As allegations of attacks and other incidents blamed on Russia piled up across Europe last year, a team of AP journalists set out to build an interactive map to help readers understand what Western officials say is an extension of Russia’s war on Ukraine.
Reporter Emma Burrows led the effort, working with bureaus across Europe to confirm sources and locations tied to each incident. With hundreds of reports to examine, the task required sifting through and verifying only those with credible allegations of Russian involvement. Burrows used a combination of AP reporting, open-source intelligence, interviews, and official statements to identify cases linked to Russia, pro-Russian groups, or Russian allies.
Once the database was compiled, Burrows collaborated with Seth Rasmussen, a developer on the Interactives team, to build a map that allowed users to click on a location and view a pop-up with incident details and links for further reading. Sarah Di Lorenzo, deputy director of Top Stories, reviewed the database line by line, while Peter Hamlin contributed original illustrations to enhance the project’s visual impact.
In the end, the AP team identified and mapped 59 incidents that Western officials had publicly attributed to Russia or its proxies. Burrows also wrote an accompanying text story that detailed how the disruption aligns with Russia’s interests and outlined how the incidents were documented.
The project was widely praised by European diplomats and analysts as a clever, comprehensive tool. It was shared broadly on social media and referenced by experts and academics. In the United States, Senator John Cornyn (R-Texas) cited the AP story during a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing, asking that it be entered into the official record. He also asked Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard whether AP’s reporting aligned with intelligence community findings. Gabbard said it did.
For an exhaustively reported and ambitious project that brought new insight to Russian activities abroad, Emma Burrows, Sarah Di Lorenzo, Seth Rasmussen and Peter Hamlin win this week’s Best of AP — Second Winner.
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