Applications due August 1, 2010.
Each year the Alfred Friendly Press Fellowships (AFPF) brings approximately ten mid-career reporters and editors–usually between the ages of 25 and 35–to America for a six-month, in-depth, practical introduction to the professional and ethical standards of the U.S. print media. Among those who have succeeded are Fellows who have become top editors and newsroom managers, founders of news outlets and public relation firms, section heads, bureau chiefs, chief or foreign correspondents, and university professors. Many have received Fulbright, Neiman, Reuters and Yale World Fellowships as well as Chevening Scholarships, and others have received awards, prizes, overseas assignments and/or found jobs outside of their home country.
Fellows arrive in Washington, DC, for a two-week group orientation before they start as staff reporters, one per host, in newsrooms across the United States. Usually assigned to the city desk to cover local news and features, Fellows may rotate among other sections–arts, business, editorial features, online, etc. With the support and commitment of our host publications, Fellows can enter fully into daily newsroom activities. Guided by talented host reporters and editors, they are able to learn firsthand the practical realities and influential role of journalism in this country.
Of the many training programs available to journalists, the Alfred Friendly Press Fellowships is the only one to offer a non-academic, long-term, hands-on experience in a single newsroom. The late Alfred Friendly, a Pulitzer Prize winning reporter and former managing editor of The Washington Post, believed that working side by side with reporters and editors is the best way to absorb the practical realities of journalism in this country and the instrumental role it plays in our society.
Alfred Friendly set the following three primary objectives for the fellowship program:
– Enable Fellows to gain a practical understanding of the function and significance of the free press in American society.
– Provide Fellows with experience in reporting, writing, and editing that will enhance future professional performance.
– Foster continuing ties between free press institutions and journalists in the United States and their counterparts in other countries.
Criteria of Eligibility
– An excellent command of both written and spoken English as all activities are conducted in English;
– At least three years of professional experience as a journalist in the print media;
– Current employment as a journalist with an independent print media organization in the country of citizenship;
– Early to mid-career status;
– A demonstrated personal commitment to a career in journalism in the home country.
For more information, and to apply, please visit:
www.pressfellowship s.org/overview. html