Bottrop
Bottrop () is a city in west-central Germany, on the Rhine–Herne Canal, in North Rhine-Westphalia. Located in the Ruhr industrial area, Bottrop adjoins Essen, Oberhausen, Gladbeck, and Dorsten. The city had been a coal-mining and rail cent ...
, Germany) is a German
journalist
A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalis ...
. From 2010 to 2014, he was head of investigations at Funke Mediengruppe, one of the largest European media holdings for regional newspapers including
Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung
The ''Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung'' (''WAZ'') is a commercial newspaper from Essen, Germany, published by Funke Mediengruppe.
History and profile
''Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung'' was founded by Erich Brost and first published 3 April ...
. From 2007 to September 2014, he was treasurer of German association of investigative journalists Netzwerk Recherche. Since June 2014, he has been founder and publisher of
Correctiv
The CORRECTIV (or CORRECT!V) is a German nonprofit investigative journalism newsroom whose stated goal is "to give citizens access to information."
With about 20 staff members, CORRECT!V is the only nonpartisan, nonprofit investigative center ...
- the first nonprofit investigative newsroom in the German-speaking world.
Career
He was the founder of the German Newspaper " taz ruhr". Later he worked as a reporter on energy issues for the
Axel Springer
Axel Cäsar Springer (2 May 1912 – 22 September 1985) was a German publisher and founder of what is now Axel Springer SE, the largest media publishing firm in Europe. By the early 1960s his print titles dominated the West German daily press ma ...
Group. Then in 2010 he went on with his researches as head of investigations at
Funke Mediengruppe
Funke Mediengruppe (formerly ''WAZ-Mediengruppe'') is Germany's third largest newspaper and magazine publisher with a total of over 500 publications in eight countries. WAZ-Mediengruppe is privately held by the Funke family and is headquartered i ...
.
Schraven published several reports about the German military action by the
Bundeswehr
The ''Bundeswehr'' (, meaning literally: ''Federal Defence'') is the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany. The ''Bundeswehr'' is divided into a military part (armed forces or ''Streitkräfte'') and a civil part, the military part con ...
in Afghanistan. In 2011 he explained the details of the
Operation Halmazag
Operation Halmazag (Dari for "lightning") was an offensive operation by ISAF German-led troops in close cooperation with the Afghan security forces in the province of Kunduz, from 31 October to 4 November 2010, with the aim of building a permanen ...
. In 2012 he published his investigation of the German military actions in
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
on a special website with leaked documents. His graphic reportage "Kriegszeiten" was nominated for the international youth book award in Germany.
He worked on different reference books about investigative journalism for the German association of investigative journalists Netzwerk Recherche. The books "Reporter im verdeckten Einsatz (PDF)" deals with undercover research methods and "Kritischer Wirtschaftsjournalismus (PDF)" focuses on investigative business journalism.
In June 2014 he founded CORRECT!V (correctiv.org) - the first nonprofit investigative newsroom in the German-speaking world. Correctiv has got an education program to pass on the methods of investigative journalism. This should help to empower citizens to gain access to information and promote transparency. Besides that, Correctiv is focused on investigating corruption and datajournalism. In cooperation with various media, CORRECT!V shares its investigations and stories with large and small newspapers and magazines as well as with radio and TV stations.
Awards
During his career as an investigative reporter Schraven won several prices for his investigative stories. He comes in third on the best known award for investigative journalism in Germany called Wächterpreis for his investigation of toxic drinking water. Then he won the Suisse "Fichtnerpreis" for his research about a corrupt politician. 2015 he was awarded
Grimme Online Award
The Grimme-Preis ("Grimme Award"; prior to 2011: Adolf-Grimme-Preis) is one of the most prestigious German television awards. It is named after the first general director of Nordwestdeutscher Rundfunk, Adolf Grimme.Flug MH17. He also won the Deutschen Reporterpreis for his book "Weisse Wölfe" (illustrations by
Jan Feindt
Jan, JaN or JAN may refer to:
Acronyms
* Jackson, Mississippi (Amtrak station), US, Amtrak station code JAN
* Jackson-Evers International Airport, Mississippi, US, IATA code
* Jabhat al-Nusra (JaN), a Syrian militant group
* Japanese Article Numb ...
).
Books
* 2009: Publisher and Author ''Undercover : Reporter im verdeckten Einsatz'',
Netzwerk Recherche
Netzwerk is the German word for "network".
It may also refer to:
* ''Netzwerk'' (film), a 1969 German film
* ''Netzwerk'' (album), an album by the electronic duo Klangkarussell
* Netzwerk (Falls Like Rain), a song by Klangkarussell released in ...
, Wiesbaden, ,
* 2011: Author Graphic Novell ''Die wahre Geschichte vom Untergang der
Alexander Kielland
Alexander Lange Kielland (; 18 February 1849 – 6 April 1906) was a Norwegian realistic writer of the 19th century. He is one of the so-called " The Four Greats" of Norwegian literature, along with Henrik Ibsen, Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson a ...
'',
Carlsen Verlag
Carlsen Verlag is a subsidiary of the homonymous Danish publishing house which in turn belongs to the Swedish media company Bonnier. The branch was founded on 25 April 1953 in Hamburg.
The publisher's program focuses on books for children, i. ...
Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis
The (German Youth Literature Award) is an annual award established in 1956 by the Federal Ministry of Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth to recognise outstanding works of children's and young adult literature. It is Germany's only ...
, 15 March 2013 with Vincent Burmeister (Artist)
* 2014: ''Zechenkinder: 25 Geschichten über das schwarze Herz des Ruhrgebiets'', Ankerherz-Verlag, , with Uwe Weber (Fotograf)
* 2015: Author Graphic Novell ''WEISSE WÖLFE. Eine graphische Reportage über rechten Terror'', CORRECT!V, with
Jan Feindt
Jan, JaN or JAN may refer to:
Acronyms
* Jackson, Mississippi (Amtrak station), US, Amtrak station code JAN
* Jackson-Evers International Airport, Mississippi, US, IATA code
* Jabhat al-Nusra (JaN), a Syrian militant group
* Japanese Article Numb ...
(Artist), .
* 2018: Author Graphic Novell ''Unter Krähen: Aus dem Inneren der Republik'', CORRECTIV, with Vincent Burmeister, (Artist) .
* 2020: Publisher ''Corona: Geschichte eines angekündigten Sterbens'', DTV, with Cordt Schnibben .