"Reporting On Hidden Networks Of Online Abuse" with CNN

This week we spoke to the CNN team behind the investigation into the porn site Motherless. Anonymous accounts. Private chat groups. Hidden online communities. We unpacked how reporters gained access to these spaces, spoke with users sharing intimate imagery of people they knew, and navigated the challenges of reporting in communities designed to stay hidden. It's a conversation about newsroom resources, risk assessment, digital safety, and the realities of reporting where others aren't looking.

The talk was hosted by Charlotte Maher on June 11th 2026. Music featured is courtesy of Artlist. Recorded live in our Discord Server: https://discord.com/invite/bellingcat

TW: Discussion of sexual assault and abuse

Links:

CNN's Motherless Investigation: https://edition.cnn.com/interactive/2026/03/world/expose-rape-assault-online-vis-intl/index.html and As Equals series: https://edition.cnn.com/interactive/asequals/

NDR covered this network in 2024, their unit STRG_F's documentary: youtube.com/watch?si=uoUyWe9dQAteJWJA&v=GLrzyOLJUtk&feature=youtu.be - Their research triggered an international law enforcement operation: https://www.ndr.de/der_ndr/presse/mitteilungen/ndr-recherche-loest-internationale-ermittlungsoperation-medusa-aus,pressemeldungndr-638.html

Pelicot investigation: https://edition.cnn.com/interactive/2024/12/europe/gisele-pelicot-france-case-messages/

NY Times article hiding CSAM: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/11/09/us/internet-child-sex-abuse.html

Berkeley Protocol https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/2024-01/OHCHR_BerkeleyProtocol.pdf

Alexa Koenig talk https://rss.com/podcasts/bellingcatstagetalk/1908244/

Discord discussion space - Gender Based Violence And Misogyny: https://discordapp.com/channels/709752884257882135/1118448280435687506

Maintain mental hygiene as a researcher: https://www.bellingcat.com/resources/2022/11/23/how-to-maintain-mental-hygiene-as-an-open-source-researcher/

Reporting on gender based violence: https://www.bellingcat.com/resources/2023/03/03/sexual-and-gender-based-violence-open-source-researche-osint-digital/