McGraw Fellowship for Business Journalism

McGraw Fellowship for Business Journalism: Grants up to $15K for Investigative Business Reporting

Do you – or a reporter you know – have a great idea for a high-impact story that "Follows the Money" but few resources to get it done? If so, check out the McGraw Fellowship for Business Journalism (www.mcgrawcenter.org) an initiative of the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY.

Applications are now open for the Winter 2021 McGraw Fellowships. The Fellowships, awarded twice a year, provide experienced journalists with the funds and editorial support needed to produce high-impact economic and business stories. All grant recipients work from their own offices; this is not a residency fellowship.

The upcoming deadline to apply for Winter 2021 Fellowships is February 12, 2021.

• Each Fellow receives a grant of up to $15,000
• Open to both freelance and staff journalists with at least five years of experience
• Applications in any type of media -- print, audio, video, online – are considered
• Applications accepted from both reporters and editors

What kind of stories do we support? Previous McGraw Fellows have explored a wide array of topics – and you don’t need to be a business reporter to apply. Many McGraw Fellows have been generalists, or follow health care, the environment or other beats. Others focus on economic justice or corporate accountability. Here are a few examples:

• Palm Oil labor abuses linked to world’s top banks, brands Associated Press
• Several years into BP Settlement spending, the bulk of Mississippi’s restoration work remains undone Mississippi Today
• Hurricane fallout creates financial ruin for Puerto Rico’s seniors with reverse mortgages USA Today and the Centro de Periodismo Investigativo
• Is Getting Pregnant “Medically Necessary” Right Now? MIT Technology Review
• When Big Tech Goes Green, Taxpayers Help Foot the Bill Bloomberg Businessweek
• Company insiders are selling stock during buybacks and making additional profits when stock prices jump. And it’s legal. Washington Post
• How the Norcross Political Machine Muscled in on Prime Real Estate in New Jersey’s Poorest City WNYC & Pro Publica
• New Workers of the World: Capturing the voices of workers facing unprecedented change Bloomberg Businessweek
• Two Nations, One Aquifer: A series about water at the border Albuquerque Journal

If you'd like to join them, you'll find more information at bit.ly/McGrawFellows. If you have questions or a project you’d like to discuss, contact us at mcgrawcenter@journalism.cuny.edu.

The Harold W. McGraw, Jr. Center for Business Journalism was established at the Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY in January 2014 with the goal of enhancing the quality and depth of business and economic news coverage. In addition to providing funding and editorial support for veteran journalists, the Center offers training and scholarships for young reporters entering the field.