SRF in­fo: SRF DOK

In April 2016, journalists from the Süddeutsche Zeitung gained access to the largest data leak of all time: the so-called Panama Papers. Together with colleagues around the world, they produced a series of articles that had far-reaching political and legal consequences and were awarded the Pulitzer Prize.

But how do such revelations come about? How do investigative journalists deal with leaked documents? How are video recordings checked for authenticity? The documentary film "Behind the Headlines" provides an exclusive insight into this work. Filmmaker Daniel Andreas Sager accompanies the Süddeutsche Zeitung team on research trips, at meetings with lawyers and phone calls from angry media spokespeople. In Moscow, they meet the well-known whistleblower Edward Snowden, who worked for the US secret services NSA and CIA: "The liberal and open societies that we have inherited are not guaranteed," says Snowden - these values must be fought for again and again.

One person who fought this battle until the end of her life is the Maltese blogger Daphne Caruana Galizia. Her research into corruption and illegal dealings cost her her life: in October 2017, she was killed by a bomb that had been planted in her car. Journalists Bastian Obermayer and Hannes Munzinger - two of the film's protagonists - visit Daphne's relatives in Malta, speak to a leading opposition politician and try to make contact with people who might know more about the murder.

At the same time, the editorial team receives a video that will shake Austrian society and the political landscape: Heinz-Christian Strache, the then Vice Chancellor and FPÖ leader, is secretly filmed in a villa on Ibiza. He offers an alleged Russian oligarch's niece allegedly illegal compensation if she helps him and his party win the election. Here, too, the investigative team is faced with difficult questions: is the video authentic? Is someone playing a political power game and trying to exploit the newspaper? And what are the consequences if errors or inaccuracies creep into an article? The closer the day of publication comes, the more the tension rises.