Last Updated on February 14, 2024 by BVN
S. E. Williams
To sustain a truly democratic society those who serve and protect must be held accountable. The best way to ensure such accountability is to report on their words and their deeds. This should be the standard. But, with so much noise and disinformation in the media stream it is often hard for citizens to filter through it. This is what makes local journalism more important today than ever before.
As a legacy news organization that has served the inland region for over 50 years, Black Voice News strives to deliver content focused on accountability. We are committed to expanding our focus in this regard and now have an opportunity to grow our journalism team through the California Local News Fellowship Program.
We are seeking an aspiring reporter with a passion for community who is dedicated to developing their skills as a storyteller and journalist to join our team as part of this fellowship program.
The application process is now open for early-career journalists to apply to the California Local News Fellowship (CLNF) and the opportunity to join the Black Voice News team.
The CLNF is a state-funded initiative to support and strengthen local reporting, with a focus on underserved communities. The full-time, paid fellowship will place early-career journalists (with up to five years of experience) in California newsrooms for two years, starting in September 2024.
The program is open to digital, print, video, audio, photo, and multimedia journalists. We’re looking for candidates with relevant experience as much as formal education. Successful applicants will demonstrate core reporting skills, a commitment to a career in journalism, and an interest in reporting in underserved communities.
The application period for the 2024–2026 fellowship cohort is now open and closes at 6:00 p.m. PST on Sunday, February 25, 2024.
Please visit the California Local News Fellowship website to learn more, especially the Fellow FAQ, which provides more detail about how the program works; a video featuring this year’s cohort; and the Fellows’ Reporting page, with samples of stories this cohort has produced.
Black Voice News will consider candidates with a broad range of backgrounds. If you are excited about this role and feel that you can contribute to our publication, but your experience does not exactly align with every qualification listed in the application, we encourage you to apply.
Two step application process
The fellowship application is a two-step process as follows:
Step 1: Complete and submit the program application on the fellowship website.
Step 2: Complete and submit the employment application on the University of California’s AP Recruit portal. There you will upload your resume (or a simple list of your educational and work experience) and confirm that you have completed the fellowship program application.
Optional informational sessions
We encourage you to participate in an informational session with fellowship program staff during the application period. Register for the Q&A sessions here:
Wednesday 2/21 @ 3 pm PST
https://berkeley.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJIsdOisrT8oHteF56LTOgD2lbEMhbB-KaKK
Key dates
February 25: Application closes
Late March: Finalists announced
April: Fellow/newsroom interviews and matching offers made
May: Fellow offer letters delivered
Early September: Orientation and fellowship begins