The Local is now accepting applications for our 2022 Fellowship program!
The Local is an award-winning online publication devoted to exploring urban health and social issues in Toronto, with an emphasis on magazine-style journalism and reporting from local communities. We publish in-depth features, essays, data journalism and commentary, alongside multimedia and other experimental forms of storytelling.
The aim of The Local Journalism Fellowship is to provide training and mentorship to aspiring and emerging journalists from communities underrepresented in Canadian media, and to tell stories on subjects and from perspectives too often ignored. The Fellowship is part of The Local’s commitment to tackling issues of race, representation, and equity in the media industry. Fellows will work with our team through the editorial cycle of our fall issue—a series of stories about the biggest issues facing Toronto in advance of the municipal election—and produce one polished piece of journalism.
The Local Journalism Fellowship is a paid 12-week opportunity for emerging and aspiring journalists to:
- Gain first-hand experience working alongside editors and collaborators through one editorial cycle that culminates in the publication of The Local’s Fall 2022 issue
- Create a piece of polished journalism for publication in the Fall 2022 issue; projects can be reported features, first-person essays, data journalism, photo essays, or other forms
- Learn the craft of magazine-style, community journalism and make industry connections through a seminar series featuring guest speakers from leading publications
Candidates with journalism experience and education are welcome, but we are also eager to hear from applicants who are passionate about writing, editing, or producing, but do not have formal journalism training.
The Fellowship begins June 8, 2022 and ends August 31. It is part-time, remote and flexible. With the exception of weekly editorial team meetings and seminars, fellows are free to organize their own schedules as long as deadlines are met.
Fellows will be paid $3,000. Up to four fellows will be chosen.
HOW TO APPLY
Applicants should send a cover letter introducing themselves and expressing how the Fellowship will benefit them. Applications should also include a CV, writing sample, and a brief pitch for a story for our elections issue. In advance of the municipal election, what issues are most important? How does Toronto need to change? Pitches can look at the city as a whole or dive into a specific neighbourhood and should be no more than 500 words. Please submit your application using the form below:
Submission Deadline: March 2, 2022 at 11:59PM EST