Thanks to generous support from the Ford Foundation, Military Veterans in Journalism has launched a disability inclusion initiative to create conversations and reporting within American newsrooms about military veteran issues, with a focus on disabled veterans.
As part of this effort, MVJ is launching our MVJ Reporting Grants program to fund reporting by military veterans in journalism. This program will help aspiring journalists grow professionally in their reporting careers and publish quality stories about issues related to disabilities in the military veteran community.
Grant amounts will vary depending on the story, and will start at $500. Over the next two years MVJ plans to fund up to $50,000 for reporting grants.
MVJ is not a publishing organization – nor do we plan to be. But we care about developing the careers of military vets in journalism. So, if you are selected, we can help you shape your story and assist in getting the story placed. We’d like you to have an idea of where you want to publish your story.
A few notes on what our grant selection committee is looking for:
- Disability focused. We are seeking pitches for stories related to disability in the military veteran community. Maybe it’s a story about a new healthcare issue, or a personal narrative about a visit to a crummy VA facility, or an investigative piece on an emerging medical issue that affects vets.
- Be ambitious. We are looking to support deeply reported stories that will make a splash and potentially be impactful.
- Small (shorter) stories are OK too. For serious investigative reporting, we’ll be looking for proof that you know what you’re doing. If you’re new to journalism, a shorter feature might be more realistic.
- Be original. We aren’t interested in the same stories that we’ve all read a million times before. As veterans, we can provide depth and nuance on these stories. Use that experience to come up with unique angles.
- No PR. Non-profits do great work and they might be part of the story. But we want to see pitches that are more than a happy story about a non-profit providing a house to a homeless vet.
- Look for trends. We’re keen to fund stories that only veterans can tell. As vets, you are seeing what’s affecting vets, especially when it comes to healthcare and the VA. Use your networks to find a good story.
PUBLISH quality stories about disability issues in the military veteran community and get paid for it!
Note: Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis and will be reviewed every two weeks. Applicant has to be an MVJ member in order to be eligible to receive the grant.
