New Diplomacy's Independent Journalism Fellowship for Eastern Partnership Countries is an initiative to raise standards of journalism covering the post-Soviet space, in particular the Eastern Partnership countries. This will be achieved by a programme of mentoring journalists from Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan or Belarus, including placements of four journalism fellows in EU member states (e.g. the Baltic states and Visegrad Four countries) to work with leading broadcast or print media and engage also with independent non-profit organisations working on the post-Soviet space (human rights organisations, independent media associations and think-tanks).
Through mentoring and co-operation, the journalists will also link up with each other to strengthen co-operation of newsrooms in different Eastern Partnership countries in terms of sharing content, and also in formulating and promoting high standards of news reporting, public service broadcasting standards, and regulation of propaganda in their home countries.
Project objectives
- to raise the standards of talented news reporters from Eastern Partnership countries through placements with leading broadcast and print media in EU counties, to strengthen mutual understanding of the challenges facing media in the Eastern Partnership countries, and to improve EU countries' media reporting of events in the Eastern Partnership countries and Russia
- to formulate and promote common standards and practices in the Eastern Partnership countries concerning public service broadcasting, concerning policies to curb propaganda, and concerning overall standards of independent news reporting
- to increase interlinkages between leading or emerging media outlets and individual journalists in Eastern Partnership countries with counterparts in other Eastern Partnership countries and in EU member countries (e.g. Baltics, Visegrad Four), and further adoption of shared standards and co-operation on news gathering and content sharing.
The fellowships will take place from August 2016-February 2017 (with placements for up to five weeks in an EU country during the period September-December 2016).
The fellowships will comprise:
- mentoring of the fellows so that prior to their fellowship visit they conduct research and interviews in their own countries that can then be used for reports to be printed/broadcast during their placement in the respective EU countries.
- linking of all the fellows whereby they would work together on a common series of articles/stories on common themes around democratisation and media reforms - based on the subject focus and complementary experience of the respective journalists.
- participation in a multi-country effort to strengthen standards on public service broadcasting, on control and sanctions against propaganda, and on common quality standards for independent news reporting
- a five-week stay at a host media outlet in the EU, including:
- visits to media regulatory authorities and independent media watchdogs/media institutes to research existing practice and standards in independent journalism and media regulation
- visits to NGOs, media professional associations, and human rights organizations/independent think-tanks working on democracy, media and human rights in Eastern Partner countries
- work/cooperation on news stories for the host media institution, resulting in printed articles and/or broadcast news stories
- work/cooperation on news stories for the fellow's own media outlet in her/his respective home country
- participation in roundtable event on independent media and the parallel challenges of journalism quality standards and Russian propaganda (to be organised by the mentor and/or host media organization)
- research by each fellow into selected aspects of journalism standards and regulations (agreed with the mentors in close consultation with New Diplomacy)
Mentoring
Each fellow will work with a mentor (a media expert based in the host country, either directly working for the hosting media organisation, or an expert able to liaise with the host organisation) for a four-month period of project co-operation and mentoring. Within this four-month period, the fellow will spend up to five weeks in the office of the hosting media organisation.
Fellows' outputs
Each fellow should produce/cooperate on:
- news stories for the host media institution, resulting in printed articles and/or broadcast news stories
- news stories from the host country for the fellow's own media outlet in her/his respective home country
- research by fellow into selected aspects of journalism standards and regulations (agreed with the mentors in close consultation with New Diplomacy)
The fellow should participate in:
- a multi-country effort to formulate standards on public service broadcasting, on control and sanctions against propaganda, and on common quality standards for independent news reporting
- a roundtable event on independent media and the parallel challenges of journalism quality standards and Russian propaganda (to be organised by the mentor and/or host media organisation)
Fellowship budget
For each fellow, New Diplomacy will cover international travel to the host country and back, and in addition up to a maximum of US$ 3,000 in expenses, covering local travel, visa costs where necessary, and subsistence and accommodation for the five weeks spent at the host organisation.
Each mentor (or host organisation if the mentor is provided by the host organisation) will receive US$ 1,800 in mentoring fees. Each host organisation will receive US$ 500 in overhead costs for hosting the fellow. The host organisation or mentor will also receive US$ 300 for the venue/equipment costs of organising the roundtable event.
How to apply
Applications must include all of the following materials (the letter of application and CV (1 below) must be in English, although other documentation can be in English, in Russian or in the language of communication in the planned host country.
1. Letter of application (1-2 pages) and CV - these should summarise the fellows' experience to date, in particular in the proposed area of reporting/research (set out in item 4 below) - in ENGLISH
2. Letter of support by supervisor at applicant’s own institution (or of editor/publisher in the case of freelance journalist).
3. Names and contact details of mentor and host media institution in the EU for the five-week fellowship. The application should either provide a support letter from a host institution or provide contact details of a potential mentor within the host organisation/host country.
Priority will be given to those applicants who have already identified and/or can confirm the interest in the project of an EU media organisation (New Diplomacy is ready to help in contacting identified EU media organisations on behalf of the applicant if the applicant puts forward a strong proposal and is still unable to establish working relations with a host organisation).
4. Proposal (maximum of four A4 pages), describing the choice of subjects of news stories/reports that would be prepared during the fellowship for (a) the host media organisation, and (b) media in the fellow's own country, including a well-defined concept of the approach to news-gathering and research, and topic justification. The proposal should also include an assessment of entry-points for reforming standards for independent media and for introduction/regulation of public service media in the fellow's respective home country.
Individuals that meet the above criteria are invited to submit proposals for this tender in line with the criteria set out above to: Jeff Lovitt, Chair, New Diplomacy, at: fellows@newdiplomacy.net
Deadline for applications (to be sent to: fellows@newdiplomacy.net):
Midnight, Central European Time (CET), 20 June 2016
Selection Procedure and eligibility
Selection will be based on the submission of a sound proposal reflecting the criteria set out in the call for proposals, and of a letter of recommendation from the hosting organisation.
To be eligible, fellowship applicants should be journalists from Eastern Partnership countries, or journalists working for independent or public service media outlets in the Eastern Partnership countries (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine). Freelance journalists are also welcome to apply.
Fellows will be selected by the Fellowship Programme Committee composed of three voting members, including two of the co-founders of New Diplomacy (see below), and in a non-voting capacity the Chair of New Diplomacy.
This opportunity has expired. It was originally published here:
http://www.newdiplomacy.net/p/call-for-fellows-supporting-independent.html