WASHINGTON, DC; July 24, 2024 – The Fund for Investigative Journalism today announced that it is making 43 new grants for investigative stories in the U.S. The Fund will provide reporters and news organizations with grants and other critical support for these 43 new projects, which are across all types of media: print, broadcast and online news, as well as books, documentary films and podcasts.
“With these newest grants, we’ve supported 95 investigative projects in the first half of 2024, a record in our 55-year history,” said Eric Ferrero, Executive Director of the Fund for Investigative Journalism. “Nearly 40 percent of the investigations we’ve supported so far this year are in the South and Midwest, where the need is great.”
The new grants include 19 regular grants, of up to $10,000, and 24 smaller seed grants for early reporting and research that can lead to full investigations. In addition to funding for the expenses of specific investigations, reporters and news organizations that receive grants can be matched with editorial mentors and can receive free legal help through the Fund’s partnership with the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press.
Below are individuals and organizations awarded grants in this funding cycle. The Fund does not disclose the nature of its grantees’ stories before they are published.
Regular grants, up to $10,000, to cover the expenses of specific investigations:
- Nick Aspinwall, freelance journalist who covers human rights, migration and the environment
- Gregory Barber, freelance journalist based in San Francisco who reports on climate change and biodiversity
- Ashli Blow, investigative journalist focused on environmental and science policy and justice
- Business Insider, for a project by Nicole Einbinder and Hannah Beckler
- CalMatters, a nonprofit news organization in California
- Caron Creighton, documentary filmmaker based in Oakland, California
- Nicholas Chrastil, criminal justice reporter at The Lens in New Orleans and freelance investigative reporter
- Julia Coccaro, freelance investigative journalist based in Alabama
- Investigative Studios, for a project led by Lowell Bergman
- The Invisible Institute, a nonprofit journalism organization in Chicago
- Sharon Liese, documentary filmmaker
- Robert Lopez, independent investigative journalist in Los Angeles
- Judith Matloff, independent journalist based in New York
- Cayla Mihalovich, journalist with UC Berkeley’s Investigative Reporting Program
- Tom Perkins, freelance journalist in Detroit
- Daniel Propp, freelance journalist based in Washington, DC
- Dan Protess, Chicago-based documentary filmmaker
- Emily Thomas, documentary filmmaker and journalist
- Leah Worthington, independent journalist focusing on science and social issues
Seed grants to freelance journalists, up to $2,500, for the expenses of preliminary investigative reporting:
- Yardain Amron
- Chris Bibona
- Anna-Catherine Brigida
- Eliza Fawcett
- Ramona Giwargis
- Sebastián Hidalgo
- Jacob Indursky
- Rebecca John
- Janelle O’Dea
- Shima Oliaee
- Henry Pan
- Tekendrajeet Parmar
- Julie Poole
- Clavel Rangel
- Alisa Roth
- Patrick Spauster
- Meghan Sullivan
- Nick Turse
- Sandy West
Seed grants to news organizations, up to $2,500, for the expenses of preliminary investigative reporting:
- Ambiental Media
- Asian American Media, Inc.
- Boston Institute for Nonprofit Journalism
- Hola Cultura
- InvestigateWest
The Fund’s Board of Directors, all accomplished journalists, reviews grant proposals and votes on which to approve. A group of the Fund’s 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, Anu Narayanswamy, Sarah Cohen, James Grimaldi and Deborah Nelson.
The next deadline to apply for regular grants is September 9, and the next deadline to apply for seed grants is September 20. For stories produced with the Fund’s support – and the impact of those stories – visit www.fij.org.
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