How to benefit from MacArthur’s $6.3m journalism grant

How can journalists and other media professionals in Nigeria benefit from the $6.3 journalism and media grant to nine media organisations and institution to advance anti-corruption efforts announced by The MacArthur Foundation on Wednesday?

Instead of ignoring or just reading the story, below are a few things journalists can do to enhance their careers through the various programmes to be implemented by the nine organisations.

1. Know the nine organisations given the grant and read more about them on their websites. They are obviously some of the top media support organisations every journalist should know about and know what other projects they have apart from the new grant.
2. Follow them on social media to be regularly alerted on their programmes and resources.
3. Know the details of what each organization is to do under the grant and know which one covers your beat or areas of interest. The range of projects include:

*Training for journalists on investigative fieldwork

*Data-driven reporting,

*Assistance for independent media organizations working to develop sustainable business models.

*New broadcast platforms to increase the reach and effectiveness of investigative reports.

4. Reach out to the organisations and indicate your interest in their project to get information on the call for participation.
5. Prepare ahead to be qualified for selection for any of the programmes you are interested since there will be limited numbers of participants.
6. Reach out to previous beneficiaries of past training in the first tranche of the grant to know what will be required to get selected.
7. If you are not selected to participate in the programme of your choice, link up with selected participants and get training materials from them.
8. Alert your colleagues of the grant to ensure that even if you are not selected, someone you know may participate and share what he or she learnt with you.
9. Read more about MacArthur Foundation to know what it takes to get such grants.

Further breakdown of what each organization will do is as follows:

• Bayero University, Kano (Kano): To enhance training, curriculum, teaching, and learning opportunities for the next generation of investigative journalists; and to establish a TV-station.
• Cable Newspaper Journalism Foundation (Lagos): To support its Policy Radar Initiative and the investigative reports it produces; mobilize community action around its findings; and use social media and video to reach a broad audience.
• Daily Trust Foundation (Abuja): To strengthen the capacity of journalists, media professionals, and students to conduct high quality investigative and data-driven journalism.
• International Centre for Investigative Reporting (Abuja): To support in-depth field investigations and convene town hall meetings with government officials and anti-corruption agency representatives to answer questions from the public.
• OYA Media (Lagos): To conduct high-quality investigative reports and present them in a talk show format that will bring policymakers and citizens together to discuss issues and possible solutions.
• Premium Times Centre for Investigative Journalism (Abuja): To conduct investigations on budget, procurement, and government service delivery; to expand fact-checking operations for journalists, and continue building civic technology for citizens and journalists to collaboratively learn and produce multimedia reports related to corruption.
• Sahara Reporters (Lagos): To train journalists on investigative and data-based journalism; support investigations into the education sector, and continue a civic media laboratory to engage citizens in public dialogue on corruption and other social issues.
• Tiger Eye Social Foundation (Accra, Ghana): To strengthen the investigative capacity of Nigerian media by training journalists in investigative techniques and supporting field investigations on corruption.
• Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (Lagos): To continue its investigative reporting on corruption in the education and electricity sectors; design sustainable reporting models for that reporting, and develop a radio show to improve reach and impact of stories.