Deadline: November 29, 2021
Applications are open for the ACME Investigative Journalism Short Courses 2021. The African Centre for Media Excellence (ACME) with support from the Delegation of the European Union to Uganda, invites applications from Journalists based in Northern and Eastern Uganda for a fellowship program on investigative journalism.
The program involves a five-day training workshop — designed to equip journalists with skills to discover, uncover and report stories nobody else has — and subsequently a mentorship program.
Participants will learn how to use investigative tools to uncover information that is concealed either deliberately by someone in a position of power, or accidentally behind a chaotic mass of facts and circumstances, and analyse and expose all relevant facts to the public. They will learn how to ask meaningful questions and how to source material. Participants will also be coached in best journalism practices and the most effective way to structure and present their stories. The trained journalists will also join some media managers and owners twice a year for two days of networking — sharing experience and peer-to-peer learning.
Benefits
- The fellowship offers journalists an opportunity to take time out from the newsroom to enhance their investigative journalism skills.
- Participants will examine what investigative journalism is, how to conceive, research and write investigative stories – recognizing when something should be a long-term project; basic criteria for launching into the story; testing and retesting the hypothesis throughout the investigation; and shifting direction when the reporting dictates that the story direction has changed.
- They will also be asked to think about possible investigative projects they want to work on upon their return to the workplace, using the lessons learned during the course.
Eligibility
- Open to all print, television, radio, and online journalists from the Northern and Eastern parts of Uganda, who have more than two years of experience working as reporters.
- Applicants are required to select one location that is preferable, but in any case, they expect journalists from Northern Uganda to apply to the Lira training workshop, and those from Eastern Uganda to select Lira.
- Female journalists are strongly encouraged to apply.
Application
- All applicants are required to submit a letter of support from their immediate editorial supervisors. The lack of this letter of editorial support immediately disqualifies an applicant.
- All applicants are required to submit at least three samples of published or broadcast stories.
For more information, visit ACME.
