Media Fellowships
The CRRF Media Fellowships Program funds year-long projects in Canadian newsrooms, production companies, and media organizations and/or institutions.
This collaboration with Journalists for Human Rights provides an opportunity for individuals from racialized communities and/or religious minorities to gain access to valuable learning and networking opportunities in Canada’s media landscape.
Program objectives:
- Create opportunities for greater representation of racialized communities and religious minorities within media organizations.
- Support the hiring of Fellows who are journalists, reporters, columnists and storytellers who belong to racialized communities and religious minorities to advance equity in newsrooms.
- Increase the Canadian public’s understanding of racism by focusing on reporting issues related to race, racism, and equity.
- Create media projects that increase awareness by:
- Focusing on creators and storytelling from First Nations, Métis, and Inuit communities, Black, Asian, and other racialized communities and religious minority groups.
- Creating resources for the public that document or illustrate systemic racial discrimination in Canada.
Program streams
- Media Fellows projects allow organizations to hire Fellows who are journalists, reporters, columnists and storytellers from First Nations, Métis and Inuit communities, Black and other racialized communities and religious minority groups.
- Media Innovation projects support eligible organizations working towards increasing understanding of systemic racism, anti-racist work, and efforts towards reform through the media.
Our 2024 Media Fellowship awardees include:
Parvasi Weekly Inc.
- Stream: Fellowships
- Project description:
The project aims to support emerging journalists and provide aspiring media professionals with a platform to cover various news topics, develop reporting skills, and produce high-quality content, including current affairs coverage, investigations, podcasts, blogs, and long-form features. It focuses on promoting diversity in media by making sure the stories told reflect the richness and complexity of Canada’s multicultural landscape and supporting Parvasi’s crucial role in encouraging a sense of community among South Asian Canadians and offering a platform that reflects the diversity, traditions, and perspectives of the South Asian community. - Funded amount: $46,000
- Location: Ontario
Caribbean Vibrations TV
- Stream: Innovation
- Project description:
This 4-part docu-series will challenge existing narratives about Black people in Canada while highlighting the resilience and triumph of Black entrepreneurs despite facing racism. Caribbean Vibrations TV will provide greater representation for Black individuals within our production company by hiring Black journalists and storytellers through this project. It will shed light on the intersection of racism and entrepreneurship through the stories of four prominent Black business figures, including Elijah McCoy, Thornton & Lucie Blackburn, Robert Sutherland, and Beverly Mascoll. - Funded amount: $87,000
- Location: Ontario
Briarpatch Magazine
- Stream: Fellowships
- Project description:
The project intends to offer editorial experiences and mentorship for underrepresented individuals while ensuring that vital stories from the Prairie provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba are covered. It will provide an opportunity for journalists who are Black, Indigenous, and/or otherwise racialized, or members of a religious minority to gain experience in a variety of activities, including editing articles, producing original reporting, and participating in team meetings and skill-building sessions. - Funded amount: $68,000
- Location: Saskatchewan
The Independent
- Stream: Fellowships
- Project description:
The project aims to provide opportunities for fellows, regardless of their career stage, to work as general assignment reporters for The Independent, either in St. John’s or other locations within the province. The program will benefit BIPOC journalists or those from religious minority groups, offering them valuable experience and a platform to contribute to Newfoundland and Labrador media. The fellow will engage in various activities, including attending weekly virtual editorial meetings and pitching ideas for news stories, opinion pieces, investigative reports, and podcast episodes. - Funded amount: $80,000
- Location: Newfoundland
The Resolve
- Stream: Innovation
- Project description:
The project aims to increase awareness of racism among Canadian communities by empowering Black, Indigenous, and racialized youth, as well as their parents and educators, to share their stories and experiences and to provide them with basic tools to do so. Phase 1 will focus on reporting on the state of racism in K-12 public education, followed by story-telling circles and workshops. Phase 2 will include new rounds of story-telling circles, workshops, and live journalism events. Phase 3 will gather learnings from the first two phases and conclude with a series of follow-up stories centred on analysis and solutions-focused journalism. - Funded amount: $90,000
- Location: Ontario
Cabin Radio
- Stream: Fellowships
- Project description:
The project aims to amplify underrepresented northern voices by providing a platform for Indigenous and racialized communities to share their stories. The project will span 12 months, during which the fellow will receive training in audio broadcasting, video production, and written journalism and will work on three assignments designed to reach wide audiences. The project aims to increase representation in Cabin Radio’s studios and newsrooms, as well as in the content heard on air, seen on screens, and read in news reports. - Funded amount: $90,000
- Location: Northwest Territories
Coop de solidarité Pivot
- Stream: Fellowships
- Project description:
As part of their project “our Différends : sur le terrain des luttes antiracistes” Coop de solidarité Pivot is looking to provide media space as well as the necessary professional and editorial resources to a Fellow from Indigenous or other racialized communities, dedicated to covering the current issues related to these communities. The fellow’s mandate will produce regular journalistic information on various topics related to systemic racism and race relations in Quebec and Canada. - Funded amount: $69,170
- Location: Quebec
Nouvelles d’Ici
- Stream: Fellowships
- Project description:
The purpose of the project is to recruit two fellow journalists from racialized communities to join the Nouvelles d’Ici (NDI) team, to enhance local news coverage and promote understanding of the realities faced by racialized communities. The recruited fellows will cover local news events and assist citizen journalists in writing articles that accurately represent historically underrepresented communities. - Funded amount: $100,000
- Location: Quebec
The Walrus
- Stream: Fellowships
- Project description:
The Walrus fellowship project will give the selected journalist a solid opportunity for progression within their career as a reporter. The fellow will be trained in the art and science of fact-checking, which will contribute to the future of trusted journalism in Canada. The fellow will have fact-checked at least five stories and participated in three Fellows Connect Workshops at The Walrus. - Funded amount: $50,000
- Location: Ontario
Ricochet Media
- Stream: Fellowships
- Project description:
The Narrative Sovereignty Fellowship Program, initiated by Ricochet Media, IndigiNews, and Pivot, aims to diversify and enrich the Canadian media landscape by providing employment opportunities for individuals from marginalized communities, including First Nations, Métis, Inuit, Black, and other racialized communities, as well as religious minorities. The program’s activities include providing a Fellow with in-newsroom training on topics such as data handling, access to Information processes, and trauma-informed interviewing. - Funded amount: $75,000
- Location: British Columbia
