Why Journalism Needs to Investigate Itself: A Five-Year Journey Toward Mental Health and Wellbeing

It all started with a voice message during the early days of the pandemic. 

“I’m seeing a lot of stress in my colleagues that are journalists”, I said.

Just a few days earlier, I had led a five-minute online guided meditation for a group of Spanish women journalists. They were so grateful for that brief time of inner peace that I had an aha moment: journalists need more of this, now.

But I didn’t feel like the right person to lead the way — I was ‘only’ a media professional. So I reached out via WhatsApp to the coach who had helped me recover from burnout a couple of years earlier: Kim Brice, who is also a meditation teacher.

“I know of organizations that (…) I’m sure would like to do something specific on how to meditate or how to find silence in the chaos of journalism”, I said. Then I offered to help her get a foot in the media world.

She replied within three minutes: “Yes, yes, yes. What time suits you [to talk]?” She suggested we join forces. Soon after, Spanish journalist, psychologist, and coach Aldara Martitegui came on board.

Three months later, on July 7, 2020, we held our first webinar in English — and a few weeks later, one in Spanish. To our surprise, hundreds of journalists signed up.

And just like that, the story of The Self-Investigation began. The name was inspired by the goodbye email I sent when leaving my most recent media job at the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. I stepped away to take care of my mental health. In it, I told my colleagues I had spent most of my professional life investigating the world around me — and that the time had come to investigate myself.

It’s remarkable how small actions — like spontaneously reaching out with an unassuming message to a kindred spirit — can spark such meaningful change. Five years later, we’ve trained more than 12,500 media professionals and are a full-fledged nonprofit organization, with a core team of six and a network of about a dozen collaborators. We’ve supported more than 30 media organizations in promoting emotional wellbeing within their teams, and we now lead the largest annual conference on mental health in journalism. We’re deeply grateful to everyone who has partnered with us along the way to make this possible.

After our first training, we quickly realized what media professionals needed went far beyond meditation. The data confirmed that journalists’ mental health challenges were not just a result of the pandemic: in 2022, more than 60% of the media workers in countries as diverse as Canadá, España y Ecuador reported high levels of anxiety. At least one in five reported symptoms of depression. Rates of post-traumatic stress disorder and burnout were also rising.

Since then, research conducted across countries and on specific beats — such as investigative o climate journalism — has consistently shown that the mental health of media professionals is at risk. Toxic workplace cultures are just as damaging as the emotionally complex and morally challenging realities that journalists cover.

Over the past five years, we’ve evolved — from offering large-scale open online courses and raising general awareness about self-care, stress management, and burnout prevention — to focusing primarily on training newsroom leaders. Our goal is to help them model healthy work habits and embrace their roles as people managers with greater self-awareness, skill, and emotional intelligence. Las investigaciones shows that managers have just as much impact on an employee’s mental health as their spouse — which is why this is often our starting point when helping media organizations fulfill their duty of care.

We believe that sustaining quality journalism requires mentally healthy journalists — and that, in turn, requires systemic change. That’s why we work alongside universities, unions, and other stakeholders across the media ecosystem to elevate the conversation and drive action around mental health in the workplace. Our approach has been recognized by Ashoka, the leading global organization promoting social entrepreneurship.

It’s been deeply rewarding to see that we’re not alone in this mission. A growing number of individuals and organizations are advancing the field and taking concrete steps to support media professionals — helping sustain their work in an increasingly uncertain and complex world. Together, they form a community we’re proud to be part of.

One of the most satisfying developments is that this movement includes not only voices from Anglo-Saxon countries — where mental health and wellbeing are more openly discussed — but also from regions where these topics have traditionally been taboo, especially in the Global South. We’re proud to serve as a convener and promoter of these diverse perspectives. In last year’s edition of the Cumbre de salud mental en el periodismo, we featured 174 speakers from 46 countries — and we’re looking forward to welcoming an equally global mix of voices this year. Inscríbete to join us online from October 8–10!

Today, we’re turning five — and we hope to sustain our nonprofit for many more years to come. But let me share a secret: our wildest dream is to cease to exist.

We envision a media industry where individuals and organizations make mental health and emotional wellbeing a core business priority and strategic value. We believe this is possible — by building a movement of advocates and inspiring change through real examples of what’s working, both within and beyond the industry.

Change and innovation are within reach — and they don’t need to be costly or burdensome. We invite you to join forces, just as Kim, Aldara, I, and many others did five years ago, so we can accelerate progress together.