TEDSummit
Gerard Ryle: How the Panama Papers journalists broke the biggest leak in history
Filmed:
Readability: 5
1,077,388 views
Gerard Ryle led the international team that divulged the Panama Papers, the 11.5 million leaked documents from 40 years of activity of the Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca that have offered an unprecedented glimpse into the scope and methods of the secretive world of offshore finance. Hear the story behind the biggest collaborative journalism project in history.
Gerard Ryle - Investigative journalist
As director of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, Gerard Ryle is one of the key figures behind the Panama Papers. Full bio
As director of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, Gerard Ryle is one of the key figures behind the Panama Papers. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
00:12
What do you do if you had
to figure out the information
to figure out the information
0
610
2656
00:15
behind 11.5 million documents,
1
3290
2401
00:17
verify it and make sense of it?
2
5715
1896
00:20
That was a challenge
3
8150
1152
00:21
that a group of journalists
had to face late last year.
had to face late last year.
4
9326
2857
00:24
An anonymous person
calling himself John Doe
calling himself John Doe
5
12662
3436
00:28
had somehow managed to copy
nearly 40 years of records
nearly 40 years of records
6
16122
3052
00:31
of the Panamanian law firm
Mossack Fonseca.
Mossack Fonseca.
7
19198
3500
00:35
This is one of many firms around the world
8
23317
2690
00:38
that specialize in setting up accounts
in offshore tax havens
in offshore tax havens
9
26031
3531
00:41
like the British Virgin Islands,
10
29586
2000
00:43
for rich and powerful people
who like to keep secrets.
who like to keep secrets.
11
31610
3672
00:48
John Doe had managed to copy
every spreadsheet from this firm,
every spreadsheet from this firm,
12
36195
3538
00:51
every client file,
13
39757
1594
00:53
every email,
14
41375
1699
00:55
from 1977 to the present day.
15
43098
2779
00:58
It represented the biggest cache
16
46912
2315
01:01
of inside information
into the tax haven system
into the tax haven system
17
49251
2786
01:04
that anyone had ever seen.
18
52061
1528
01:06
But it also presented a gigantic challenge
to investigative journalism.
to investigative journalism.
19
54092
4848
01:11
Think about it:
11.5 million documents,
11.5 million documents,
20
59870
3932
01:16
containing the secrets of people
from more than 200 different countries.
from more than 200 different countries.
21
64335
4090
01:20
Where do you start
with such a vast resource?
with such a vast resource?
22
68449
2477
01:22
Where do you even begin to tell a story
23
70950
2079
01:25
that can trail off
into every corner of the globe,
into every corner of the globe,
24
73053
2591
01:28
and that can affect almost
any person in any language,
any person in any language,
25
76367
3045
01:31
sometimes in ways
they don't even know yet.
they don't even know yet.
26
79436
2427
01:34
John Doe had given the information
to two journalists
to two journalists
27
82513
2502
01:37
at the German newspaper
Süddeutsche Zeitung.
Süddeutsche Zeitung.
28
85039
2615
01:40
He said he was motivated
by -- and I quote --
by -- and I quote --
29
88562
3234
01:43
"The scale of the injustice
that the documents would reveal."
that the documents would reveal."
30
91820
3580
01:48
But one user alone can never make sense
31
96401
1983
01:50
of such a vast amount of information.
32
98408
1930
01:52
So the Süddeutsche Zeitung reached out
33
100362
1862
01:54
to my organization in Washington, DC,
34
102248
2744
01:57
The International Consortium
of Investigative Journalists.
of Investigative Journalists.
35
105016
3371
02:01
We decided to do something
that was the very opposite
that was the very opposite
36
109926
2574
02:04
of everything we'd been taught
to do as journalists:
to do as journalists:
37
112524
2741
02:07
share.
38
115289
1155
02:08
(Laughter)
39
116468
1381
02:10
By nature, investigative
reporters are lone wolves.
reporters are lone wolves.
40
118324
3654
02:14
We fiercely guard our secrets,
41
122002
1829
02:15
at times even from our editors,
42
123855
1534
02:17
because we know that the moment
we tell them what we have,
we tell them what we have,
43
125413
2860
02:20
they'll want that story right away.
44
128297
1880
02:22
And to be frank,
45
130691
1298
02:24
when you get a good story,
46
132607
1422
02:26
you like to keep the glory to yourself.
47
134053
2404
02:29
But there's no doubt
that we live in a shrinking world,
that we live in a shrinking world,
48
137733
2609
02:32
and that the media has largely
been slow to wake up to this.
been slow to wake up to this.
49
140366
3169
02:35
The issues we report on
are more and more transnational.
are more and more transnational.
50
143559
3036
02:39
Giant corporations operate
on a global level.
on a global level.
51
147135
2728
02:42
Environmental and health
crises are global.
crises are global.
52
150441
3293
02:45
So, too, are financial flows
and financial crises.
and financial crises.
53
153758
2969
02:49
So it seems staggering
that journalism has been so late
that journalism has been so late
54
157488
3004
02:52
to cover stories in a truly global way.
55
160516
2552
02:55
And it also seems staggering
that journalism has been so slow
that journalism has been so slow
56
163783
3004
02:58
to wake up to the possibilities
that technology brings,
that technology brings,
57
166811
3409
03:02
rather than being frightened of it.
58
170244
2004
03:05
The reason journalists
are scared of technology is this:
are scared of technology is this:
59
173666
2949
03:09
the profession's largest institutions
are going through tough times
are going through tough times
60
177477
3560
03:13
because of the changing way
that people are consuming news.
that people are consuming news.
61
181061
3238
03:16
The advertising business models
that have sustained reporting are broken.
that have sustained reporting are broken.
62
184958
4492
03:21
And this has plunged
journalism into crisis,
journalism into crisis,
63
189890
2658
03:24
forcing those institutions
to reexamine how they function.
to reexamine how they function.
64
192572
4095
03:30
But where there is crisis,
65
198258
1653
03:31
there is also opportunity.
66
199935
1523
03:34
The first challenge presented
67
202013
1454
03:35
by what would eventually become
known as the Panama Papers
known as the Panama Papers
68
203491
2848
03:38
was to make the documents
searchable and readable.
searchable and readable.
69
206363
2549
03:40
There were nearly five million emails,
70
208936
2627
03:43
two million PDFs that needed
to be scanned and indexed,
to be scanned and indexed,
71
211587
3313
03:46
and millions more files
and other kinds of documents.
and other kinds of documents.
72
214924
2812
03:50
They all needed to be housed
in a safe and secure location
in a safe and secure location
73
218162
2837
03:53
in the cloud.
74
221023
1157
03:54
We next invited reporters
to have a look at the documents.
to have a look at the documents.
75
222961
3471
03:58
In all, reporters from more
than 100 media organizations
than 100 media organizations
76
226456
3860
04:02
in 76 countries --
77
230340
1643
04:04
from the BBC in Britain
78
232433
2045
04:06
to Le Monde newspaper in France
79
234502
2216
04:08
to the Asahi Shimbun in Japan.
80
236742
2388
04:12
"Native eyes on native names,"
we called it, the idea being,
we called it, the idea being,
81
240473
3750
04:16
who best to tell you
who was important to Nigeria
who was important to Nigeria
82
244247
3359
04:19
than a Nigerian journalist?
83
247630
1570
04:21
Who best in Canada than a Canadian?
84
249623
2125
04:24
There were only two rules
for everyone who was invited:
for everyone who was invited:
85
252247
3056
04:27
we all agreed to share everything
that we found with everybody else,
that we found with everybody else,
86
255327
4182
04:32
and we all agreed to publish
together on the same day.
together on the same day.
87
260335
2634
04:35
We chose our media partners based on trust
88
263769
2035
04:37
that had been built up through
previous smaller collaborations
previous smaller collaborations
89
265828
3218
04:41
and also from leads
that jumped out from the documents.
that jumped out from the documents.
90
269070
3007
04:44
Over the next few months,
91
272625
1235
04:45
my small nonprofit organization
of less than 20 people
of less than 20 people
92
273884
2658
04:48
was joined by more than 350 other
reporters from 25 language groups.
reporters from 25 language groups.
93
276566
4433
04:54
The biggest information leak in history
94
282035
1922
04:55
had now spawned the biggest
journalism collaboration in history:
journalism collaboration in history:
95
283981
3396
05:00
376 sets of native eyes doing
what journalists normally never do,
what journalists normally never do,
96
288091
6088
05:06
working shoulder to shoulder,
97
294203
1611
05:07
sharing information,
98
295838
1626
05:09
but telling no one.
99
297488
1417
05:12
For it became clear at this point
100
300102
1599
05:13
that in order to make
the biggest kind of noise,
the biggest kind of noise,
101
301725
2357
05:16
we first needed
the biggest kind of silence.
the biggest kind of silence.
102
304106
3185
05:20
To manage the project
over the many months it would take,
over the many months it would take,
103
308490
2730
05:23
we built a secure virtual newsroom.
104
311244
1817
05:25
We used encrypted communication systems,
105
313085
2475
05:28
and we built a specially
designed search engine.
designed search engine.
106
316157
2690
05:30
Inside the virtual newsroom,
107
318871
1627
05:32
the reporters could gather
around the themes
around the themes
108
320522
2087
05:34
that were emerging from the documents.
109
322633
1981
05:36
Those interested in blood diamonds
or exotic art, for instance,
or exotic art, for instance,
110
324638
5306
05:41
could share information about how
the offshore world was being used
the offshore world was being used
111
329968
3190
05:45
to hide the trade in both
of those commodities.
of those commodities.
112
333182
2207
05:47
Those interested in sport
could share information
could share information
113
335413
2440
05:49
about how famous sports stars
were putting their image rights
were putting their image rights
114
337877
3265
05:53
into offshore companies,
115
341166
1524
05:54
thereby likely avoiding taxes
116
342714
2263
05:57
in the countries
where they plied their trade.
where they plied their trade.
117
345001
2476
06:00
But perhaps most exciting of all
118
348097
1788
06:01
were the number of world leaders
and elect politicians
and elect politicians
119
349909
3477
06:05
that were emerging from the documents --
120
353410
2028
06:08
figures like Petro Poroshenko in Ukraine,
121
356540
3009
06:12
close associates
of Vladimir Putin in Russia
of Vladimir Putin in Russia
122
360824
3526
06:17
and the British Prime Minister,
David Cameron, who is linked
David Cameron, who is linked
123
365852
3157
06:21
through his late father, Ian Cameron.
124
369033
2317
06:24
Buried in the documents
were secret offshore entities,
were secret offshore entities,
125
372529
3231
06:27
such as Wintris Inc.,
126
375784
1788
06:30
a company in the British Virgin Islands
127
378427
1876
06:32
that had actually belonged
to the sitting Icelandic prime minister.
to the sitting Icelandic prime minister.
128
380327
3642
06:36
I like to refer to Johannes Kristjansson,
129
384435
2411
06:38
the Icelandic reporter
we invited to join the project,
we invited to join the project,
130
386870
2917
06:41
as the loneliest man in the world.
131
389811
1872
06:44
For nine months, he refused paid work
132
392231
2289
06:46
and lived off the earnings of his wife.
133
394544
2083
06:49
He pasted tarps
over the windows of his home
over the windows of his home
134
397308
2083
06:51
to prevent prying eyes
during the long Icelandic winter.
during the long Icelandic winter.
135
399415
3530
06:55
And he soon ran out of excuses
to explain his many absences,
to explain his many absences,
136
403505
3798
06:59
as he worked red-eyed,
137
407327
1566
07:00
night after night,
138
408917
1206
07:02
month after month.
139
410147
1237
07:03
In all that time, he sat on information
140
411972
2348
07:06
that would eventually bring down
the leader of his country.
the leader of his country.
141
414344
3243
07:10
Now, when you're an investigative reporter
and you make an amazing discovery,
and you make an amazing discovery,
142
418100
3689
07:13
such as your prime minster can be linked
to a secret offshore company,
to a secret offshore company,
143
421813
3881
07:17
that that company has a financial
interest in Icelandic banks --
interest in Icelandic banks --
144
425718
4126
07:21
the very issue he's been elected on --
145
429868
2350
07:24
well, your instinct
is to scream out very loud.
is to scream out very loud.
146
432242
2650
07:28
Instead, as one of the few people
that he could speak to,
that he could speak to,
147
436044
2894
07:30
Johannes and I shared
a kind of gallows humor.
a kind of gallows humor.
148
438962
2951
07:34
"Wintris is coming," he used to say.
149
442391
1721
07:36
(Laughter)
150
444136
1529
07:37
(Applause)
151
445689
1997
07:41
We were big fans of "Game of Thrones."
152
449314
2250
07:44
When reporters like Johannes
wanted to scream,
wanted to scream,
153
452759
3136
07:47
they did so inside the virtual newsroom,
154
455919
2675
07:50
and then they turned
those screams into stories
those screams into stories
155
458618
2219
07:52
by going outside the documents
to court records,
to court records,
156
460861
3118
07:56
official company registers,
157
464479
1660
07:58
and by eventually putting questions
to those that we intended to name.
to those that we intended to name.
158
466163
4045
08:03
Panama Papers actually allowed
the reporters to look at the world
the reporters to look at the world
159
471178
4032
08:07
through a different lens
from everybody else.
from everybody else.
160
475234
2616
08:09
As we were researching the story,
161
477874
1920
08:11
unconnected to us,
162
479818
1418
08:13
a major political bribery scandal
happened in Brazil.
happened in Brazil.
163
481260
3131
08:17
A new leader was elected in Argentina.
164
485339
2615
08:20
The FBI began to indict officials at FIFA,
165
488608
3891
08:24
the organization that controls
the world of professional soccer.
the world of professional soccer.
166
492523
3803
08:29
The Panama Papers
actually had unique insights
actually had unique insights
167
497089
2277
08:31
into each one of these unfolding events.
168
499390
2246
08:33
So you can imagine the pressure
and the ego dramas
and the ego dramas
169
501660
3440
08:37
that could have ruined
what we were trying to do.
what we were trying to do.
170
505124
2489
08:39
Any of one of these journalists,
171
507637
1538
08:41
they could have broken the pact.
172
509199
1721
08:42
But they didn't.
173
510944
1150
08:44
And on April 3 this year,
174
512464
1568
08:46
at exactly 8pm German time,
175
514056
2181
08:48
we published simultaneously
in 76 countries.
in 76 countries.
176
516261
3477
08:52
(Applause)
177
520220
6983
09:03
The Panama Papers quickly became
one of the biggest stories of the year.
one of the biggest stories of the year.
178
531640
3612
09:07
This is the scene in Iceland
the day after we published.
the day after we published.
179
535276
3204
09:10
It was the first of many protests.
180
538504
2144
09:13
The Icelandic prime minister
had to resign.
had to resign.
181
541047
2360
09:15
It was a first of many resignations.
182
543431
2348
09:18
We spotlighted many famous people
such as Lionel Messi,
such as Lionel Messi,
183
546275
3563
09:21
the most famous
soccer player in the world.
soccer player in the world.
184
549862
2328
09:24
And there were some
unintended consequences.
unintended consequences.
185
552726
2290
09:27
These alleged members
of a Mexican drug cartel were arrested
of a Mexican drug cartel were arrested
186
555454
3677
09:31
after we published details
about their hideout.
about their hideout.
187
559155
2851
09:34
They'd been using the address
188
562615
1940
09:36
to register their offshore company.
189
564579
1970
09:38
(Laughter)
190
566573
2795
09:43
There's a kind of irony
in what we've been able to do.
in what we've been able to do.
191
571091
2561
09:45
The technology -- the Internet --
that has broken the business model
that has broken the business model
192
573676
3706
09:49
is allowing us to reinvent
journalism itself.
journalism itself.
193
577406
2554
09:52
And this dynamic is producing
194
580516
1688
09:54
unprecedented levels
of transparency and impact.
of transparency and impact.
195
582228
2840
09:57
We showed how a group of journalists
can effect change across the world
can effect change across the world
196
585772
3486
10:01
by applying new methods
and old-fashioned journalism techniques
and old-fashioned journalism techniques
197
589282
3980
10:05
to vast amounts of leaked information.
198
593286
2404
10:08
We put all-important context
around what was given to us by John Doe.
around what was given to us by John Doe.
199
596319
4252
10:13
And by sharing resources,
200
601205
1585
10:14
we were able to dig deep --
201
602814
1689
10:16
much deeper and longer than most
media organizations allow these days,
media organizations allow these days,
202
604527
4375
10:20
because of financial concerns.
203
608926
1743
10:23
Now, it was a big risk,
204
611500
1583
10:25
and it wouldn't work for every story,
205
613107
1988
10:27
but we showed with the Panama Papers
206
615119
2004
10:29
that you can write about any country
from just about anywhere,
from just about anywhere,
207
617147
2938
10:32
and then choose your preferred
battleground to defend your work.
battleground to defend your work.
208
620109
3514
10:36
Try obtaining a court injunction
209
624195
1575
10:37
that would prevent the telling
of a story in 76 different countries.
of a story in 76 different countries.
210
625794
3920
10:42
Try stopping the inevitable.
211
630377
1687
10:45
Shortly after we published,
I got a three-word text from Johannes:
I got a three-word text from Johannes:
212
633353
3730
10:49
"Wintris has arrived."
213
637804
2218
10:52
(Laughter)
214
640046
1398
10:53
It had arrived and so, too, perhaps
has a new era for journalism.
has a new era for journalism.
215
641468
3732
10:57
Thank you.
216
645673
1156
10:58
(Applause)
217
646853
6954
11:09
Bruno Giussani: Gerard, thank you.
218
657612
1660
11:11
I guess you're going to send
that applause to the 350 journalists
that applause to the 350 journalists
219
659296
3075
11:14
who worked with you, right?
220
662395
1578
11:15
Now, a couple of questions
I would like to ask.
I would like to ask.
221
663997
2211
11:18
The first one is,
222
666232
1167
11:19
you'd been working
in secrecy for over a year
in secrecy for over a year
223
667423
2668
11:22
with 350-something colleagues
from all over the world --
from all over the world --
224
670115
3626
11:25
was there ever a moment when you thought
225
673765
3331
11:29
that the leak may be leaked,
226
677120
2128
11:31
that the collaboration may just be broken
227
679272
2703
11:33
by somebody publishing a story?
228
681999
1579
11:35
Or somebody not in the group
releasing some information
releasing some information
229
683602
2818
11:38
that they got to know?
230
686444
1321
11:40
Gerard Ryle: We had a series
of crises along the way,
of crises along the way,
231
688228
2652
11:42
including when something major
was happening in the world,
was happening in the world,
232
690904
2731
11:45
the journalists from that country
wanted to publish right away.
wanted to publish right away.
233
693659
3023
11:48
We had to calm them down.
234
696706
1209
11:49
Probably the biggest crisis we had
was a week before publication.
was a week before publication.
235
697939
3144
11:53
We'd sent a series of questions
to the associates of Vladimir Putin,
to the associates of Vladimir Putin,
236
701107
4011
11:57
but instead of responding,
237
705142
1493
11:58
the Kremlin actually held
a press conference and denounced us,
a press conference and denounced us,
238
706659
2963
12:01
and denounced the whole thing
as being, I guess, a plot from the West.
as being, I guess, a plot from the West.
239
709646
3417
12:05
At that point, Putin thought
it was just about him.
it was just about him.
240
713087
3016
12:08
And, of course, a lot of editors
around the world
around the world
241
716127
2504
12:10
were very nervous about this.
242
718655
1701
12:12
They thought the story
was going to get out.
was going to get out.
243
720380
2063
12:14
You can imagine the amount
of time they'd spent,
of time they'd spent,
244
722467
2253
12:16
the amount of resources,
money spent on this.
money spent on this.
245
724744
2159
12:18
So I had to basically spend
the last week calming everyone down,
the last week calming everyone down,
246
726927
3037
12:21
a bit like a general,
where you're holding your troops back:
where you're holding your troops back:
247
729988
2882
12:24
"Calm, remain calm."
248
732894
1300
12:26
And then eventually,
of course, they all did.
of course, they all did.
249
734218
2152
12:29
BG: And then a couple weeks ago or so,
250
737323
2468
12:31
you released a lot of the documents
as an open database
as an open database
251
739815
3969
12:35
for everybody to search
via keyword, essentially.
via keyword, essentially.
252
743808
2736
12:39
GR: We very much believe
253
747029
1165
12:40
that the basic information
about the offshore world
about the offshore world
254
748218
2402
12:42
should be made public.
255
750644
1153
12:43
Now, we didn't publish
the underlying documents
the underlying documents
256
751821
2877
12:46
of the journalists we're working with.
257
754722
1865
12:48
But the basic information
such as the name of a person,
such as the name of a person,
258
756611
2582
12:51
what their offshore company was
and the name of that company,
and the name of that company,
259
759217
2924
12:54
is now all available online.
260
762165
1356
12:55
In fact, the biggest resource
of its kind basically is out there now
of its kind basically is out there now
261
763545
3960
13:00
BG: Gerard, thank you for the work you do.
262
768374
1873
13:02
GR: Thank you.
263
770271
1158
13:03
(Applause)
264
771453
3513
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Gerard Ryle - Investigative journalistAs director of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, Gerard Ryle is one of the key figures behind the Panama Papers.
Why you should listen
Gerard Ryle is the director of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) in Washington, DC.
When journalists at the Süddeutsche Zeitung newspaper in Germany got hold of the documents from a whistleblower, their volume and complexity pushed them to turn to the ICIJ, which brought together 376 investigative journalists from more than 100 news organizations in 76 countries.
The reporters spent months collaborating in researching and checking the documents, using protected communication channels, bespoke search engines and other specialized tools built by ICIJ, and ICIJ coordinated the release of the information across the world. It was the biggest cross-border collaboration in journalism history. The Panama Papers resulted in resignations or political outcries in Britain, Iceland, Spain, Malta and Pakistan and triggered dozens of official inquires around the world.
Before joining as the ICIJ's first non-American director in September 2011, Ryle spent more than 25 years working as an investigative reporter, author and editor in Australia and in Ireland. He has more than 60 journalism awards from six countries, including honors from the George Polk Awards, Harvard University and the University of Liege. Reporters Without Borders has described his work with ICIJ as "the future of investigative journalism worldwide."
(Photo: Le Monde / Melissa Golden)
Gerard Ryle | Speaker | TED.com