John Templon

Hi! I'm John

I am an award-winning technologist, investigative data reporter, and editor. I’ve used innovative analyses to expose wrongdoing, created new products, and helped organizations expand their use of technology. I am currently a Principal Content Engineer at GameChanger Media. I develop new experiences for fans of youth sports. Prior to that I was an investigative data journalist and data editor for BuzzFeed News for eight years. I’ve also taught at CUNY’s Craig Newmark School of Journalism and Columbia University.

During my time at BuzzFeed News, I analyzed the odds of thousands of professional tennis matches to expose match-fixing at the highest levels, created a user manual for a government dataset in order to reveal an under-the-radar crackdown on undocumented Indian immigrants, and scrutinized thousands of scores to prove how Olympic figure skating judges showed favoritism towards their compatriots.

I was the lead data journalist for BuzzFeed News on the international collaboration of the FinCEN Files, which was named a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in International Journalism. In that project, BuzzFeed News, the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists and more than 100 partners from around the globe showed how corruption flows around the globe and how banks and governments fail to police it. I worked on the project for nearly two years: running part of the global data collection effort, spearheading the data analysis, and deeply reporting multiple parts in the series.

My final story (and data analysis) at BuzzFeed News was about the treatment of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities by BrightSpring Health Services, which is owned by the private equity giant KKR. My teammates and I received the Polk Award for Health Reporting for the story.

Prior to BuzzFeed News, I was one the inventors of technology that takes data and turns into meaningful stories and insight. I was one of the first employees of Narrative Science, a technology startup that was sold to Salesforce in 2021.

I also love sports. I am a huge fan of the Buffalo Bills and Seattle Mariners. In addition, I am one of the country’s foremost experts on NIT bracketology.

I live with my wife, daughter, and son on New York City’s Upper West Side.