I’m pleased to report that the first group of young journalists to benefit from the Journalism Diversity Fund will shortly receive their bursaries. Seven were picked in this year’s first cohort of bursary recipients, with round two recipients to be announced shortly.
The Journalism Diversity Fund is a charitable cause close to our hearts and NLA media access has been supporting the foundation financially since its launch in 2005. It was set up to help journalists from ethnically and socially diverse backgrounds with bursaries for training. Last year it also began offering paid internships to help promising students with additional placements.
Past recipients, who otherwise might not have been able to start a career in journalism, have benefited from the scheme and gone on to start careers at national and regional publishers. One of last year’s recipients Khaleda Rahman, now a trainee reporter for the MailOnline, wrote about her experience for NLA media access last year, pointing out that; “many young people from ethnic backgrounds shy away from pursuing a career in the media – but that’s slowly but surely changing thanks to the fund.”
We wish the best of luck to the latest group of trainees.