Inadvertent is muckraking.

Inadvertent is continuing the journalistic tradition of muckraking¹ by publishing writing that holds power to account. We are an independent publication reporting on the impacts local government, the police, politicians and corporations have on Southern California communities, all while bringing transparency to some of the most secretive agencies and offices in this region. We understand that what happens in the greater LA region can affect other communities across the US and abroad.

We also publish occasional commentary on relevant issues such as press freedom and public records requests.

This publication was created to inform, promote discussion, never censor, and always put the public’s right to know first.

Inadvertent is beholden only to the truth.

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Team

Ben Camacho is a multi-award winning investigative journalist, documentary photographer, and producer. His work focuses on state-sanctioned violence and the communities impacted by it.

Ben’s work has exposed a police gang, paved the way to a police oversight commission, forced a city to cancel its contract with ICE, and helped create the first ever database to use police headshot photographs for identifying cops. He was sued twice by the City of Los Angeles in a failed effort to censor public records.

Ben founded Inadvertent; co-founded the West Side Storytellers, and is a producer there. He chaired the legal committee at IWW Freelance Journalists Union. Ben also co-founded The Southlander.

He has spoken at Yale, CUNY, USC, Cal State Northridge, Santa Ana College, the University of La Verne, and numerous conferences.

Ben was previously named a “Distinguished Journalist” by the Society of Professional Journalists-LA.

He enjoys street photography, shows, and breathing clean air.

Katja Schatte (editor) is a multilingual (English | Spanish | German) editor, copy editor, translator, and interpreter with a background in history and extensive experience editing academic, technical, and — most enthusiastically — journalistic writing. Katja is also an EMT in a busy 911 system and the parent of an extremely talkative seven-year-old child.

Where did the name ‘Inadvertent’ come from?

The journalist who founded this outlet was sued twice by the city of Los Angeles in a failed censorship attempt after helping bring radical transparency to the Los Angeles Police Department. LAPD claimed they “inadvertently” released certain records. The name also has a double meaning: We publish information and records that the powerful never intended to be public, whether through leaks, lawsuits, sources or public records requests.

In April 2023, the City of LA filed an unconstitutional lawsuit in an attempt to “claw back” public records that had already been disseminated throughout the internet and published in a public database. The city claimed that they had “inadvertently“ included photos of undercover officers (and legacy media regurgitated this claim) in the records that they released. There was no admissible evidence presented in court by the city to back up this claim.

In September 2023, hundreds of LAPD officers sued the city anonymously, alleging they were put in danger by the photo release. They claimed to be the undercover officers who the city “inadvertently“ released photos of. Their best evidence showed the opposite: They were officers with public-facing positions; one had even given a press conference in the past.

In January 2024, the City of LA doubled down on its attacks against the freedom of the press and sued again.

In May 2024, the city agreed to a $300,000 settlement for the “clawback” case (the initial case). That case stopped there, but the notion that government and police agencies can censor public information through clawbacks has continued to spread. In June 2024, a judge threw out the second case.

The lawsuit between the cops and the city of LA continues. Now that the city is on the hook for what could amount to millions of dollars in damages, it admitted what we had been saying since the start — that none of the cops in the LAPD headshots release are undercover cops.

This project was created in the aftermath of these unconstitutional attacks on First Amendment rights.

This space is now a free press. This is Inadvertent.

Why pay to subscribe to this work?

Simple: keep the powerful honest. Your paid subscriptions support muckraking, gumshoeing, watchdogging investigative journalism: digging through records at courthouses, looking through databases, filing (and keeping up with) public records requests, traveling to meet sources in person, photographing, filming, and all of the administrative work it takes to keep a journalism outlet going.

If you value government transparency, local journalism, access to public records, and press freedom, your paid subscription will directly support making this work sustainable at a time when journalism is facing an existential crisis. Your money will fund high-quality reporting on stories that legacy media will not touch or will not get to the core of.

If you’re more of a “I need to see the concrete steps you’re taking with my money” type of person, here’s the roadmap we laid out in December 2025:

1. Doubling the amount of paid subscribers means we can pay an editor on a freelance basis to work their magic on the writing. It means the writing and reporting will be clearer, more cohesive, and overall a better read. This is the lowest bar we are aiming for. (We already hit this goal.)

2. With triple the amount of paid subscribers (just about 100), We can pay other reporters for any of their work published on Inadvertent, so long as the article does not surpass 800 words. You may have already seen some of Abraham Márquez’s bylines on Inadvertent. We would love to compensate him and other writers for their labor. This would bring more voices to the project (so it’s not just one person yapping at you).

3. With 120 paid subscribers, it becomes possible to commission work from a graphic designer to make the reporting (and the publication itself) stand out. Right now, we are limited to our own photography and my mediocre Canva skills.

Every paid subscription ensures this type of reporting continues.

Pay for the year upfront, and we’ll send you some merch.

Want to just leave a one-time tip? Throw it in this tip jar (The cost of a full year will also get you the merch.): ko-fi.com/inadvertent

Editorial Independence

Inadvertent follows guidance from the Institute for Nonprofit News.

Inadvertent retains full authority over editorial content to protect the best journalistic and business interests of the publication. A firewall is maintained between news coverage decisions and sources of all revenue. Acceptance of financial support does not constitute implied or actual endorsement of donors or their products, services or opinions. The project accepts gifts, grants and sponsorships from individuals and organizations for the general support of the reporting activities, but news judgments are made independently and not on the basis of donor support.

Inadvertent may consider donations to support the coverage of particular topics, but the organization maintains editorial control of the coverage. We will cede no right of review or influence of editorial content, nor of unauthorized distribution of editorial content.

Inadvertent will make public all donors who give a total of $5,000 or more per year.

Corrections Policy

Essential to journalism is being accurate. Inadvertent aims to verify all information before publishing. However, mistakes can happen. When they do, this project is committed to correcting them promptly and transparently.

If a factual error is identified, it will be corrected as soon as possible and clearly noted at the top or bottom of the article. If the correction changes the substance of the article, it will be noted at the top. If the correction does not change the substance, it will be noted at the bottom. The changelog will explain what was wrong, what has been fixed and include the time and date.

Clarifications may be issued when information is accurate but requires additional context or clearer language. The changelog will show updates when new information is added after publication. If needed, a footnote will be added

We do not remove accurate content solely because it is disputed or controversial. Corrections are made based on verified facts, not external pressure.

Readers who believe an error has been made may contact Ben Camacho at inadvertent@substack.com. Please include relevant details or documentation. All credible claims are reviewed.

This policy applies to all published content, including articles, headlines, captions, graphics, and social media posts.