What
Upcoming deadlines for global grants applications and other opportunities
This selection is aimed at media workers, practitioners, researchers and journalists. More information can be found by following the links under each summary.
All opportunities are in chronological order.
Good luck!
Remember to check out our annual PMA Global Grant scheme.
Featured Opportunity
PBS Frontline’s Local Journalism Project
Deadline: 15 July
PBS’s investigative series FRONTLINE has recently launched its Local Journalism Project in its efforts to sustain and revive local journalism. This comes particularly at a time where local journalism across America is facing a funding crisis. It aims to provide journalists with the opportunity to conduct in-depth, investigative reporting on under-covered stories which PBS can bring to their national audiences on their broadcast and digital platforms as well as strengthen independent, local reporting. It is receiving a $1 million grant from the Corporation of Public Broadcasting as well as a $3 million grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. Grantees will receive up to $75,000 for each project and editorial guidelines, training and advice will also be provided.
PMA Workshop | Developing Social Media Guidelines for Broadcasters in Southern Africa
When: 3-5 June 2019
The PMA is pleased to announce a new workshop, organised in partnership with UNESCO Harare Office, to develop social media guidelines for broadcasters in Southern Africa. The 3-day workshop, which will be held in Namibia, is open to media professionals from the following countries: Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, South Africa, Seychelles and Mozambique.
Call for Applications: Reporting on Refugees and Migration Through the Eyes of Children
Deadline: 7 June 2019
Workshop: 19-22 September
The Dart Center is now accepting applications for a journalism training workshop focused on children and the international refugee crisis.
To prepare news professionals worldwide to cover refugee and migrant children and families with greater knowledge, depth, and skills, the Dart Center is now accepting applications for a journalism training workshop focused on children and the international refugee crisis.
Call for Scholarship Applications: Global Media and Information Literacy Week 2019 Youth Agenda Form
Deadline: 10 June
The scholarship aims to enable students and young professionals to take part in the Global MIL Week 2019 Agenda Forum which will be taking place on 24-26 September in Gothenburg, Sweden. The youth-oriented forum will focus particularly in youth involvement in MIL as ‘co-leaders and co-creators and not only as beneficiaries’. It will cover round-trip air tickets, accommodation and an opportunity to present at the forum.
Plural + Youth Video Competition
This joint project between the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) is inviting young filmmakers aged 25 years old or younger to submit work on migration, diversity and social inclusion. Entries must be between one and five minutes in length, must be in English or include English subtitles, and produced after 31 December 2017. Entries can also be submitted as a group.
USAID’s Balkan Media Assistance Program – Engaging Content Grant
Deadline: 5 July
A second call for applications under USAID’s BMAP Engaging Content Grant is underway. The grant is open to locally registered media outlets in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia.
The purpose of the grant is to encourage local media to produce more high quality content to be able to reach out to new audiences, build trust with the public and find out what their information needs and interests are.
More information about applying to the awards can be found below.
WAN-IFRA’S Africa’s Digital Media Awards
Deadline: 12 July
Presented by the World’s Association of Newspapers and News Publishers, the awards ‘recognise innovative storytellers and publishers who have adopted digital media and mobile strategies to meet the major changes in how people consume news and information today.’
The awards ceremony will take place on the first evening of Africa’s Premiere Digital Innovation and Revenue Conference, which takes place on 11-12 September in Johannesburg. The conference itself will look at the changing media landscape, innovation and revenue within Africa in the digital age.
Free Press Awards 2019
Deadline: 15 July
Free Press Unlimited’s Free Press Awards celebrate the work of the best journalists and media professionals.
The organisation supports journalists worldwide on a daily basis, so the awards will celebrate and recognise exceptional work in two key categories: Newcomer of the Year and Most Resilient Journalist.
The event will also be an opportunity to encourage journalists to be innovative and bring new ideas to the fore.
More information about applying to the awards can be found below.
IWMF Howard G. Buffet Fund for Women Journalists
Deadline: 5 August
The fund seeks to support female journalists from around the world with journalism projects as well as professional development. This includes support for exposing ‘under-reported but critical global issues’ as well as for skills training, leadership opportunities and media development initiatives.
The fund will be given to individual full time professional working journalists or teams which are at least 50% female.
EJC Global Health Journalism Grant Programme – Germany and France
Deadline: 8 August
The European Journalism Centre’s awards journalism projects on global health, health policy and development related issues in order to develop global health coverage within French and German media and raise awareness of important global health issues for audiences. The grant is open to freelancers, staff journalists and newsrooms.
BBC Radio 4 Today Programme Student Journalism Awards
Deadline: 31 August
BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme is running its Student Journalism awards for their second year to celebrate the best of student journalism.
Prizes include an offer of a paid position on the BBC News Journalism Trainee Scheme as well as a work experience placement with the Today Programme.
Categories include Best Student Broadcaster, Publication and Journalist of the year and judges are particularly ‘looking for someone who embodies the BBC’s values of impartiality, trustworthiness and excellence, and who’s shown they can serve the needs and interests of a student audience.’
Beyond survival? A new Human Resources research project for PMA members
Deadline: Ongoing
Our new project aims to develop people management strategies to ensure the development and growth of PSMs in the fragmented digital media landscape.
In an exciting new research project, the Public Media Alliance (PMA) has partnered with Peter Block from the University of Westminster’s Communication and Media Research Institute (CAMRI), to launch a project that will review the processes by which participating PSM’s manage the employer-employee relationship during the employment life-cycle.
The purpose is to highlight issues for the sector at large, identify common themes of staff development needs, and offer some practical recommendations for good practice to the PMA community.
ICFJ Knight Fellow, Data Journalism, Central/Eastern Europe
Deadline: Rolling basis
The International Center for Journalists seeks outstanding applicants with a strong background in data journalism for a one-year ICFJ Knight Fellowship to promote data-driven reporting techniques in Central and Eastern Europe. The Fellow will work with the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), which supports a network of investigative journalism centers around the region that specialize in uncovering organized crime and large-scale corruption in government and industry.
Fellowship to Report on Global Religion Issues
Deadline: Ongoing
The International Reporting Project (IRP) is welcoming applications from professional journalists who wish to report on religion issues worldwide.
The time spent in the destination country of choice is flexible. However, fellowships usually last between two and seven weeks. The organization encourages stories in a variety of forms, including print, online, radio, photography, video, social media etc. Applications which seek to explore new territories and countries are preferred.
The wider topic of religion issues can be related to themes such as conflict and peace, environment, political economy, health, gender, migration, law and more.
Applications are reviewed in cycles on a rolling basis.
Open Society Initiative for Eastern Africa
Deadline: Ongoing
“OSIEA plays an active role in encouraging open, informed dialogue on issues of importance in Eastern Africa. Through a combination of grant making, advocacy and convening power, OSIEA is able to support and amplify the voices of pro-democracy organizations and individuals in the region and to strengthen their capacity to hold their governments accountable. This includes efforts to defend and support rights activists and pro-democracy advocates who come under attack for their work. ”
The eligibility criteria includes supporting projects based around media and access to information. The OSIEA is available to both organisations and individuals.
Interested grant seekers should consult the OSIEA website for more information on eligibility and application guidelines.
Innovative Ibero-American Journalism
Deadline: Ongoing
The Chilean digital magazine Puroperiodismo, is inviting journalists, developers, designers and innovators residing in Latin America and the Caribbean to participate in this project.
Media professionals who are currently exploring new technologies, approaches to reporting, developing an app or similar are encourage to talk about it in the magazine.
Entries are on an ongoing basis
Individual Support
Deadline: Ongoing
The Assistance Desk of Reporters Without Borders (RSF) provides financial and administrative assistance to professional journalists and citizen-journalists who have been the victims of reprisals because of their reporting.
The Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting: Travel Grants Programme
Deadline: Ongoing
Fund for international travel costs associated with reporting projects on topics and regions of global importance, with an emphasis on issues that have gone unreported or under-reported in the mainstream American media. The amount of individual travel grants will depend on the specific project and detailed budget planning. Most awards fall in the range of $5,000 to $15,000 but depending on project specifics may be higher.
Training: Online Courses for Media Professionals
Deadline: Ongoing
A selection of online tutorials by the European Journalism Centre.
The diverse set of courses include “Bulletproof Data journalism”, “Google Search for Journalists”, “Verification: the basics” and “Managing Data Journalism Projects” amongst many others.
All courses are free and vary in difficulty. Courses can be completed at the participant’s preferred pace.
ICFJ Knight Fellowship, Latin America
Deadline: Ongoing, fellowships preferably starting in June 2017
The International Center for Journalists (ICFJ) is looking for outstanding journalists with a background in digital journalism who wish to strengthen their investigative reporting via new digital technologies in Central America, Mexico and/or Colombia.
If selected, the Fellow will build the capacity of media outlets and journalists in Central America, Mexico, and/or Colombia, strengthen a network between international, national and local media, recruit experts, and oversee an innovation fund.
The candidate needs to have experience in leading investigative journalism projects, experience in major newsrooms, and high proficiency in both English and Spanish.
The fellowship will take place in Latin America, with at least 25 percent of the Fellow’s time spent in Nicaragua. The duration of the fellowship is one year, with the goal of starting in June 2017. The fellowship may be extended depending on funding and ICFJ approval.
NPR Story Lab
Deadline: Rolling
“The NPR Story Lab is looking for great ideas. In fact, we’re an idea hub – generating new segments for our news programs, creating radio shows, and launching new podcasts. We want to collaborate with member stations and independent producers. We want to work with new talent that brings a fresh perspective to NPR. We want to keep innovating and leading in the podcast and radio world. The NPR Story Lab is a true creative studio at the heart of NPR, one that fosters experimentation and continues to evolve the sound of public radio. Tell us your ideas, and let’s make stuff!”
Are you interested in submitting your story or pitching a programme idea to America’s foremost public radio station? NPR are accepting applications on a rolling basis. Get involved via the link below.
Transatlantic Media Fellowship
Deadline: Ongoing
European media representatives are invited to apply for this fellowship, which will give them the chance to travel across the United States and expand on their knowledge of America and its citizens.
Organized by the Transatlantic Media Network (TMN), the goal of this fellowship is to strengthen the existing transatlantic relationship and improving mutual understanding among journalists and media professionals of both sides of the Atlantic.
The visiting journalists will follow an individual itinerary, created on their skills and interests, which will take them mostly around Washington DC and to visit TMN’s partner institutions, such as universities and journalism schools.
The fellowships may have a different duration but they will all be up to three months.
GNI Fellowship
Deadline: Ongoing
The Google News Initiative Fellowship connects students who want to explore the intersection between journalism and technology with news organisations.
The successful candidates will kick off their careers in the news industry by spending their summer working with experts in newsrooms and creating a professional network.
In 2019 the European Journalism Centre offers 40 fellowship placements in 11 European countries. The GNI Fellowship is funded by the Google News Initiative and is also available worldwide. Find out more about the programme in non-EU countries here.
[Text from European Journalism Centre and Google News Initiative]