Early newspapers in British colonial America were often suppressed by the authorities for their investigative journalism. Examples include Publick Occurrences Both Forreign and Domestick and Benjamin Franklin's New England Courant. Journalists who reported on the doings of the British authorities would later contribute to revolutionary sentiment in the run-up to the American Revolution; one prominent example was the Boston Gazette, contributed to by Samuel Adams among others.
An investigative reporter may make use of one or more of these tools, among others, on a single story:
Weinberg, Steve (1996). The Reporter's Handbook: An Investigator's Guide To Documents and Techniques. St. Martin's Press. ISBN 978-0-312-13596-6. 978-0-312-13596-6
"The Global Media Defence Fund Backs the Largest-Ever Investigative Journalism Conference". Unesco. 29 September 2023. https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/global-media-defence-fund-backs-largest-ever-investigative-journalism-conference
de Burgh, Hugo, ed. (2000). Investigative Journalism: Context and Practice. London and New York: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-19054-1. 978-0-415-19054-1
Sterling, Christopher H., ed. (2009). "Investigative Journalism". Encyclopedia of Journalism. Vol. 2. SAGE Publications. pp. 788–794. ISBN 978-0-7619-2957-4. 978-0-7619-2957-4
Sloan, W. David; Parcell, Lisa Mullikin (2002). American Journalism: History, Principles, Practices. McFarland. pp. 211–213. ISBN 978-0-7864-1371-3. 978-0-7864-1371-3
Tichi, Cecelia (2013). Exposés and Excess: Muckraking in America, 1900 / 2000. University of Pennsylvania Press. ISBN 978-0-8122-0375-2. 978-0-8122-0375-2
Hess, Stephen (2013). Whatever Happened to the Washington Reporters, 1978–2012. Brookings Institution Press. ISBN 978-0-8157-2540-4. 978-0-8157-2540-4
Sterling, Christopher H., ed. (2009). "Investigative Journalism". Encyclopedia of Journalism. Vol. 2. SAGE Publications. pp. 788–794. ISBN 978-0-7619-2957-4. 978-0-7619-2957-4
McChesney, Robert W. (2004). The Problem of the Media: U.S. Communication Politics in the 21st century. Monthly Review Press. p. 81. ISBN 978-1-58367-105-4., citing Just, Marion; Levine, Rosalind; Regan, Kathleen (November–December 2002), "Investigative Journalism Despite the Odds", Columbia Journalism Review: 103ff[permanent dead link] 978-1-58367-105-4
Vasilyeva, Natalya; Anderson, Mae (3 April 2016). "News Group Claims Huge Trove of Data on Offshore Accounts". The New York Times. Associated Press. Retrieved 4 April 2016. https://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2016/04/03/world/europe/ap-panama-papers.html
"About the ICIJ". The Center for Public Integrity. Retrieved 10 February 2015. http://www.icij.org/about
"About the ICIJ". The Center for Public Integrity. Retrieved 10 February 2015. http://www.icij.org/about
"Gerard Ryle". Center for Public Integrity. http://www.icij.org/journalists/gerard-ryle
"About the ICIJ". The Center for Public Integrity. Retrieved 10 February 2015. http://www.icij.org/about
Fitzgibbon, Will; et al. (5 November 2017). "The 1 Percent- Offshore Trove Exposes Trump-Russia Links And Piggy Banks of the Wealthiest 1 Percent – A new leak of confidential records reveals the financial hideaways of iconic brands and power brokers across the political spectrum". International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. Retrieved 6 November 2017. https://www.icij.org/investigations/paradise-papers/paradise-papers-exposes-donald-trump-russia-links-and-piggy-banks-of-the-wealthiest-1-percent/
Grandoni, Dino (6 November 2017). "Analysis | The Energy 202: What you need to know about Wilbur Ross and the Paradise Papers". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 6 November 2017. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/paloma/the-energy-202/2017/11/06/the-energy-202-what-you-need-to-know-about-wilbur-ross-and-the-paradise-papers/59ffcbb430fb0468e76540fb/
Disis, Jackie Wattles and Jill (6 November 2017). "Paradise Papers: What you need to know". CNNMoney. https://money.cnn.com/2017/11/05/news/paradise-papers-trump-twitter-facebook/index.html
Oltermann, Philip (27 June 2021). "Berlin's no 1 digital detective agency is on the trail of human rights abusers". The Guardian. London, United Kingdom. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 28 June 2021. https://www.theguardian.com/law/2021/jun/27/berlins-no-1-digital-detective-agency-is-on-the-trail-of-human-rights-abusers
Hahn, Oliver (2018). Digital Investigative Journalism. Springer International Publishing. pp. 145–146.
"10 tools for investigative journalists". International Journalists' Network. Retrieved 26 June 2023. https://ijnet.org/en/story/10-tools-investigative-journalists
Sterling, Christopher H., ed. (2009). "Investigative Journalism". Encyclopedia of Journalism. Vol. 2. SAGE Publications. pp. 788–794. ISBN 978-0-7619-2957-4. 978-0-7619-2957-4
eInvestigator.com, Michael Kissiah (22 June 2022). "LexisNexis Solutions for Law Enforcement and Investigators". Private Investigator and Investigation Resources. Retrieved 26 June 2023. https://www.einvestigator.com/lexisnexis-investigation-solutions/
Sterling, Christopher H., ed. (2009). "Investigative Journalism". Encyclopedia of Journalism. Vol. 2. SAGE Publications. pp. 788–794. ISBN 978-0-7619-2957-4. 978-0-7619-2957-4
"A New Hospital for the Insane". Brooklyn Daily Eagle. December 1876.
"Ida B. Wells-Barnett: Anti-lynching and the White House". WHHA (en-US). Retrieved 15 April 2024. https://www.whitehousehistory.org/ida-b-wells-barnett-anti-lynching-and-the-white-house
"Ida Tarbell: The Woman Who Took On Standard Oil - Connecticut History | a CTHumanities Project". Connecticut History | a CTHumanities Project - Stories about the people, traditions, innovations, and events that make up Connecticut's rich history. 6 January 2022. Retrieved 15 April 2024. https://connecticuthistory.org/ida-tarbell-the-woman-who-took-on-standard-oil/
Paranick, Amber (8 November 2022). ""Behind Asylum Bars:" Nellie Bly Reporting from Blackwell's Island. | Headlines & Heroes". The Library of Congress. Retrieved 15 April 2024. https://blogs.loc.gov/headlinesandheroes/2022/11/nellie-bly-blackwells-island
Elving, Ron (16 June 2022). "In new edition of classic Watergate expose, Woodward and Bernstein link Nixon, Trump". NPR. https://www.npr.org/2022/06/16/1105158079/in-new-edition-of-classic-watergate-expose-woodward-and-bernstein-link-nixon-tru
Dedman, Bill (1989). "The Color of Money". Power Reporting. http://powerreporting.com/color/
"Bill Dedman of The Atlanta Journal and Constitution". www.pulitzer.org. https://www.pulitzer.org/winners/bill-dedman
Godlee, F.; Smith, J.; Marcovitch, H. (5 January 2011). "Wakefield's article linking MMR vaccine and autism was fraudulent". BMJ. 342 (jan05 1): c7452. doi:10.1136/bmj.c7452. ISSN 0959-8138. PMID 21209060. S2CID 43640126. /wiki/Fiona_Godlee
Ziv, Stav (10 February 2015). "Andrew Wakefield, Father of the Anti-Vaccine Movement, Responds to the Current Measles Outbreak for the First Time". Newsweek. New York. Retrieved 19 February 2015. http://www.newsweek.com/2015/02/20/andrew-wakefield-father-anti-vaccine-movement-sticks-his-story-305836.html
Boseley, Sarah (2 February 2010). "Lancet retracts 'utterly false' MMR paper". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 14 January 2015. https://www.theguardian.com/society/2010/feb/02/lancet-retracts-mmr-paper
"Exclusive: the real story of the MPs' expenses scandal". The Telegraph. 7 May 2019. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 15 April 2024. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/mps-expenses-scandal/
Crewdson, John (30 June 1996). "Cardiac Arrest at 37,000 Feet". Chicago Tribune. https://www.chicagotribune.com/1996/06/30/cardiac-arrest-at-37000-feet/
Kovach, Bill; Rosenstiel, Tom (2010). Blur: How to Know What's True in the Age of Information Overload. New York: Bloomsbury Publishing. pp. 58–60. ISBN 978-1-60819-302-8. 978-1-60819-302-8
Muchena, Deprose (20 July 2020). "Zimbabwe: Authorities continue their crackdown on dissent with arrest of investigative journalist and activist". Amnesty International. Retrieved 4 January 2021. Zimbabwean authorities must stop misusing the criminal justice system to persecute journalists and activists who are simply exercising their right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly. The authorities must stop using the police and courts to silence dissent. https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2020/07/zimbabwe-authorities-continue-their-crackdown-on-dissent-with-arrest-of-investigative-journalist-and-activist/