U.S. Mission to India seeking Applications for “Investigative Journalism to Counter Disinformation: A Regional Language Media Initiative”

Deadline: 22 May 2020

The U.S. Consulate General, Public Affairs Section in Chennai is soliciting proposals for its “Investigative Journalism to Counter Disinformation: A Regional Language Media Initiative.

This funding opportunity seeks to develop the skills of regional language journalists in investigative journalism in order to mitigate the spread of disinformation and misinformation. The project will reinforce previously imparted skills helping media professionals verify photos, videos, and data and will encourageregional language journalists to explore investigative reporting as a counter to disinformation. The project will also introduce the recently published Countering Disinformation Handbook to a wider audience.

The aim of this program is to enhance the ability of regional, non-English language journalists to counter disinformation and misinformation through investigative reporting and fact checking.

Objectives

Train (45) regional, non-English language journalists across South India in investigative journalism and countering disinformation through an initiative with subject matter expertise offered by a visiting U.S. speaker and other U.S. counterparts participating virtually by digital video conferences.
Each trained non-English language journalist participant produces at least (1) investigative article focusing on disinformation or misinformation, in one of the South Indian languages of Tamil, Malayalam, and Kannada, within (3) months of completing the training.
Using skills acquired during the investigative journalism training, each participant submits at least (1) example of a fact-checked item (text, video, audio, or photograph) for inclusion as a model within curriculum and for his/her media outlet to help raise awareness about disinformation and misinformation.
Contribute to curriculum on investigative journalism that can be shared with South Indian journalism departments.

Project Deliverables

Successful completion of (3) workshops that train a total of (45) regional, non-English language journalists across South India to counter disinformation with special focus on investigative reporting. The initiative will include subject matter expertise offered by a visiting U.S. expert and other U.S. counterparts participating virtually by digital video conferences.
- Workshop locations: Chennai, Bengaluru, and Thiruvananthapuram.
- Workshop participation: Workshops should train a minimum of 15 regional, non-English language journalists.
  - Selection of participants will be done in coordination with the U.S. Consulate General Chennai with a preference for journalists with at least five years of experience.
  - Participants should represent print, broadcast, and digital news outlets.
  - Achieve 50 percent gender balance among participants.
  - Achieve geographical diversity including journalists from Tier 2 and 3 cities.
- Workshop duration: Two days.
One U.S. expert chosen in consultation with the U.S. Consulate will attend all three workshops. She/he will be joined by Indian specialists with expertise and experience in investigative journalism and countering disinformation and misinformation.
Workshop participants will receive copies of the already published Countering Disinformation Handbook in their respective language to share with their media outlets.