The Pulitzer Prize is a recognition given by the University of Columbia in New York, for achievements in newspaper, magazine and online journalism, literature and musical composition. This year the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists received this prize for their work in the Panama Papers in the category Explanatory Reporting.

This investigation exposed the hidden structure used for tax evasion, evading international sanctions and fraud, by many corporations and wealthy individuals through the use of offshore tax heavens. It required the involvement of 370 reporters in six continents, this included Costa Rican journalists Alejandra Fernández and Antonio Jiménez as well as computer engineer Rigoberto Carvajal who’s job, alongside other colleagues, involved creating the platform so that the journalists would have access to the information in a secure, efficient and friendly way.

“The Panama Papers investigation exposed offshore companies linked to more than 140 politicians in more than 50 countries – including 14 current or former world leaders. It also uncovered offshore hideaways tied to mega-banks, corporate bribery scandals, drug kingpins, Syria’s air war on its own citizens and a network of people close to Russian President Vladimir Putin that shuffled as much as $2 billion around the world”, states Michael Hudson of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists in an article for the ICIJ website.

Carvajal stated in an interview with national newspaper La Nación: “the shortest road to success in data journalism is that the world of computer engineering and journalism have to come together, journalism is enhanced through the use of technology, to make it more efficient, effective and fast”. The computer engineer worked directly with the processing of more than 11.5 million documents distributed to journalists all over the world, he was also involved in data analysis, amount calculation and graphic generation.

Meanwhile, the editor of DataBaseAR, Alejandra Fernández, commented “More than being joyful for the prize in itself, we are happy that the content was recognized, because it brought light where powerful people with dark interests had turned it off. It is of great importance that the work receives a backing of this magnitude”.

“Organized crime is transnational now, and journalism must respond to it. Panama Papers demonstrated that the cross-border journalistic collaboration is an efficient and needed model to combat corruption which no longer operates locally”, said journalist Antonio Jiménez.