I'd like to see/hear you guys interview HAL on the subject of 'online research'.
I'd like to hear/see the HAL interview as well.
Believe me, you'd be bored to tears. Google is your friend, one needs to think outside the bun, and a little knowledge of legal stuff helps. Sometimes it's just deducing info from what others may deem worthless. Not rocket science. For example, if investigating charlatans who set up 501(c)(3) tax-free foundations, it is fundamental to know that all their information is freely available from the IRS by looking at their IRS990 forms.
Whatever "skill" is involved started before the internet - when one actually had to go to the library to look stuff up. A girl I was dating bought a Minolta SRT-102 SLR camera from me, promising to send me a check (she lived 30 miles across town). I never heard from her again. I called her mom some 8-12 months later, and was informed she got married and moved. Her mom hung up on me.
So, armed with almost no information... I figured I was screwed. As it turns out, I took one day, did a little research (of the gumshoe variety), and found her, left a note in her mailbox, and had my check a few days later.