Applications are open for the National Press Club Journalism Institute Public Health Reporting Fellowship 2025. The Common Health Coalition and the National Press Club Journalism Institute have launched this new fellowship opportunity for mid-career journalists. The Public Health Reporting Fellowship will award up to $7,500 each to five individuals to support reporting projects focused on the intersection of public health policy and health care delivery.

The Common Health Coalition, which brings together leading health care organizations in pursuit of a more unified health system, has invested $50,000 to start the fellowship program at the Institute. Applicants will be asked to propose a significant reporting project covering a critical community, regional, state, or national public health issue, to be published or distributed by July 2025.

Fellowship

  • Fellows will receive up to $7,500 in funding to support reporting expenses for a significant project to be published by fellows’ employers or a supporting news outlet. Newsroom and freelance journalists are welcome to apply. Projects would also be distributed across NPCJI networks and partner sites.
  • Fellows will have six months (February through July 2025) to complete and publish/distribute their respective projects. 
  • Fellows will attend a half-day virtual orientation with training content focused on public health issues, data, resources and research to support their projects.
  • Fellows will receive support from leading public health experts and journalists serving as mentors throughout the fellowship.
  • Fellows will participate in monthly virtual checkpoints to continue building their knowledge of resources and data.
  • Fellows will also participate in a publicly available knowledge-share webinar to assist other health reporters in pursuing this work by describing what they learned and the “how” behind their projects.

Eligibility

  • Be a U.S.-based journalist with a minimum of 10 years of experience in a professional setting.
  • Commit to a large-scale reporting project in the public health space. Print, digital, audio, visual, and broadcast projects will be considered.
  • Provide a 2-3 page proposal for your public health reporting project. They want to know what research you have done on this topic and why you are equipped to complete this project. Who do you plan to interview and how will you find additional sources? Please also include where your final project will be published or distributed. They require a budget that breaks down the cost for your travel and reporting expenses.   
  • For newsroom staff: You must have a letter of support from your supervisor or editor that allows you time to participate in the fellowship and confirms they’ll publish your work. 
  • For freelancers: You must have confirmation of support from the news outlet(s) where you intend to publish your work.

Application

Click here to apply