Over a career spanning nearly a half-century, David E. Kaplan has worked as an investigative journalist, newsroom editor, nonprofit manager, and educator. He was a pioneer in developing collaborative, cross-border investigative journalism, and has played a key role in the global spread of investigative reporting.

Kaplan has worked in international media development for more than 30 years, consulting with development agencies, donors, nonprofits, and major media. In his workshops and classes, he has trained thousands of journalists worldwide.

From 2012-23, Kaplan served as the founding executive director of the Global Investigative Journalism Network, with 244 member organizations in 90 countries. Under his leadership, GIJN grew from one staff and no budget into the premier global association for investigative journalists, with 38 staff in 26 countries and an annual budget of $3.1 million. Today, GIJN publishes in 14 languages daily, trains thousands of journalists annually, and builds capacity among investigative reporters worldwide.

From 2008-11, Kaplan was director of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. During this time, he tripled its funding, expanded its reach into 20 languages, and oversaw internationally acclaimed investigations into the tobacco, asbestos, fishing and energy industries.

Previously, Kaplan worked as chief investigative correspondent for U.S. News & World Report, at the time a two-million circulation newsweekly. Kaplan’s stories at U.S. News attracted worldwide attention and included exposés of racketeering by North Korean diplomats, Saudi funding of terrorism, and the looting of Russia.

During the 1980s and early 1990s, at the original Center for Investigative Reporting in San Francisco, he and his colleagues developed the model of a nonprofit investigative news enterprise. At its peak, CIR derived 40 percent of its income from commercial revenue, drawing from television news retainers, documentary production, publishing contracts and syndication.

Kaplan’s books include YAKUZA, published in 12 languages and widely considered the standard reference on the Japanese mafia, and The Cult at the End of the World, on the nerve gas attack on Tokyo’s subway. He is also co-editor of the Reporter’s Guide to Investigating Organized Crime.