Military Veterans in Journalism is a professional association that builds community for vets, supports their career growth, and advocates for diversifying newsrooms through hiring and promoting more vets.
Our Programs
Mentorship
We connect military vets with seasoned journalists who guide the former service members on their desired career path. Mentors are critical to opening doors and leading to new opportunities in the media field.
Internships and Fellowships
We partner with media outlets like NPR to create opportunities for military veterans just getting started in the media field. Building a portfolio and a network of allies gets our veteran members set up for success as they navigate their careers in the news industry.
Career Development Events
We organize unique opportunities for veterans from across the country to learn skills from professional journalists, build relationships with human resources professionals who hire journalists, and visit media outlets.
Advocating for Vets
We educate newsrooms, journalism schools, and non-profit organizations focusing on journalism about the need to increase diversity through higher veteran representation. Veterans bring diverse vantage points and experiences, nuanced understanding of military and veteran life, and valuable skills to newsrooms.
Our Mission
Military Veterans in Journalism’s mission is simple: get more military veterans working in America’s newsrooms.
The United States has been at war for more than 18 years at a cost of more than 7,000 lives, about 50,000 wounded and billions in tax dollars. Yet military veterans are vastly underrepresented in our nation’s newsrooms.
While about 7 percent of Americans have served in the armed forces, only 2 percent of media workers are military veterans, according to U.S. Census data.
Veterans bring perspective, nuanced understanding and on-the-ground experience about the military and veteran affairs that ultimately benefits newsrooms and news consumers.
Get Involved
Get Involved
Become a Member
Military veterans working in journalism or aspiring to work in journalism are eligible to become members. Members gain access to our mentorship program, internship and fellowships, career development events, and social media networking groups.
Mentor A Veteran
If you have worked in the journalism field in any capacity for at least three years, you are eligible to become a mentor for military veterans in journalism. (You do not have to be a military veteran.) We will then send you requests to mentor vets depending on your availability. We ask that each mentorship include three in-person or long-distance meetings lasting about an hour each.
Volunteer
We’re an all-volunteer team and there’s lots of behind-the-scenes work. We’re looking for folks who can constantly give 4-6 hours per month. If you want to support us with your time, let us know.
Donate
We can’t do this valuable work without the support of our generous donors. Military Veterans in Journalism, Inc., is a 501(c)3 tax-exempt organization and your donation is tax-deductible within the guidelines of U.S. law. To claim a donation as a deduction on your U.S. taxes, please keep your email donation receipt as your official record.