B
NARRATIVE VALUE
Certainty
●●● high
ABCDEFG
There is no confirmed −; independently verified + decide the position (B). No unreachable strike-through.= non-additive meter
As of: 2026-Q4Status: ActiveCeiling reason: No confirmed −
History2026-Q4BHistory grows each quarter
Agência Pública: Brazil's first non-profit investigative newsroom. The letter is B; certainty is high. Unconfirmed concerns are placed under “Watching.” (As of 2026-Q4; estimate based on public information.)
Main narrative
In 2011, as Brazil's large newspapers cut their investigative staff, Natalia Viana and Marina Amaral founded the country's first non-profit investigative news agency.
What distinguishes it is that it does not keep what it writes to itself. Stories are published under Creative Commons so that other outlets, including regional papers and blogs, can republish them free. Funding comes from foundations and readers, not advertising. Its subjects are deforestation in the Amazon, indigenous land, police violence, far-right networks and corruption in public contracting. Alongside its own reporting it works to grow other outlets: small reporting grants for young journalists, mentoring, an incubator for independent media. It reaches fifteen years in 2026 and says it has won around 90 awards in all, among them the Gabriel García Márquez prize, Columbia University's Maria Moors Cabot prize and the Vladimir Herzog prize.
One person’s story (N1)
+ A single story
The benefit appears collectively. It does not keep what it writes to itself: stories are published under Creative Commons so that regional papers and blogs can republish them free. Funding comes from foundations and readers, not advertising. Alongside its own reporting it runs small reporting grants for young journalists, mentoring and an incubator for independent media, and has helped start journalism festivals and associations. It reaches fifteen years in 2026. Nature of sources: independent (Knight Center / LatAm Journalism Review) plus programme-official.
Source nature: LatAm Journalism Review (Knight Center) / Agência Pública / T2 industry media and programme-official. Positive effects are not used to offset negatives.
Positive / negative effects
+ effects
- The positive side of this assessment rests on the single story (N1) above and its source. A per-item ledger of positive effects has not yet been compiled for this organization.T2 industry media and programme-official
Watching (unconfirmed; not counted in the assessment)- Award counts self-compiled
- grant dependence and the safeguarding of independence
- reporter safety
Looking ahead (not included in the assessment)- Continuing both its reporting and its work growing other independent outlets.
A second look
The award count of about 90 and the description of it as Brazil's most-awarded news agency are the organization's own, not independently compiled. Depending on foundation grants raises the question of how independence from funders is secured. Investigative work attracts litigation and attack, and the safety of reporters remains an issue.
Sources
+N1LatAm Journalism Review (Knight Center) / Agência Pública｜2026｜🔗
How to read this assessment
A Independently verified +, with no confirmed −
B Leans +, with independent backing
C Mixed. A confirmed − sets the ceiling, or much is unverified
D A serious confirmed − sets the ceiling
E A serious − reaches the core of the organization
F Serious and systemic, with little redeeming +
G Only extreme cases
Out of scope An entity whose core purpose is illegal
On hold Independent evidence is scarce on both + and −
- Reachable upper bound (ceiling): a confirmed − sets the ceiling, and independently verified + decide the position within it. + do not cancel out −.
- The weight of evidence is not symmetric: only confirmed − are counted; the volume of disputes or allegations goes under “Watching.” + are counted from independent evidence, while an organization’s own PR is treated as “reference.”
- Size is not value: scale is not used in the assessment. Matters that stay within money or competition—investors, shareholders, sanctions, trade secrets—are also excluded.
- The letter (assessment) and certainty (how reliable the information is) are separate axes.
This is a translation; the Japanese version is authoritative. The assessments here are generated automatically by AI based on published criteria. The operator does not alter individual results. Because they are AI-generated they may contain errors, and they are opinion and commentary, not statements of fact. Where evidence is insufficient, the entry is marked “On hold.” Requests for correction are accepted via the form.
Terms: Narrative Value = an assessment (A–G) of the distance between the narrative an organization tells and its reality / Ceiling meter = a visualization of the reachable upper bound / Watching = unconfirmed matters not counted / Protected stakeholders = people, animals, nature, and future generations. | Generated by: AI | As of: 2026-Q4 | Back to top