WASHINGTON, DC; Nov. 12, 2025 – The Fund for Investigative Journalism announced today that it is providing 53 new grants to journalists for groundbreaking investigations. The grants cover the expenses of specific investigative stories, and recipients can also receive free editorial and legal support.
The new group of grants is the largest in the Fund’s 56-year history – a reflection of the growing need for support for investigative journalism nationwide.
“The Fund for Investigative Journalism was founded in 1969 on the belief that one reporter, given proper support to dig deep and keep digging, can change the world. This work has never been more necessary, and we’re proud to support these 53 reporters, team and news outlets,” said Eric Ferrero, Executive Director of the Fund for Investigative Journalism.
The Fund provides grants for investigative stories in the U.S. on any topic, in all forms of media, including print, broadcast and online news stories, books, podcasts and documentary films. Grantees can also request pro bono legal help with records requests and pre-publication review through the Fund’s partnership with the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, as well as editorial support through the Fund’s newly expanded program matching grantees with veteran investigative journalists.
Following are the new grants announced today. The Fund does not disclose the subject of its grantees’ reporting until their stories are published.
Journalists receiving grants of up to $10,000 for the expenses of specific investigations, including reporting time, travel, records fees, research and more:
- Arizona Luminaria, nonprofit news organization based in Tucson
- James Asher, investigative journalist
- Champe Barton, reporter at The Trace
- Taylor Barton and Erika Zaro, journalists for UC Berkeley’s Investigative Reporting Program
- Jeffrey Billman, law and politics reporter for The Assembly
- Capital and Main, nonprofit newsroom based in Los Angeles
- Sean Patrick Cooper, author and journalist
- The Frontier, a nonprofit news organization in Oklahoma
- Carola Fuentes, investigative journalist based in Santiago, Chile
- Matthew Kish, business reporter for The Oregonian/OregonLive in Portland, Oregon.
- Josephine Lee, investigative reporter with the Texas Observer
- Habiba Nosheen, investigative reporter and filmmaker
- Max Marin, investigative reporter, The Philadelphia Inquirer and Ryan Briggs, Researcher on the investigations team, The Philadelphia Inquirer
- Juliette Rihl, investigative journalist for PennLive/The Patriot-News in Pennsylvania
- Kayla Ruble and Abby Ellis, journalists covering the water crisis in Flint, Michigan
- Katia Savchuk, independent journalist based in the San Francisco Bay Area
- Daniel Turi, journalist at Al Jazeera English
- Wisconsin Watch, nonprofit investigative news outlet covering the state of Wisconsin
- Emily Barske Wood, journalist and author based in Iowa
Journalists receiving seed grants of up to $2,500 for preliminary reporting that can help shape investigations:
- Marta Abbà, investigative journalist and environmental physicist, and Mélanie Wenger, visual investigative journalist focused on endangered species trafficking and global conservation
- Lisa Armstrong, freelance journalist based in Oakland and professor at the UC Berkeley Journalism School
- Audrey Mei Yi Brown, reporter at the San Francisco Public Press and Report for America corps member
- Jennifer Chowdhury, independent journalist based in New York
- S.C. Cornell, writer based in Mexico City
- R.G. Dunlop, freelance investigative journalist based in Louisville, Kentucky
- Paul Fischer, freelance journalist and author based in Canada
- Natasha Gilbert, freelance investigative journalist based in Washington, DC
- Tanay Gokhale, reporter based in the San Francisco Bay Area
- Julia Haney, audio journalist based in the Bay Area, and Elizabeth Santos, freelance investigative and data journalist
- Jordan P. Hickey, independent journalist based in Northwest Arkansas
- Danielle Hillie, writer and filmmaker based in North Carolina
- Pamela Kirkland, Morning Edition host and investigative reporter at Georgia Public Broadcasting
- Olga Loginova, freelance environmental journalist and documentary filmmaker
- Amy Martyn, freelance journalist based in California
- Natalie McLendon, independent investigative journalist based in Southwest Louisiana
- The Rev. D. Kevin McNeir, contributing writer for The AFRO based in Washington, DC
- Lourdes Medrano, freelance journalist based in Southern Arizona
- Lauren Ober, journalist and podcast creator based in Washington, DC
- Jess DiPierro Obert, freelance investigative journalist and documentarian.
- Jae Kyung Park, freelance anchorwoman based in Las Vegas, NV
- Wesley Parnell, freelance investigative reporter based in New York and regular contributor to the New York Times.
- Christine Peterson, freelance journalist working with High Country News
- Cecilia Reyes, investigative reporter based in the Midwest
- Gabrielle Russon, freelance journalist in Orlando
- Lakshmi Sarah, journalist and educator based in the San Francisco Bay Area
- Kathleen Sharp, award-winning journalist in Santa Barbara
- Leah Sottile, correspondent with High Country News
- Eric Tegethoff, freelance journalist based in Florida
- Mary Tuma, freelance journalist based in Texas
- Wesley Vaughan freelance investigative journalist in Portland, Oregon
- Tatiana Walk-Morris, Chicago-based independent journalist
Journalists receiving follow-up grants of up to $2,500 for continued coverage after grant-funded investigations have run:
- Luke Mullins, freelance writer from Washington, DC
- Sandy West, freelance journalist in Texas
The Fund’s Board of Directors, all accomplished journalists, reviews grant proposals and votes on which to approve. A group of Board and Advisory Board members reviewed seed grant proposals and made recommendations to the full Board, which voted on them. That review group included Bill Marimow, Gerald Jordan, Peter Eisler and Gary Fields.
The next deadlines to apply for grants are in January. For stories produced with the Fund’s support – and the impact of those stories – visit www.fij.org.
##