The Fund for Investigative Journalism provides support directly to independent reporters, teams and newsrooms to produce groundbreaking investigations.
Our main programs are:
- Grants of up to $10,000 for reporting expenses for specific investigations
We provide grants for U.S.-focused investigations on any topic and in all forms of media (including news stories across formats, books, podcasts and documentary films). We issue open calls for grants three times per year. Reporting expenses typically include travel, research costs, reporting time, records fees, etc. Applicants must have initial findings from preliminary reporting and a letter of commitment from a U.S. media outlet agreeing to run the story. After the initial investigation runs, grantees can apply for $2,500 follow-up grants to pursue additional leads.
- Grants of up to $2,500 for early reporting to shape investigations
We provide seed grants for preliminary reporting that can help determine whether there’s a story and shape an investigation. Seed grants help reporters obtain initial findings that they can use to secure a commitment to publish and use in proposals for a full grant from the Fund or other sources. We encourage journalists who receive seed grants to come back and apply for full grants when the initial reporting shows that there’s a bigger story to pursue.
- Editorial and legal support to journalists who receive grants
When journalists receive grants, they can also request free legal assistance and editorial support for their grant-funded investigation. Through our partnership with the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, some grantees receive free help with records requests and pre-publication review. Our mentoring program matches grantees with seasoned investigative journalists.
- Alicia Patterson Fellowships of $20,000 and $40,000 for in-depth reporting
We provide Alicia Patterson Fellowships for six months (paying $20,000) or 12 months (paying $40,000) for in-depth written reporting. The fellowship application opens in May and proposals are due Oct. 1 every year, with decisions in early January. We began providing these fellowships after the Alicia Patterson Foundation merged into the Fund for Investigative Journalism. Learn more about Alicia Patterson here.
- Educational programming for the broader field
We provide monthly webinars to share resources and tips with the broader field of investigative reporters and journalism students. We often partner with other organizations on webinars. Some feature grantees sharing how they did investigations on particular topics, and others feature experts in the field. Webinars are announced via our email distribution list.