Media Career Development specialist, Lekan Otufodunrin reviews the recent award of relief funds for media organisations by Google and explains the selection process and other ways of getting support.
If your media organization applied for the Google $5,000 Journalism Emergency Relief Fund for news organisations to support them to increase their capacity to cover the COVID-19 pandemic and got the sorry, you didn’t make it a letter, there are a number of possible reasons.
At least 15 online publications in Nigeria are known to have been offered the grant.
Even as you ‘mourn your loss’, there are things you should consider doing to make your organization get the fund if there is another round of support (this is the second) or get other grants.
The first reason some organization did not get the support is obvious. So many organizations applied and only a few could be accommodated. According to the Google News Initiative Team it “received over 12,000 applications from more than 100 eligible countries for consideration.
Take it that it may not be that your organization is not good enough, but you were not lucky enough to be among those chosen for any additional reasons when applicants have equal chances.
The second reason which you should admit is that you didn’t meet the requirements for the grant though you filled the form and claim to. With the number of applications received, meeting all the requirements and not just some will be necessary. It’s okay if you have good reasons not been able to meet all the requirements but for now, terms and conditions apply.
Here is an indication of how the selection process works “Initial selection of projects will be done by teams of Google staff who have knowledge and experience in digital publishing and journalism in the regions detailed above. They will review all applications for eligibility and determine the level of funding to be offered”
READ ALSO: HOW TO GET COVID-19 FUND FOR JOURNALISTS, MEDIA
Let’s go through the requirements together and see what the problem could be for most applicants.
* Small and medium-sized news organizations producing original news for local communities during this time of crisis.
The emphasis here is organizations producing ORIGINAL not copy and paste, not pirated or copyrighted content DURING THIS TIME. Google checked your site to be sure of your claim.
* Eligible applicants must have a digital presence and have been in operation for at least 12 months.
Twelve months is the least you must have operated for, but those who may have more years of CONSISTENT operations stand a better chance.
Some applicants tried to improve on their operations due to the call for applications, but Google cannot be easily fooled. Off and On websites must have been disqualified.
*The Fund is targeted at newsrooms employing between 2 – 100 full-time employees (FTE) journalists.
This should not be a difficult requirement to meet but is the number of staff you claimed reflected in the bylines on your reports. Do you have the names and designations of your staff on your website to leave no one in doubt?
*Local publishers employing more than 100 FTE journalists can still apply and will be considered subject to Google’s discretion, based mainly on differing needs in different countries/regions.
Discretion is relative and could mean anything based on who is deciding who to choose. Differing needs in different countries/region? Who knows what they are?
*Organizations must be incorporated or registered in one of the eligible geographies. Unincorporated organizations must be based in one of the eligible geographies.
This is easy to verify. All you need is to upload your registration certificate. Note distinction between Incorporated and Unincorporated in eligible geographies.
*Eligible applicants need to have a focus on core news provision, i.e. not a lifestyle, sports, business.
Some organizations I know that didn’t get the grant must have been disqualified based on this requirement. What the funders wanted were platforms focusing on CORE news, not specialized, or niche publishing. If you only tried your luck by applying, it was easy to know you don’t qualify for consideration.
*Inform us of how the funds will be spent.
This requires proper articulation. There is a way you explain how you will spend the money that the selecting team will know you know what it takes to utilize the fund for what it is meant for and you are likely to.
Some detailed explanation was needed on how much will be spent on what.
*Eligible applicants can include for-profit or non-profit traditional news organizations, digital natives, radio and/or TV broadcasters.
Easy, no problem with any organization falling into any of the categories, but as I noted at the beginning, this explains why there were many applications. Virtually every media platform was qualified, but they need to be producing CORE news and there COVID-19 reports already on the websites will be an added advantage.
*Government-owned entities and individuals are not eligible to apply.
I’m sure government organizations would have bothered applying, but for individuals who might have tried their luck, sorry you are not qualified.
In photo finish situation which must have been the case in this instance considering the calibre of organizations that would have applied, the list of the organisations selected can simply be described as that of ” survival of the fittest or first among equals.”
Some may simply be lucky for whatever reason, but this kind of luck must have been based on meeting more than average requirements.
Not getting the Google grant does not mean platforms cannot apply for others. What they need to do is to prepare ahead of such calls for applications by improving their operations and know the requirements of grant-giving organisations.
There are other grants that can be applied for, like support for some specialised reports by some international media support organisations. Don’t miss out on them and encourage your staff to apply.
Online publication can also initiate a request for support to cover some issue better from organisations promoting such issues. Asking for donations is also becoming the new normal, but even then, the donors need to be convinced requesting organisations will utilize the support for what it is meant for.