Daniel Walters

What I Cover
Democracy and extremism, broadly.

Covering “democracy” is not just about writing about elections or political parties, but looking at the broader forces that are undermining our democratic institutions, including legislators chipping away at our public records laws, hedge funds destroying local newspapers and social media algorithms amplifying falsehoods.

Meanwhile, covering “extremism” goes beyond simply writing about fringe groups like the Proud Boys or Patriot Front. It means asking about the forces driving them and revealing how they intersect with those in power.

My Background
A lifelong resident of Spokane, Washington, I spent 15 years at the Inlander, Spokane’s alt-weekly, covering a vast array of topics, but particularly focusing on education and city hall. While there I used police records to write about hellish local apartment complexes, used WhatsApp screenshots to tell the harrowing story of an Afghan trying to escape his country as it fell to the Taliban, and even used step-tracker data to augment a narrative about a San Diego tech executive walking the streets of Spokane, trying to find his homeless son.

I graduated from Whitworth University in 2008, a college that prided itself on the quality of its teaching rather than the prestige of its name. When not reporting, I like to cook overly complicated meals, take pictures of marmots, and think about doing more reporting.

Ethics and Approach
I’m proud of having won respect from readers across the entire political spectrum through aggressive but fair reporting.

I believe great investigative journalism requires not only a sense of outrage over injustice and dishonesty, but also deep wells of curiosity and empathy. I believe that smart reporters often only get that way by asking dumb questions. I believe that facts should always be more important than narrative.

In a world where partisan voices aim to discredit inconvenient reporting even before they’ve read it, earning trust is harder than ever. But it’s possible: Show your work. Be upfront about who you are and what you’re writing. And seek to understand the perspective of everyone you meet.

Contact Me
You can email me, DM me on X and call or text via Signal.

Email: daniel@investigatewest.org
X: @danielwinvw
Signal: 509-720-8388