John Bones

John Kristian Bones was a long-time supporter and friend of IRE. He has done so much for IRE's international reach.

His accomplishments are many and legendary.

He was the father of data journalism in Norway. For many years, Bones was at VG, the most read daily newspaper in Norway. He rose to become one of its top editors before changing jobs to become its data journalism specialist. He worked at VG from 1993 to 2016, and along the way, he produced award-winning investigations.

He then became the general manager of SKUP, the IRE of Norway. In these roles, he regularly attended IRE and NICAR conferences and helped lead groups of Norwegian reporters to these gatherings. There are dozens of journalists who never would have attended IRE and NICAR conferences if not for John’s unwavering belief in the organization’s mission.

He saw NICAR, in particular, as a special event. But at any conference, he was also scouting to have IRE presenters travel to Norway and share their skills.

At conferences around the world, he was always looking for talented young journalists from countries where it is difficult to live and work as a journalist. He created opportunities for them to receive training or participate in conferences. One result is SKUP’s Masterclass, special sessions just for journalists in the developing world or struggling to do good journalism while facing authoritarian regimes.

He was a strong supporter of the Global Investigative Journalism Network, helping to organize conferences and supporting journalists from around the world who wanted to attend. He was a prominent member of Journalismfund Europe’s International Advisory Board. He was a strong supporter of Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism, and he attended its conferences and supported its efforts.

Before joining VG in Oslo, he rose to editorial manager at Adresseavisen, in Trondheim, where he started in 1979.

Bones was born on September 7, 1954, in Trondheim. He died this year from cancer. Even in the hospital, he hoped to beat the disease and attend IRE. He leaves behind five adult children.

It is my honor to nominate John Kristian Bones to the IRE Ring of Honor.