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Tom Torok, 73, a lifelong journalist and a respected mentor to many long-time members of Investigative Reporters & Editors, died March 6, 2022, at Virtua/Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Camden, New Jersey, after a short illness.
A retired New York Times projects editor, Torok created and managed the paper’s data journalism team, which helped the paper win eight Pulitzer Prizes during his 13-year tenure.
Earlier, he was a columnist and reporter for 18 years at The Philadelphia Inquirer, where he was part of four teams that were Pulitzer-Prize finalists, three for the Public Service award, the Pulitzer’s highest honor.
He also served in various capacities at five other daily newspapers.
A pioneer in making databases available for Web-based searching by anyone in the newsroom, Torok for years was one of the most sought-out panelists at NICAR’s annual conferences. He worked with IRE member Derek Willis to open source a program he called “shboom” that, through a series of pulldowns and clicks, could make a database web-searchable quickly.
“It's very difficult to overstate how much of an impression this made on us when we first saw it in action,” Willis tweeted after learning of Torok’s death.
Torok later pioneered applications to turn free text into searchable data.
He was an adjunct professor at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism for nine years and at Rowan University for three years. Most recently, he was an associate professor at American University of Central Asia in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, where he taught investigative reporting.
He lectured at a number of US universities and colleges and to thousands of students and journalists in Eastern Europe and Siberia. He traveled and met with journalists regularly in Kyiv, and was a member of the supervisory board at the Center for Investigative Reporting in Mykolaiv, Ukraine. In the weeks before his death, he spent time trying to help friends he met there.
In one of his last Facebook posts, on Feb. 24, he wrote of his connections with Ukrainian journalists. “I hope in my small way I've imparted knowledge and motivation for them to continue to pursue and convey the truth.”
He attended graduate school as a Danforth Fellow at the University of Colorado, where he gave up a free Ph.D. to pursue a career in journalism, a decision he said he never regretted. He graduated from Florida State University, summa cum laude with honors, Phi Beta Kappa, Phi Kappa Phi and Psi Chi.
An airman with the US Air Force from 1966 to 1970, Torok served in Texas, Colorado, Florida, South Korea and Japan. He was the first person in the Air Force to max a proficiency test on the weapons system for the F4 Phantom fighter jet.
He graduated (just barely, he said) in 1966 from Carteret High School in Carteret, NJ, where he held and may still hold the record for riding in a commercial clothes dryer.
Since retiring, he was an usher for the now-defunct Camden Riversharks, a minor-league baseball team; a docent for the National Constitution Center, a guide for the Independence National Historical Park; and, most recently, a docent for the Mutter Museum. There, he enjoyed greeting guests with a smile and a wink and whispering: "I see dead people."
He is survived by his wife Cecelia Lentini Torok; a daughter, Elena Torok of Dallas; a son, Stephen Torok (Sarah Taylor) of Manhattan; a sister, Arlene Geise, of Miami; nieces and a nephew; and a former wife, Lena Maria Cooper, of Fletcher, NC.
Relatives and friends are invited to gather on Saturday, March 12, 2022 from 1-3 PM at the Falco/Caruso & Leonard Pennsauken Funeral Home, 6600 N. Browning Road, Pennsauken, N.J., where a memorial service will be held at 3 PM. Interment will be private.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to N-Ost, a non-profit investigative journalism organization working in support of their colleagues in Ukraine. Please note in the comments section that your donation is in memory of Tom Torok.
Thirteen newsrooms have been chosen to receive custom watchdog training in the coming year through IRE’s Total Newsroom Training program.
TNT provides two days of intensive, in-house training for small and medium-sized newsrooms dedicated to watchdog journalism. This is the eighth year IRE has offered the free program, which is supported through a grant.
TNT newsroom training is customized and includes two days of sessions ranging from public records battles to hands-on data analysis.
The newsrooms were chosen from more than 50 applications this year.
"Watchdog reporting is the heart and soul of journalism and IRE is excited to bring back the TNT sessions that focus on those skills to newsrooms across the country," IRE Executive Director Diana R. Fuentes said. "From Seattle to El Paso to Louisville, Kentucky, and nearly a dozen points in between, we are proud of the diversity of journalists that will be receiving this cutting-edge training. We believe the communities they serve will see the benefits for a long time to come."
Congratulations to the winning newsrooms:
The Beacon (Kansas City Beacon/Wichita Beacon) (Missouri/Kansas)
El Paso Matters (El Paso, TX)
The Forward (Nationwide)
Futuro Media (Nationwide)
Injustice Watch (Chicago, IL)
KNKX (Seattle/Tacoma, WA)
KREM 2 (Spokane, WA/Coeur d’Alene, ID)
KTXL/FOX40 (Sacramento, CA)
Mountain State Spotlight (Charleston, WV)
Scalawag Magazine (Southern U.S.)
Spectrum News 1 Kentucky (Louisville, KY)
Taos News (Taos, NM)
WGLT/WCBU (Peoria, IL & Bloomington-Normal, IL)
Projects investigating Superfund sites, heat protection standards and senior care risks in Hernando County, Florida, have been awarded IRE Freelance Fellowships. The recipients of the 2021 fellowships are:
The generosity of an anonymous donor has allowed IRE to award fellowships for the last 14 years. The fellowships give independent journalists a financial boost to pursue investigative work.
If you’d like to donate to the Freelance Fellowship fund, click here to make a donation. Please designate "Freelance Fellowship” in the form.
About the award:
IRE Freelance Fellowships are awarded annually to journalists who make their living primarily as freelance/independent journalists. Applications are scrutinized by experienced freelance journalists. Proposals are judged in part on the breadth, significance and potential impact of the investigative project. At the request of the donor, proposals dealing with whistleblowers, business ethics and/or privacy issues will receive priority; projects involving other topics will be given serious consideration by the committee as well. The freelance projects are to be published or aired primarily in U.S. outlets.
Applications are now open to participate in the #NICAR22 conference mentorship program, either as a mentor or as a mentee, for IRE’s live program in Atlanta in March.
If you’ll be joining us for the conference in person, you can sign up by filling out this form. If you can’t make it to Atlanta this year but still want to find a mentor, please check out the IRE page at JournalismMentors.com, where you can set up a time to meet virtually with an IRE member mentor.
IRE will match mentors with mentees and arrange for them to meet at a breakfast during the conference. The NICAR22 mentorship breakfast — sponsored by the Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute, University of Missouri — will be held from 7:30 - 8:45 a.m. on Friday, March 5, at the conference hotel.
Space is limited in this popular program, and the deadline to apply is midnight CT on Friday, Feb. 11. If the slots are filled before then, your application will be added to a waitlist.
Please also note that you must register for the conference by Feb. 14 in order to participate.
The IRE office will be closed from Friday, December 24, until Monday, January 3. If you need assistance during the break, please send an email to info@ire.org. Responses may be delayed during the office closure.
IRE wants your ideas for the upcoming IRE Conference in Denver next June. We’re also starting an email list so you can keep up with news about the conference.
Use this form to share ideas, suggestions and other comments to help us plan the best possible #IRE22 conference. No suggestion is too big or too small.
Here are a few ways you can use this form:
Have several ideas? Great! Fill out the form as many times as you’d like. And help us spread the word by sharing this form with friends and colleagues.
Keep in mind that IRE retains editorial control over the content of its conferences. If we use your idea, our team will take care of reaching out to speakers and finalizing details. Here are some other tips we put together to help you make the best pitch and understand our process.
The conference will be June 23-26 at the Gaylord Rockies Resort and Convention Center in Denver, and online for those unable to attend in person. IRE will release more details about registration and travel in the coming weeks.
Make sure to get your ideas in by Jan. 23. Please direct questions to conference@ire.org.
IRE’s popular free custom training program is back for 2022. Spots in the program are limited and awarded on a competitive basis, and newsrooms must apply by Jan. 9.
The Total Newsroom Training (TNT) program brings an IRE trainer to selected newsrooms for two days of training on investigative and data reporting techniques, including hands-on data skills training — all at no cost. Training is customized for each newsroom and can include public records, social media sleuthing, and other sessions from IRE’s custom training menu.
The program is meant to help small- to medium-size news organizations improve the depth of their coverage. Preference will be given to newsrooms in rural areas and smaller cities, smaller newsrooms in large markets, and newsrooms founded and run by those coming from and serving historically marginalized communities.
Newsrooms can decide whether their training is delivered virtually or in person as pandemic conditions permit. The newsroom must be committed to allowing a significant portion of its staff and management to attend the full two days of training and track their progress after the training.
Since 2013, the TNT program has provided free training for 65 newsrooms around the U.S.
“We hear from newsroom management and journalists seeking training that financial barriers get in the way of acquiring the tools and tactics they need to produce better watchdog stories,” said Francisco Vara-Orta, IRE’s director of diversity and inclusion. “The TNT program aims to create greater equity in what IRE offers by providing access to training that some newsrooms haven’t always had, which is vital in an era of local news deserts impacting our democracy.”
The deadline for applications is Jan. 9. The application form must be filled out by the editor, news director or equivalent.
For more information, view the TNT program page or contact Vara-Orta at francisco@ire.org
Registration is open for IRE’s hybrid NICAR22 data journalism conference, which runs March 3-6 in Atlanta, Georgia, at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis and online. The conference will feature hands-on data classes, panels and discussions, and opportunities to network with fellow journalists.
Members will have the choice of registering for the in-person conference or for online-only access. Register by Jan. 18, 2022, to secure the early-bird rate of $295 for professionals in-person. After that date, professional registration will be $325 until March 1 for in-person. The on-site registration rate of $405 for professionals will begin on March 2, 2022. Virtual registration will remain at $195 for professionals. Students may register at any time for $100 in person and $50 for virtual only. IRE membership is required to attend and must be current through April 1.
IRE is keeping the health and safety of our members at the forefront of planning the conference. We have implemented numerous safety protocols to ensure attendee safety, including requiring in-person attendees be fully vaccinated prior to the event.
Those who attend the conference virtually will have access to some conference sessions, live-streamed and recorded. They also will have access to IRE’s on-demand data labs to learn hands-on data skills such as spreadsheets, SQL and programming languages. Members who attend the conference in person also will have access to the recorded sessions online.
“We’re looking forward to our first in-person conference in two years,” said IRE Executive Director Diana R. Fuentes. “We have been conducting informative, engaging virtual sessions during the pandemic, but there’s nothing quite like in-person connections.”
“NICAR22 is a wonderful opportunity to visit with old friends and make new ones while honing investigative and data journalism skills. Join us!”
Sign up for the NICAR22 email newsletter to receive major updates and reminders of key dates/deadlines surrounding the conference.
How do I register for NICAR22?
First, make sure you have a current IRE membership through April 1, 2022. You can do that by logging into your account on the website and going to Manage Memberships in your Member Dashboard.
Next, go to either the virtual conference or in-person conference ticket page. The correct price for your membership level will show up in the ‘Get Tickets’ block. Click ‘Add to cart’ and follow the steps to check out.
If the ticket block is blank, please check that you are logged into your account with a current membership. If you still need help, email logistics@ire.org.
How do I make a reservation at the conference hotel in the discounted room block?
The conference is taking place at The Atlanta Marriott Marquis. IRE has secured a discounted block of rooms. The room rate is $215 (single/double) per night plus tax. This block is available until Wednesday, February 9, 2022, or until the block is full (whichever occurs first). If you need to cancel your reservation, you must do so 72 hours prior to your arrival to avoid any cancellation fees. To make a reservation, click here. For any questions on lodging or travel, please email logistics@ire.org.
What sessions can I expect at NICAR22?
View a list of expected sessions here. Full session and speaker details will be released in early 2022.
NICAR22 will offer a mix of panels, demos, discussions, networking, and hands-on data training.
Those who register for the virtual event only will have access to some of the sessions from the in-person conference, either live streamed or recorded, plus on-demand hands-on labs to learn data skills.
Will there be Lightning Talks?
Lightning Talks, a much-anticipated session at every NICAR conference, will be part of the hybrid experience as well. Lightning Talks are 5-minute presentations on particular skills, tools or techniques. Pitches are submitted and voted on by NICAR22 attendees.
Lightning Talks will be open to pitches soon. Sign up for the NICAR22 email newsletter to receive detailed updates on major announcements and the planning process.
Does IRE offer fellowships to attend?
Fellowships are available for the following communities:
Fellowships include a complimentary IRE membership/renewal ($25 for students/$70 for pros) and a complimentary conference registration. Applications are due by Jan. 10, 2022.
For more information and to apply, visit our fellowships page.
Will there be a mentorship program?
Yes, there will be a mentorship program. Details and sign-up information will be released in the coming weeks.
How do I keep up with all the news about NICAR22?
Sign up here to receive email newsletters with all the latest NICAR22 announcements about sessions, Lightning Talks, the T-shirt contest, office hour signups and more!
What precautions is IRE taking due to COVID-19?
IRE is keeping the health and safety of our members at the forefront of planning the conference. We have implemented numerous safety protocols to ensure attendee safety.
What is the schedule like for the conference?
The in-person conference begins Thursday, March 3 at 9am (ET) and ends Sunday, March 6 at 12:30pm (ET). The conference runs all day on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. In-person registration includes the welcome reception on Thursday evening and the Philip Meyer reception on Friday evening.
Schedule at a glance (in-person)
Thursday
8:15am - Welcome first timers session
9 am - NICAR22 kicks off with first session block
12-2pm - Lunch on your own
5 pm - Sessions end
5:15 pm - Networking opportunities
6pm - Welcome reception
Friday
9am - Sessions begin
12-2pm - Lunch on your own
5pm - Lightning Talks
6:15pm - Phil Meyer Award Presentation
6:30pm - Phil Meyer Reception
Saturday
9am - Sessions begin
12-2pm - Lunch on your own
5 pm - Sessions end
5:15 pm - Networking opportunities
Sunday
9am - Sessions begin
12:30pm - NICAR22 ends
Schedule at a glance (virtual)
Thursday
8:30am - Welcome session
9am - NICAR22 kicks off with first session block
12-2pm - Lunch on your own
5pm - Sessions end for the day
Friday
9am - Sessions begin
12-2pm - Lunch on your own
5pm - Lightning Talks
Saturday
9am - Sessions begin
12-2pm - Lunch on your own
5pm - Sessions end
Anzio Williams, a broadcasting veteran who now oversees diversity efforts for NBCUniversal Local, will deliver the keynote address of IRE’s first symposium focused on equity in newsrooms and coverage.
Williams was named Senior Vice President of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for the division of NBCUniversal that includes 43 NBC/Telemundo owned stations, six regional sports networks and multicast networks COZI TV, TeleXitos and new network NBCLX, in August 2020. He previously was Vice President of News for NBCUniversal’s Philadelphia stations.
“We are delighted to have a speaker of Mr. Williams’ caliber at our first event focused on equity and inclusion,” said IRE Executive Director Diana Fuentes. “His enthusiasm and thought-provoking insights are both challenging and inspiring. His talk is sure to be a highlight of the symposium. You won’t want to miss it!”
The DBEI Symposium on diversity, belonging, equity and inclusion, will be held online Oct. 21-22. The symposium will focus on helping journalists with newsroom diversity issues and with investigating inequality in their communities, from education and health care to housing and climate change. More information, including registration and the full schedule, can be found on IRE’s website.
Before joining NBCUniversal, Williams spent 12 years with Hearst Television, including at WDSU in New Orleans where he spearheaded the station’s coverage of Hurricane Katrina, the storm’s aftermath and multi-year recovery efforts. Before this, he worked as Assistant News Director at NBC affiliate stations in Orlando, Florida and Charlotte, North Carolina. He launched his career in broadcast as a Sports and News Producer for WFMY in Greensboro, North Carolina.
A recipient of nine Emmy Awards for Outstanding Achievement, Best Newscast, Breaking News and Continuing Coverage, he was a member of news teams honored with six Edward R. Murrow and two George Foster Peabody Awards. Williams will give the address on Oct. 21 at 4:30 p.m. ET.
IRE’s first symposium on diversity and inclusion is going online Oct. 21-22, allowing members to join safely from their hometowns around the world as the pandemic continues.
The DBEI Symposium on diversity, belonging, equity and inclusion had originally been planned as a hybrid event, including an in-person component in Baltimore, but IRE is moving the event fully online because of the continued uncertainty of the coronavirus delta variant situation.
“IRE already had a robust virtual program well underway for the symposium and our staff and supporters are now finalizing the transition to fully virtual as we count down the weeks to this unique event,” said IRE Executive Director Diana Fuentes. “We’re working to create a safe environment to engage in difficult discussions about diversity, belonging, equity and inclusion issues. These discussions — and subsequent actions — are vital for the future of our industry. We hope you’ll join us.”
The symposium schedule can be viewed here, and new sessions and speakers are continually being added. The symposium will include a mix of panels, small-group conversations, networking and master classes, which are 2- to 3-hour deep-dive workshops. All sessions are included in the registration fee of $150 for professional members or $50 for student members. IRE membership is required to attend.
Sessions will provide journalists with tools to help make their newsrooms more diverse and inclusive as well as how to better cover historically marginalized communities and topics. There will be sessions geared toward reporters, editors, educators and students.
“We’ve got plenty of work to do to get to all the dimensions of DBEI work we are called to in order to improve our journalism, and IRE is committed to helping push those conversations forward,” said Francisco Vara-Orta, IRE’s Director of Diversity and Inclusion. “It’s a pivotal moment in history to rise to the occasion for journalists, and these panels we hope will help our colleagues feel better equipped to tackle their work inside and outside of newsrooms with more specific guidance and support.”
The symposium will take place from noon to 4 p.m. Eastern U.S. Time on both days, to allow for participation across the United States and around the world. Training sessions will be recorded and available for attendees on demand on the conference platform after the conference is over.
Below are answers to some frequently asked questions.
What will registration cost for the virtual DBEI21 symposium?
Registration rates are:
Attendees must be members of current members of IRE through October ($70/professional, $25/students).
Will you have fellowships available?
Yes! With the switch to a virtual format, IRE anticipates having more fellowships available that cover the cost of registration and a one-year IRE membership. Click here for more information and to apply. You also can sign up for our DBEI21 Symposium newsletter to receive more information about fellowships as it is released.
I’ve never been to a virtual conference. How will it work?
Attendees will access session links on the Guidebook platform. The conference site will be private and accessible only to attendees. You will receive access to the conference platform about a week prior to the conference.
Will I need special equipment or software to participate?
All you’ll need is Internet access and a computer, laptop or tablet — much as you need to participate in an online video meeting. Google Chrome is the recommended browser, and attendees will need to download Zoom to access sessions
What if I’m working, attending class or dealing with other obligations that cause me to miss some sessions?
That’s the beauty of a virtual conference. Most sessions (excluding networking and small-group conversations) will be recorded and available to attendees following the conference. You can view them at your convenience. Most sessions will include video plus any related tipsheets and slide decks.
Will there be swag?
Yes, T-shirts, mugs, stickers and other items will be available for purchase in the IRE Store and will be shipped to you.
How can I become a sponsor of the virtual #DBEI21 conference?
The virtual platform offers many enticing opportunities for sponsors. If you’d like information on the benefits of sponsoring #DBEI21, please contact Anna Lopez, IRE director of partnerships, by email: anna@ire.org.
How can I keep up with new developments connected to #DBEI21?
Just sign up here to receive e-mail updates about #DBEI21. It’s the best way to stay up-to-date on the latest virtual conference news.
What if I have other questions?
Please contact logistics@ire.org. We’re here to help!
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