5 ways we focused on making our Pulitzer Prize-winning investigation more accessible to the people who need these stories and resources most
By City Bureau
Behind the scenes of the Missing in Chicago feature videos production. Director and cinematographer Cai Thomas sets the camera as Erisa Apantaku runs sound. Reporter Sarah Conway prepares questions for an interviewee. (Photo: Trina Reynolds-Tyler / City Bureau & Invisible Institute)
City Bureau Senior Reporter Sarah Conway and Invisible Institute Data Director Trina Reynolds-Tyler spent years building trust and talking to families about their experiences searching for their missing loved ones.
In their initial interactions with families, our reporters were not sure what would come of their investigation, or what form it would take. More than two years later, their multimedia investigative series Missing in Chicago has drawn national attention to this missing persons crisis, particularly as it highlights the disproportionate impact on Black women and girls.
The seven-part investigation traces the stories of searching families, showcasing how police have mishandled or delayed cases, and how faulty police data makes systemic solutions to the crisis harder to find. Conway and Reynolds-Tyler’s investigation weaves interviews and data science to illustrate the depths of the issue.
Driven by our commitment to centering impacted families, expanding the reach of the investigation, and prioritizing community engagement, our teams at City Bureau and the Invisible Institute worked together to create resources that add dimension to the reporting, enable different ways for people to connect with the information, and inspire tangible change.
Here are five ways we made our “Missing in Chicago” investigation more accessible and strived to reach the people who need these stories and resources most.
Feature Videos of Impacted Families
To amplify the stories of missing and murdered loved ones with honor and compassion, we collaborated with Chicago documentary filmmaker Cai Thomas to create five short videos for “Missing in Chicago.”
These videos were produced primarily for social media, aiming to powerfully lift the voices of impacted family and friends. Each film combines interviews, data and photography to explore topics such as mental health hardships, preserving memories, the burden of waiting, the love of mothers, and the power of friendship.
Sarah and Trina spoke with families about their loved ones as cinematographer and director Cai Thomas captured their stories in their homes and important community spaces. Watch the full film series on our YouTube here.
Tabitha Pittman, Tammy Pittman and Shirley Enoch-Hill share the stories of their loved ones — all Black women and girls who have gone missing in Chicago. (Video stills: Cai Thomas /City Bureau & Invisible Institute)
Print Zine and and Know Your Rights Guide
While “Missing in Chicago” was published first at chicagomissingpersons.com, we wanted to make the reporting more accessible via print — giving our audience the ability to flip through pages and pass what they’re reading around a group of family or friends.
Parts of the investigation were published in the Chicago Reader, South Side Weekly, The Triibe and Word in Black News syndication. We produced a Know Your Rights guide, meant to help people understand their rights when filing a police report if a loved one goes missing.
Print copies of the full investigation, as well as the Know Your rights guides, were distributed at local events around the community, including a monthlong reading series and an annual community We Walk for Her march. The guides and additional resources are also available online. These resources are not the full solution, but they can help people in crisis.
Sarah Conway recounted the power of these tangible resources while presenting the guide to a Bronzeville elementary school audience of parents, teachers and administrators:
“Toward the end of our presentation, one school administrator shared with us that she used our Know Your Rights guide when navigating a difficult conversation with Chicago police, who, she said, initially refused to allow her to file a missing person report for her niece. She referenced language in the guide to affirm her right under Chicago police policy and state law to file a report.”
Making these resources accessible to those who need them equips people with the knowledge and agency to advocate for themselves and their loved ones.
Reading Groups and Multimedia Exhibition
Our partners at Invisible Institute organized two four-week reading groups, in-person and virtually, to delve deeply into our reporting.
Conway and Reynolds-Tyler facilitated discussions in Pilsen, Bronzeville and Woodlawn, bringing people together for interactive experiences where attendees could process the stories and participate in brainstorming activities together.
The reading groups culminated in a multimedia exhibition at the Chicago Art Department, where participants were invited to explore the images and video created alongside the investigation, read police complaint narratives, and discuss how to take action to address the missing persons crisis.
(Photos: Kaitlynn Cassidy /Invisible Institute)
Word in Black Syndication
Founded by 10 Black publishers, Word In Black is the first-of-its-kind national newsroom powered by a collaboration of the nation’s leading Black publishers. It syndicates critical reporting across the country, and in March 2024, our “Missing in Chicago” stories were among them during Black History and Women’s History month. This partnership expanded the digital reach and impact of our stories.
Audio Recording
In an age where reading is taking a backseat to television and podcasts, we embraced the flexibility and on-demand nature of audio. Our reporters recorded each of the seven parts of their investigation where they can be accessed here, and embedded into our reporting.
Explore the full Pulitzer Prize-winning seven-part investigative series at chicagomissingpersons.com.