Sarah Devin Kaufman

OSINT Research Expert, Investigative Reporter

Composer, Producer, Pianist, Singer under the name Gussie B

Pronouns: she/her

Hi, friend! Here’s a bit about me…

I am an Emmy-winning reporter, working most recently as a misinformation researcher at the American Sunlight Project, an organization based in Washington D.C. whose mission is to expose misinformation campaigns and educate the public about media literacy tools necessary to understand deceptive information practices.

Fluent in Russian and intermediate in Ukrainian and Spanish, I utilize my language skills to find unconventional sources and report exclusive breaking news.

I was Social Newsgathering Reporter at NBC News from December 2019 to December 2023, where I verified user-generated content (UGC) for visual investigations and news programs such as On Assignment With Richard Engel, The Rachel Maddow Show, TODAY, News Now, and Nightly News With Lester Holt. While at NBC News, I became an expert on reporting breaking news during mass casualty incidents and was asked to speak on best reporting practices at the Asian American Journalists’ Association Conference in 2022. I often pitched and reported breaking news and long-form features for NBC News digital on women’s health issues and other pop culture trends.

From 2017 to 2019, I worked as a Senior Associate researcher at the startup Dataminr, where I mined open-source data to break news through the Dataminr app for dozens of publications, governments, and corporations, who were clients of the app. At Dataminr, I concentrated in Eastern European media, where my Russian and Ukrainian came in handy. I monitored and mined open-source data on domestic and Middle Eastern breaking news as well.

From 2014 to 2017, I worked as a reporter at a handful of media startups in New York City, where I concentrated on open-source research and reporting on little-known yet impactful Internet communities. I wrote multiple quick-turn stories per day on breaking news with customized angles for publications like Vocativ, Patch Media, Mic, and Spin Magazine.

I received my Master’s in Journalism from Medill at Northwestern University ‘13 and my Bachelor’s in Russian and graduated magna cum laude from Bryn Mawr College ‘10. I received Russian departmental honors for writing a thesis in both Russian and English about domestic violence law in Russia.

I am a deep believer in independent journalism, upholding First Amendment rights for reporters, and the importance of fact-checking and verification as an antidote to spreading misinformation.

In my free time, I hike with my dog, Sadie, and compose solo piano, vocal & piano, and orchestral pieces. Heroes include Chopin, Vladimir Nabokov, Kate Bush, and Audre Lorde.

 Gussie B Music

I’ve played classical piano since I was 4, but after a breakthrough thanks to EMDR therapy, in November of 2023, I began composing for the first time. Since then, I’ve composed dozens of pieces and cues, some solo piano, some piano & vocals, and some orchestral. I produce all my own music. You can hear some of my produced tracks at my SoundCloud and see me perform my compositions live on my Instagram and TikTok.

I’m looking for collaborators with unique musical visions!

Email me with any questions, ideas, or offers for creating demos for projects such as film and television scores, advertisements, and any other art that is inspiring you! sarah.devin.kaufman@gmail.com.

Here is a clip of my self-produced composition called “Loved for It,” played in the background of a clip of my dad and me dancing when I was 4 years old. Here is the full demo of “Loved for It.”

NBC News Features

One year without Roe: Data shows how abortion access has changed in America

June 2023: I collaborated with NBC News’ Digital Data Reporting team for an investigative dive into the impact of the removal of Roe v. Wade on women’s health nationwide.

Ukraine accuses Russia of blowing up a major dam; Kremlin blames Kyiv

June 2023: I verified UGC of the Russian-controlled Kakhovka dam breach in the Kherson region of Ukraine by using Yandex Maps to geolocate the video and cross referencing other open source information.

See my verification case here.

TikTok users are demanding that their favorite musicians release sped-up songs

April 2023: I pitched and wrote a breaking piece for the Culture desk on NBC News Digital about the trend of sped-up songs pervasive on TikTok.

From 2016-2019, I worked as an open source researcher at Dataminr, where I alerted journalistic clients to international and domestic breaking news via social media mining. While at Dataminr, I conducted research projects on sourcing in Eastern European media. I learned Russian in college and studied abroad in St. Petersburg in 2009 and 2011, so I used my Russian to dig deep into the Russian media landscape, especially as it related to Ukraine and Belarus. I also took Ukrainian courses as part of professional development, which made it easier for me to verify breaking news events in Ukraine. That specialty followed me to NBC News, where I now offer my expertise to other teams reporting on the war in Ukraine.

Here are some breaking news events I uncovered via social media mining while at Dataminr and alerted to nearly all major news outlets.

Communities Speak Up

At Patch, I was an entry-level reporter writing quick hits (at least seven of them per day). But I also managed to do some hard-hitting reporting in my spare time. Below are some clips. Here are the rest of the articles I wrote at Patch.

100s of Lower East Siders Stranded Without Gas for 40 Days — and Counting

The weeks-long gas blackout at 131 Broome St. has created an all-out health crisis in the building, tenants and advocates say.

LOWER EAST SIDE, NY — Jacqueline Mitchell, a middle-aged resident of 131 Broome St. on the Lower East Side, hasn't had gas for her stove for 40 days. Her blood pressure is through the roof, she says, and her right foot sometimes swells so painfully that she can't leave her house. When the weather is cold, going outside only makes her foot worse…

Brownsville Envisions a New Betsy Head Park: Sports Fields, Benches, Scoreboards and More

Betsy Head Park is getting a $30 million makeover. Here, Brownsville neighbors tell NYC Parks officials what they want to do with the money.

BROWNSVILLE, BROOKLYN — Chris Legree has been waiting 60 years to see his beloved Betsy Head Park get a much-needed makeover. As a community activist and sports coach to hundreds of children and young adults who grew up in Brownsville, Legree wants his park to impress the whole country. And he's sure it will.

"For me this isn't just a park, this is a historical moment," Legree said…

City Urges Brownsville to Eat Fresh Produce, Then Kills Its Community Farm

The city's housing preservation department says it needs the farm's property to build affordable housing.

BROWNSVILLE, BROOKLYN — A Brownsville community farm and garden that's been feeding thousands of underserved residents fresh produce every week for decades is battling with the city for its life.

The Green Valley Community Garden, at 93 New Lots Ave., is in imminent danger of being wiped out and replaced with a new affordable housing development by the city's Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD)…