InvestigateWest to receive Nixon Award for holding power to account
Watchdog news site relies on public records, investigative reporting to shine light on civic issues
By Jim Simon, WashCOG board
InvestigateWest, a nonprofit newsroom that produces powerful watchdog journalism throughout the Northwest, is this year’s winner of the Washington Coalition for Open Government’s Toby Nixon Award.
The award, named after longtime WashCOG president Toby Nixon, honors a person or organization whose ongoing commitment to open government is demonstrated through their actions, commitments and words.
Since its founding in 2009, InvestigateWest’s stories have held the powerful to account and has often triggered changes in laws and public policies, with public records often forming the backbone of their reporting. They focus on original reporting of stories no other media are covering.
Headed by Executive Director Jacob Fries, Investigate West has grown dramatically since its beginnings. With a staff of 11 people, it covers Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana, often tackling issues in communities far outside the major media centers. It has partnered with both local news organizations and national publications like The New York Times, Politico, Grist and The Atlantic.
Jacob Fries, InvestigateWest executive director
InvestigateWest is funded through donations and grants, and recently received two major grants totaling $700,000.
Here’s a sampling of its recent investigative work using records and data:
InvestigateWest, working with the Mercer Island Reporter, obtained documents that exposed the arrangement allowing a Mercer Island High School teacher twice accused of sexual misconduct to be quietly put on administrative leave before resigning.
A review of all 2025 habeas corpus cases filed in federal courts in Washington state involving immigrant detentions, revealed that judges ruled that ICE officers held more than 100 detainees in violation of their due process rights.
In response to a series of award-winning stories about child abuse and neglect in state-run facilities in Idaho, the state Legislature launched its own investigation and passed new laws increasing oversight of child treatment programs. InvestigateWest is still reporting on the issue.
InvestigateWest will receive the Toby Nixon Award at WashCOG’s annual Sunshine Breakfast on March 13.
