The release of the Panama and Paradise Papers in 2015 constituted the largest coordinated act of investigative journalism ever undertaken. A team of 400 hundred international journalists, led by two German investigative reporters, spent a year uncovering the world's widest-reaching corruption scheme, one connected to heads of state, politicians, businessmen, big banks, the mafia, diamond miners, art dealers, and celebrities, implicating figures ranging from Vladimir Putin to businesses right here in Kentucky. It was a monumental and dangerous task, a real life international thriller that put the lives and careers of its participants at risk.

Frederik Obermaier is an investigative journalist at the Süddeutsche Zeitung. He, along with his colleague Bastian Obermeyer, was responsible for the coordination and release of the Panama and Paradise Papers.