Walker Bragman isn’t your average journalist; he’s more like a tenacious bloodhound, sniffing out deceit and darkness wherever it lurks. With a sharp mind and a welcoming smile, this bespectacled New Yorker is on a mission to expose those who twist the truth for personal gain, especially when it comes to vital public health matters. He dreams of a time when facts and scientific rigor were revered, when institutions were trusted, and when integrity wasn’t a rare commodity. Bragman’s work isn’t about just pointing out misinformation; it’s about relentlessly pursuing the source, dismantling the networks that propagate it, and ultimately, bringing accountability to those who prey on public ignorance. He sees the pandemic and its colossal mishandling as the defining story of our generation, a tragic testament to how easily trust in science can unravel under the weight of political manipulation. He’s particularly critical of how political figures downplayed the severity of COVID-19, leading millions to embrace dangerous conspiracy theories even about the very vaccine their own administration helped create. This erosion of trust, he believes, contributed to a staggering million American deaths.
Driven by this profound concern, Bragman founded the Accountability Journalism Institute (AJI), a non-profit organization dedicated to tracing the origins of misinformation and shining a light on “bad actors.” While his interest lies primarily in public health, the core of his work is about justice. AJI’s mission is to expose the politically motivated truth-tampering that has become so prevalent. Currently, Bragman is the driving force behind most of AJI’s investigations, supported by small donations and contributions from his dedicated readers. Don’t let the modest funding fool you; the impact of his work is anything but small. He meticulously sifts through complex nonprofit tax documents, uncovering intricate webs of connections between companies, individuals, and political movements that benefit from spreading falsehoods. He’s assembled a stellar team of doctors and scientists for AJI’s science advisory board, along with a board of directors that includes respected medical professionals and science journalists, ensuring that their investigations are rooted in sound scientific understanding.
AJI’s investigations have yielded crucial insights into how misinformation campaigns are funded and propagated. One featured story revealed how large corporations discreetly channeled millions of dollars through charitable foundations to groups actively promoting vaccine misinformation and skepticism. In a particularly striking example, AJI uncovered that the Fidelity Charitable organization—a “donor-advised fund” that allows wealthy individuals to donate anonymously—had given a staggering $1 million to a nonprofit founded by none other than Robert Kennedy Jr., the current U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services. Kennedy is infamous for his persistent promotion of debunked theories linking vaccines to autism. Bragman’s reporting highlighted how these donor-advised funds serve as a conduit for anonymous donations, allowing wealthy individuals to secretly bankroll various causes, including those that spread dangerous misinformation. Another significant exposé by Bragman targeted the “dark money group” known as the Brownstone Institute, which he identified as a central hub for COVID-19 related misinformation and conspiracy theories. His investigations revealed that a staggering 85% of Brownstone’s million-dollar fundraising haul originated from just nine wealthy donors, clearly illustrating the concentrated financial power behind these disinformation efforts.
Bragman’s dedicated deputy director, Olivia Riggio, is an integral part of AJI. Together, they made headlines by breaking the story that actor Liam Neeson had provided voice-over narration for a conspiracy film questioning the safety and legitimacy of vaccines. This revelation was picked up by major entertainment and news outlets like Rolling Stone and Variety Magazine, prompting Neeson to later distance himself from anti-vax views. Bragman’s journey into this specialized form of investigative journalism is particularly compelling. He didn’t start with a focus on dark money and misinformation. In his twenties, he was primarily writing opinion pieces, what he calls “hot takes.” However, the 2016 election served as a turning point. He realized that while there were many strong opinion writers, there was a significant lack of robust reporting. He felt that traditional media often prioritized maintaining the status quo over pursuing genuine justice, seeing injustice as tolerable unless it threatened the ability of the public to make informed decisions. This realization ignited a passion within him to pursue reporting as a means of achieving justice. After covering various beats, from federal policy to political races, the pandemic hit, and he found his true calling in public health journalism, a beat he has dedicated himself to ever since.
Before establishing AJI, Bragman was involved in a project called OptOut, an app designed to provide independent journalists with an outlet for their work. While OptOut was technically sound and garnered a loyal user base, it struggled to scale due to a lack of advertising funding and the absence of social and comment features that are ubiquitous in modern online platforms. This experience led Bragman and the OptOut team to pivot from technology to focusing directly on journalism. As part of OptOut, Bragman created a critically acclaimed newsletter called “Important Context,” which has since become the cornerstone of AJI, with the app being left behind in favor of a dedicated website for stories. Olivia Riggio, who was part of the OptOut team, continues to serve as AJI’s deputy director, deeply committed to the organization’s mission. She eloquently articulates the urgency of their work, stating, “It is no secret that our democracy is under attack right now. And I think that one of the first steps of taking power away from the people is making people doubt objective reality. And so, a great way to do that is to attack science, because science is our best way of understanding objective reality.”
Riggio, a former newspaper reporter herself, understands the challenges journalists face and the importance of courageous truth-telling. She emphasizes the need for journalists to serve the public, not advertisers or political administrations. This unwavering commitment to public service, coupled with a keen awareness of the current void in journalistic integrity, fuels her passion for AJI’s work. Currently, a top priority for both Bragman and Riggio is securing sustainable revenue for AJI. Riggio acknowledges the significant challenges faced by independent newsrooms, noting, “They’re doing such great work, but we’re under-resourced.” AJI relies on monthly subscriptions to their newsletter and has received smaller grants from various foundations, but grant seeking remains an ongoing effort. Despite these financial hurdles, Bragman maintains a grounded perspective, defining a successful year as simply being able to continue their vital accountability journalism. He also envisions expanding AJI’s intern program, providing invaluable experience and exposure to aspiring young journalists. When asked about his message for editors and publishers, Bragman, with his characteristic directness, delivered a powerful statement: “The point of journalism is the pursuit of justice. I think there’s a lot of gatekeeping in the media industry, people who feel that their job is to preserve the status quo as much as possible, or prevent change from happening too radically — not necessarily the reporters themselves, but the people who are making the decisions about the headlines and what should kind of stay in the ocean, you know? We are a small, scrappy organization, and we believe that injustice anywhere is injustice everywhere, and our job is to expose it and hold the people accountable to the public.” Bragman and Riggio’s unwavering dedication serves as a powerful reminder of the essential role of independent journalism in safeguarding our collective understanding of truth and holding power accountable, especially in a world increasingly susceptible to the insidious spread of misinformation.