were a worker (or the relative of a worker), not
because you were a citizen.
◼ It was in 1986, with the Ley General de Sanidad, that taxes –
and not just contributions from employers or workers- are
used to fund a public system that is progressively transferred
to the regional governments.

◼ Devolution of health competences
https://www.euro.who.int/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/128830/e94549.pdf
Sustainability
◼ Can we afford to pay for pharma innovations?
Source: Lobo, 2017

Sustainability
◼ Lack of transparency in the real cost of medicines
◼ https://civio.es/novedades/2022/11/14/cambio-legal-
precio-publico-medicamentos-secreto/
Source: Fundación Civio, 2022

Sustainability
◼ Under-funded primary care, long waiting lists
https://elpais.com/hemeroteca/elpais/portadas/2021/11/05/
Sustainability
◼ Is there a lack of doctors in Spain?
◼ Spain has more doctors per 1,000 people than the OECD average
https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/sites/b33ab4c1-en/index.html?itemId=/content/component/b33ab4c1-en
Sustainability
◼ Spain is 2nd worldwide (South Korea is 1st) in number of Schools of
Medicine per 1 million inhabitants.
◼ Spain boasts 55 medical schools in 2022, producing around 7,000
graduates per year.
◼ https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?hl=en&mid=1qFzF2TMOjZv8HeczjvYXY
nfkXv4&ll=40.58340222088409%2C-3.6790191647214905&z=7
https://theobjective.com/sociedad/2022-11-19/no-faltan-medicos/
Sustainability
◼ Medicine is one of the most coveted degrees. It has the most
dramatic imbalance in terms of offer and demand. In 2021-
22,
◼ 60,000 applicants...
◼ for just 5,753 places in public universities
◼ Private universities offered 1,614 places, with their own admission
criterio and registration fees 12 times higher than public universities:
◼ Average registration fee for public universities: 1,219 euros per year
◼ Average registration fee for private universities: 15,000 euros per year
◼ Many of those who cannot get into Medicine opt for Nursing
◼ Health professions are becoming highly feminized
◼ In Spain, 70% of Medicine students are female
https://nadaesgratis.es/beatriz-gonzalez-lopez-valcarcel/medicos-numeros-y-mas-alla-de-los-numeros
Sustainability
◼ Spain is above OECD average in the number of medical graduates per
100k people
https://www.statista.com/chart/11797/the-countries-churning-out-the-most-medical-graduates/
Sustainability
◼ Spain is above OECD average in the number of medical graduates per
100k people
https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/sites/54707909-en/index.html?itemId=/content/component/54707909-en
Sustainability
◼ In 2022, 13,059 graduates applied for residence in hospitals (MIR), but
only 8,188 places were available. Close to 5,000 graduates did not have
the chance to get specialized training in hospitals.
◼ Are MIR examinations too difficult?
◼ Interestingly, of the 8,188 residence places in offer, 97 remained vacant.
◼ Family medicine (primary care) is among the least attractive specializations
for doctors. Why?
◼ In the past 5 years, 11,000 Spanish doctors have migrated abroad in
search for better payments and labor conditions.
◼ Ironically, Spain is a magnet for Latin American doctors. In 2019, the
number of validated degrees from Latin America was close to the number
of home graduates.
https://theobjective.com/sociedad/2022-11-19/no-faltan-medicos/
Sustainability
◼ Digitalization
◼ AI-aided diagnose (e.g. MRIs)
◼ Telemedicine and wearables
◼ Electronic health records
Source: Lobo, 2017

Lecture 12: Investigating housing
◼ 12.1.- The problem with housing

◼ 12.1.1.- Is home ownership becoming unaffordable?
◼ 12.2.- Housing bubbles
◼ 12.2.1.- Why do they happen? Are they preventable?
◼ 12.3.- Housing in Spain
◼ 12.3.1.- A country of homeowners
◼ 12.3.2.- Little social housing provision, high rents
◼ 12.3.3.- Squatters
Lecture 12.- Investigating housing
The problem with housing

◼ What’s in a home?
◼ 1.- A use value (we all need a roof)
◼ 2.- A commodity (we can sell it for a profit or, if we
have two, we can rent out the second and have a
source of income)
◼ Is housing a basic human right?
◼ Free-market housing
◼ Social housing
◼ Is renting preferrable to buying?

◼ https://youtu.be/kkVEt5tC2xU
Source: Williams (2020)

◼ Housing is becoming unaffordable
◼ In 1990, boomers in their mid-30s owned a third of the US’
real estate by value.
◼ In 2019, millennials in their early 30s owned just 4%.
◼ Millennial socialism?
◼ Millennials desire “asset-light” lives in which they rent

cars, music and clothes, rather than owning them.
◼ Weak earnings
◼ For the first time in a century, home ownership in

the rich wolrd is in decline.

Source: Palmer (2011)

◼ Promoting a society of homeowners (I)
◼ In the 1950s, Western governments began to promote home
ownership through subsidies, tax breakes and sales of public
housing to encourage owner-occupation over renting.
◼ Why?
◼ Home ownership by the working class would make

socialism less attractive, and societies would be more
peaceful.
◼ Home owners, since they are supposed to care about
what they own, will be more responsible, engaged
citizens.


◼ Promoting a society of homeowners (II)
◼ The second half of the 20th century became the age of
‘mortgaging’ (house loans): mortgage credit as a share of
GDP across the rich world more than doubled.
◼ The home ownership rate rose…
◼ … from 45% to 70% in the USA
◼ … from 30% to 70% in Britain
◼ … from 40% to 80% in Spain


◼ An inefficient and unfair market?
◼ “Casas sin gente, gente sin casas”
◼ Housing is unaffordable for the young…
◼ … yet many houses are empty!


◼ How to make housing affordable?


◼ How to make housing affordable?

◼ Build more?
◼ Cap rental prices by law?
◼ Increase the average tenancy periods?

◼ Average tenancy in Britain (or Spain): 2-3 years
◼ Average tenancy in Germany: 11-12 years

Housing bubbles
◼ Property is a sector prone to bubbles because…
◼ 1.- It is the world’s biggest investment class

Housing bubbles
◼ 1.- It is the world’s biggest investment class
◼ Property is so big that when credit conditions loosen it is
likely to absorb a lot of the extra liquidity; and when
something goes wrong the effects will be serious.
◼ 2.- The amount of debt it involves
◼ Buyers usually take loans worth 80% of the value of the
property. If the economy goes wrong, you may lose your
job, default on the mortgage payments, get evicted… and
the bank will be left with a property whose value is less
than the amount of money it lent you. A property crash is
always a problem for the Banks.
Housing bubbles
◼ 3.- House prices are linked to the availability of
credit
◼ Easier credit means that property can sell for more,
driving up house prices.
◼ However, in a property bust, prices will fall and banks will
tighten their lending standards. Those struggling to meet
their mortgage payments will be forced to sell, sometimes
even at a loss, further speeding up the decline in prices.
◼ When you are paying a mortgage for a house whose current value
is less than the one you bought it for, you are in ‘negative equity’.

Housing bubbles
◼ The property crash of 2007-2008
Palmer (2011)
Housing bubbles
◼ Policies to make property safer
◼ 1.- Reduce tax breaks for home buyers
◼ 2.- Make lending standards to developers more strict.
◼ 3.- “Macroprudential regulation”

◼ Restrict the availability of credit for speculative
homebuying
◼ Impose taxes on homes that are flipped within a certain
period

Housing in Spain
◼ A country of homeowners
Source: Mateo Tomé (2019)

Housing in Spain
◼ A country of homeowners
◼ The current real estate model was created in the
midst of Franco’s dictatorship:
◼ Retal prices were frozen and turned into indefinite ones,
discouraging the rental business.
◼ From the 1960s, housing construction became a core
business activity (desarrollismo), with private developers
receiving subsidies and tax relief.
◼ The result:
◼ In 1960, rental housing represented 40% of the total
◼ In 2001, it barely exceeded 10%
Housing in Spain
◼ The making of the housing bubble (1999-2007)
◼ Entry into the Eurozone provided low interest rates.
◼ Political decisions encourage private real estate
development, with municipalities becoming highly
dependent on the collection of property taxes to
finance their services.
◼ Attractive conditions for tourism
◼ Financial deregulation: savings Banks (cajas de

ahorros) get into the real estate business beyond
their original geographic remits
Housing in Spain
◼ The making of the housing bubble (1999-2007)
◼ At the height of the boom, according to the Bank of
Spain, more than 800,000 homes were started each
year, more than in Germany, France and Italy
combined.
◼ In these years the number of empty houses has
grown: some 3 million were counted in the 2000s,
and in cities like Madrid and Barcelona, about one-
tenth of all dwellings were empty.
◼ Why?

Housing in Spain
◼ Little social housing provision
◼ In contrast to countries like Austria, where social
housing has a seizable proportion of the market
(25% nationwide, 48% in the capital, Vienna), in
Spain less than 10% of all the housing started in the
2000s was officially subsidized (VPO, Viviendas de
Protección Oficial).
◼ Between 1960 and 1974, social housing represented 43%
of total housing in Spain.
◼ https://youtu.be/41VJudBdYXY

Housing in Spain
◼ Rising rental prices
Housing in Spain
◼ Rising rental prices in cities
https://magnet.xataka.com/preguntas-no-tan-frecuentes/dos-mapas-para-entender-indignacion-espanoles-precio-alquiler
Housing in Spain
◼ The problem with squatters (okupas)
◼ In 2011, out of over 25 million dwellings in Spain,
3.4 million were empty (13% of the total). Another
14% are second homes.
◼ In Spain there are between 85,000 and 90,000
illegally squatted dwellings, 80% of which belong to
banks.
◼ Between 40% and 60% of squatted properties have
their connection to utilities manipualted, which is
dangeours in itself and entails costs for the
neighbours and for all consumers.
Source: Anderson (2018)
Housing in Spain
◼ The problem with squatters (okupas)
https://www.abc.es/economia/abci-lacra-ocupacion-ilegal-espana-supera-40-casos-202008102303_noticia.html

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Lecture 1.

What is Investigative Journalism?

Caminos Marcet, 1997

What is Investigative Journalism?

The Picture of Dorian Gray (1945 movie directed by Albert Lewin)

What is Investigative Journalism?

What is Investigative Journalism?

Caminos Marcet, 1997

What is Investigative Journalism?

Dangers and pressures

Dangers and pressures

The public impact of IR

A brief history of IR in the USA

Caminos Marcet, 1997

A brief history of IR in the USA

◼ My Lai Massacre (1972)

◼ The Washington Post

Caminos Marcet, 1997

A brief history of IR in the USA

A brief history of IR in Spain

A brief history of IR in Spain

◼ Confidentiality of sources (Secreto profesional)

◼ 2.2.1.- Limits to freedom of expression:

◼ Felonies against honor (libel)

◼ 2.4.- Professional codes of conduct

◼ Free-lance (e.g. A free-lance photojournalist like Peter Parker)

◼ A graduate in Journalism who is not working as a journalist… is a

Laws affecting journalism practice

Source: Constitución Española, 1978, Art. 20

Laws affecting journalism practice

◼ Madrid, El País, Diario 16…

Source: Armentia Vizuete y Caminos Marcet, 2009, p. 11

Laws affecting journalism practice

Fuente: Armentia Vizuete y Caminos Marcet, 2009, p. 18-22

Laws affecting journalism practice

Source: Armentia Vizuete y Caminos Marcet, 2009: 18-22

Laws affecting journalism practice

Source: Armentia Vizuete y Caminos Marcet, 2009: 18-22

Laws affecting journalism practice

Laws affecting journalism practice

Laws affecting journalism practice

Fuente: Armentia Vizuete y Caminos Marcet, 2009: 18-22

Laws affecting journalism practice

Source: Armentia Vizuete y Caminos Marcet, 2009: 18-22

Laws affecting journalism practice

Laws affecting journalism practice

Laws affecting journalism practice

Laws affecting journalism practice

Source: Spanish Criminal Code, http://www.sanchezcervera-abogados.com/en/files/2012/06/Criminal_Code_Código_Penal.pdf

Laws affecting journalism practice

Laws affecting journalism practice

Época, 2 de octubre de 2009

Laws affecting journalism practice

Caminos Marcet, 1997

Laws affecting journalism practice

Laws affecting journalism practice

Dealing with secrecy

Source: Armentia Vizuete y Caminos Marcet, 2009: 21-27

Dealing with secrecy

Dealing with secrecy

Dealing with secrecy

Dealing with secrecy

◼ It is usually public, althouth some hearings might be held with

Source: Armentia Vizuete y Caminos Marcet, 2009: 21-27