Applications open for Journalism Fellowships (Philippines)

The fellowship programs aim to equip fellows with the tools needed to fight disinformation and effectively cover disruptive digital technologies like generative AI, in both local and international spaces. Specifically:

• The Aries Rufo Journalism Fellowship, via the Rappler-JNBF partnership, is being offered to local journalists in honor of the late investigative reporter Aries Rufo, who wrote for Newsbreak and Rappler on various issues, such as the church, judiciary, politics, and elections.
• The #FactsMatter Fellowship seeks to provide Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) newsrooms and their chosen journalist representatives the opportunity to better understand digital media, their impact on conversations about critical issues, how these could be manipulated, and how this manipulation can be prevented. The goal is to enrich coverage of these issues.

This is the fourth cycle of the program since its launch in 2021 and the second time that campus journalists are being included. Both fellowships are supported by the National Endowment for Democracy.

At least 6 campus journalists, 4 community journalists, and 3 Southeast Asian journalists will be selected for this cycle’s fellowship programs.

Award Information

• Filipino fellows will receive the following monthly stipends:
  • Student/campus journalists: P8,000
  • Local community journalists: P17,000
• ASEAN fellows and their newsrooms will receive a grant in two tranches:
  • International fellows: Total of US$5,000

Program Components

• In this program’s latest cycle, the fellowship components include:
  • Four-month journalism program: Both fellowships will run from August 12 to December 13, 2024. During this period, fellows’ attendance in scheduled virtual orientation and training sessions, as well as check-in meetings are a must.
  • Training sessions: A series of online and in-person training sessions will be conducted by Rappler senior editors and other key members of its research and data teams. These sessions will cover a wide range of topics that will help fellows understand and address disinformation, as well as do public interest journalism. Online training sessions will be conducted at least twice a month complemented by on-site training at the Rappler newsroom from September 26-29, 2024.
  • Regular fact checks and community story submissions: Aries Rufo fellows will do research and submit on a weekly basis stories incorporating fact-checking, along with current and relevant local issues. Meanwhile, #FactsMatter fellows representing their newsrooms will also work on media-related and fact-check stories, or articles about their respective countries in relation to media on a monthly basis.
  • Long-form final project: All fellows will need to submit as a final requirement a long-form story (either investigative or in-depth) related to the information ecosystem, the state of disinformation, or the use of social media and/or technology in their respective countries.

Who can apply?

• The Aries Rufo Journalism Fellowship is open to the following:
  • Filipino campus journalists enrolled in an accredited college or university and an active member of a campus publication or campus outlet at the time of application.
  • Filipino community journalists who are either freelancers or employed by a media organization (print, television, or online) at the time of application.
• The #FactsMatter Fellowship is open to:
  • Southeast Asian journalists working in ASEAN newsrooms (in print, television, or online), with an excellent command of the English language. The newsroom should nominate a reporter and an editor who should be working together on a final long-form project.

For more information, visit JNBF.