To help our readers get to know the people that power our newsroom, we host live Twitter conversations called #TheInsideStory on our @InsiderInc account with reporters and editors from our Business, Life, and News sections.

We recently caught up with Deputy Editor, Dave Levinthal, to learn more about his passion for investigative reporting and hear about the award-winning projects that he and his team have produced over the last couple of years. Be sure to follow Dave on Twitter and check out his page on Insider for the latest updates.

We’re so excited to have you join us today, @davelevinthal! To get things started, can you tell us more about your career in journalism and what sparked your passion for investigative reporting? #TheInsideStory

Thanks so much for having me!

My first job in journalism came at age 10 — as a paperboy for @TheBuffaloNews. Five years later, I wrote my first published story. The idea of telling people stories always felt intoxicating — did then, does now.

I went to @SyracuseU’s @NewhouseSU and @MaxwellSU schools, where I majored in newspaper journalism and political philosophy, and edited the @DailyOrange in my junior and senior years. Interned at @mcall and @dallasnews, too.

Since then, I've worked at @EagleTrib, @dallasnews, @OpenSecretsDC, @politico and @publicIntegrity before helping launch @ThisIsInsider's Washington, D.C., bureau in mid-2020. A little pandemic project, right?

So cool to hear that you discovered your passion at such a young age and continued to build off of it throughout your career! Fast forwarding to today, can you share more about your role at @thisisinsider?

From mid-2020 to mid-2021, I first worked as @ThisIsInsider's senior Washington correspondent, then became deputy editor, where I lead our political investigations and enterprise journalism.

Earlier this year, you won the @PressClubDC’s Arthur E. Rowse Award for excellence in news media reporting. First, a big congratulations is in order! Second, can you tell us more about the recognition?

Appreciate it. The award was for our three-part investigation into the personal political activities of working journalists — a highly fluid and controversial topic both outside & within the news industry. Here's a summary of what we found.

The first part of our series was tale of journalists who in some cases reported on politics but personally donated to politicians. It took weeks to report, marrying data analysis with shoe-leather reporting.

Another piece explored the sports journalism/politics nexus. Holding up a mirror to your own industry (and colleagues, even) isn't something we do every day. But it's quite an important debate, and we weren't going to shy away from it.

We'd love to talk more about another bombshell project you spearheaded,"Conflicted Congress," which has also recently been recognized. What prompted this investigation, and what were the outcomes?

In early 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic took hold, there had been reports of some — let us say — funky stock purchases and sales by members of Congress. We began to ask ourselves: Is there more going on here than just a few dubious trades?

So we started digging through gov't documents. Every day. One of our earliest scoops revealed that @SenFeinstein violated a conflicts-of-interest law.

Before long, we were finding all sorts of shenanigans. In March 2021, we revealed that a congressman from New Jersey had failed to disclose dozens of stock trades worth hundreds of thousands of dollars in violation of federal law.

Ultimately, we decided to investigate the entire legislative brach. Every member of Congress. Every senior Capitol Hill aide. In December 2021, @ThisIsInsider published "Conflicted Congress."

Our initial "Conflicted Congress" reports ran for a week during December — more than two-dozen investigative stories and data visualizations. But it didn't end there. The project is ongoing and nearly 200 stories, in all.

Congress now has a decision to make — one that it's been debating internally all year: whether to ban lawmakers from trading individual stocks. The backdrop? We've now identified 75 federal lawmakers who've violated the STOCK Act.

Incredible to see the impact that your team's reporting has had... and the momentum has not slowed down! Recently, Insider launched “Red, White, and Gray,” focused on America's gerontocracy. Can you first tell us what is a “gerontocracy?”

"Gerontocracy," simply defined, is government rule by people who are old. We anecdotally knew the US government was getting older. But by how much? And how fast? And what does this mean for all Americans?

What are the key takeaways from “Red, White, and Gray”so far?

First, we have a point-by-point summary of @ThisIsInsider's "Red, White, and Gray" findings to review here.

Generally, we found that issues of profound importance to the nation's youth and future — technology, civil rights, energy, the environment — are largely in the hands of those whose primes have passed. This helps visualize the trends.

How do you think the current state (and age) of Congress played a role in the 2022 midterm elections?

Of course, age was not the only factor in Election 2022 — far from it. But there's strong evidence it was a factor. Two items of note. First, the overall age of Congress will drop come January, reversing a 2-decade-long trend.

Secondly, many older members of Congress themselves acknowledged that they needed to step away to allow for the rise of a new generation of leaders.

You've had an eventful (and successful) year to say the least! What are you and your team focused on as we enter 2023? Is there anything you'd like our readers to know?

First, a shameless pitch: Everyone should definitely follow my @ThisIsInsider colleagues who cover politics — here's a list of them all.

What will @ThisIsInsider's politics team be focused on in 2023? Several themes domestically: 1.) Congressional gridlock, 2.) Economic recovery / inflation, 3.) Rise of extremism, 4.) Biden v. Trump — or not!

We'll also be paying close attention to the United States' role in foreign affairs and conflicts. We have a crack military and defense team led by @samfellman and @rwp2011 and an ace foreign affairs specialist in @jchaltiwanger. Pay them attention.

Before we let you go, we’d like to know… what’s your favorite part about the holiday season?

I'm a sucker for family stuff. (Love writing cards, we just got our tree last night.) But all I really want for Christmas this year is for my beloved @BuffaloBills to win the Super Bowl. Is that too much to ask, Santa, on behalf of #BillsMafia?

Hopefully you're on Santa's nice list and you get your wish! Thanks so much for joining today’s #TwitterChat and telling us more about you and your coverage. Be sure to follow @davelevinthal and check out his page on Insider.

"We...investigated the entire legislative branch. Every member of Congress. Every senior Capitol Hill aide." Twitter Q&A with Deputy Editor, Dave Levinthal