Welcome to The Critical Angle project’s flagship data library.
Here, you can find a data library that contains a massive repository of public domain information about Malta’s most significant corruption scandals over the past decade.
The launch version features all major stories linked with the following subjects:
– the American University of Malta,
– Electrogas,
– VGH / Steward Healthcare,
– Passport sales (including the Passport Papers exposé),
– Pilatus Bank,
– the public inquiry about the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia and the government’s subsequent attacks on press freedom, and
– Enemalta, Macbridge, and the Montenegro wind farm scandal.
Stories related to the following subjects are a work in progress and will be uploaded to the timeline by the end of 2024:
– the majority of Daphne Caruana Galizia’s entire blog (currently ongoing),
– every available report about the court procedures linked with Daphne’s murder, and
– more articles about Joseph Muscat, Keith Schembri, and Konrad Mizzi and the events that led to their resignations.
How do I use the data library?
Casual observers are forgiven in advance for their probable confusion when they first glance at the amount of information available within the data library. But fear not – we’re here to help you navigate it and use it to its maximum potential.
Generally speaking, looking at a section of the timeline from a distance will immediately give you an idea of the major events that were ongoing at any given time. Clicking on an individual content bubble will provide you with instant access to a news article summarising that particular event, the link to the original article, and a copy of any relevant documents attached (e.g.: each public inquiry hearing has accompanying court transcripts of every testimony).
So, let’s start from the basics.
The navigator interface:
+ / – are used to zoom in and out of the timeline as needed. The more you zoom in, the narrower the visible date range will be.
Full screen button (right below the minus symbol).
Search: the search button allows you to type in keywords to highlight points of interest – the more specific the keyword, the better. The search feature removes all other prompts that do not feature your keyword, making it much easier to view prompts that are solely related to what you are looking for.
Zoom slider: the zoom slider button fulfills the function of a simple zoom in / out. So, the plus and minus buttons narrow the date range, the zoom slider adjusts the size of the text within the library.
The colour-coding system:
Green prompt, white text: green prompts represent articles penned by journalists, generally denoting highly significant pieces which served to bring to light relevant information. For the period between 2008 – October 2017, a large chunk of these articles were written by Daphne Caruana Galizia herself.
White prompt, red text: white prompts represent stories which are linked directly with the American University of Malta scandal.
Light blue prompt, black text: light blue prompts represent relevant segments of the NAO’s reports on the Electrogas power station deal.
Dark blue prompt, white text: dark blue prompts represent relevant segments of the NAO’s reports on the Vitals Global Healthcare / Steward Healthcare concession.
Red prompt, white text: red prompts mark critically important exposés and key stories, including Pilatus Bank and stories related to Malta’s golden passport.
Black prompt, white text: black prompts refer to major events which mark a turning point.
