The USC Annenberg Center for Health Journalism is offering journalists the opportunity to apply for reporting support and mentoring from two Impact Funds in 2021. Up to 16 journalists or newsroom collaboratives will be selected. The deadline to apply for both is November 30, 2021, and awards will be announced in January 2022, with publication/broadcast of reporting projects due in July 2022.
2021 Impact Fund for Reporting on Health Equity and Health Systems
The Center is launching the 2021 Impact Fund for Reporting on Health Equity and Health Systems with generous support from The Commonwealth Fund. This fund will provide reporting grants of $2,000-$10,000 and six months of mentoring by a seasoned journalism professional to five to eight competitively chosen journalists from around the country to support their reporting of ambitious investigative or explanatory projects on structural or systemic issues in the health care system that lead to racial disparities in health outcomes. Grantees will also attend four monthly webinars focused on the interplay between health systems and health disparities.
Nearly 20 years after its publication, the Institute of Medicine’s “Unequal Treatment” remains the definitive work on the link between health systems and health disparities. The IOM’s panel of scientists and doctors concluded that Black, Latino, Native American and Pacific Islander patients are less likely than White patients to receive the same quality of heath care, even when similarly insured. Many of the institutional barriers to quality care that the Institute identified in 2002 remain unchanged. Black Americans are still less likely than White Americans to have private health insurance, and when they do, they are more likely to face higher co-pays or limits on services. Communities with predominant populations of Blacks, Latinos, Native Americans, and Pacific Islanders often have shortages of doctors, creating another barrier to obtaining timely and consistent care. Lack of transportation and inflexible work schedules make it difficult for low-wage workers to see doctors. Professional interpretation or translation services to patients that don’t speak English –even though required by law – often aren’t provided. And there is a growing body of evidence that healthcare providers’ biases – conscious or unconscious -- can interfere with treatment and contribute to health care disparities.
Journalists can play an important role in highlighting the systemic and structural reason for not only this health disparity, but many others. It is crucial in this moment of transition, as we begin to emerge from the pandemic, that journalists report on the inequities that lead to disparities and also point the way to solutions. The Center for Health Journalism proposes to take advantage of this unique period in our country’s history, with unprecedented attention to and interest in the differential treatment of people of color by public and private institutions, to provide journalists with the opportunity to produce deep reporting on the interplay between health equity, health systems and health disparities.
The Center invites proposals for investigative and explanatory explorations of the consequences for people of color and of policy or practice reforms that could lead to more positive outcomes. Each applicant must propose an ambitious reporting project that would illuminate the role that health systems play in creating or perpetuating racial disparities in reproductive health and maternity care and birth outcomes; cancer prevention and treatment; diabetes, kidney failure and amputations; heart disease prevention and treatment; drug treatment; mental health care and more.
Here are some examples of systems issues that contribute to racial health disparities:
- Blacks are more likely to die of colon cancer than Whites. One reason, researchers have found, is that most Black patients with colon cancer only have six lymph nodes resected and examined for cancer during colon cancer surgery, whereas most White patients have 18 nodes resected. The more lymph nodes analyzed by a pathologist, the more likely a metastasis will be discovered, which would lead to treatment that could prolong the patient's life. The reason for the disparity is that Blacks are more likely to receive treatment in overburdened, under-funded public hospitals." A possible solution: required adherence in public hospitals to as high standard of care.
- In a study of more than 10,000 men diagnosed with testicular cancer between 2007 and 2011, uninsured men had an 88 percent higher risk of death from the disease than those with insurance. Blacks are more likely to be uninsured than White men, which means their cancer is likely to be discovered at a later, less curable stage. A possible solution: eliminate barriers to insurance.
- Black, Pacific Islander and Alaska Native women have a higher likelihood of preterm births or low birthweight births, which, in turn, puts their babies at greater risk of dying before their first birthdays, compared with White women. A major factor is receiving late or no prenatal care. One solution: eliminate barriers to prenatal care.
- Nationally, new diagnoses of type 1 diabetes rose at an annual rate of 4% among Hispanic children and 2.7% among black children between 2002 and 2015, compared with a rate of less than 1% among White children. 2019 Center for Health Journalism National Fellow Sarah Glantz of the Philadelphia Inquirer documented the trend in her Fellowship project, and spoke with experts and parents of patients about possible reasons, as well as possible solutions. Children of color experience more complications and hospitalizations related to the disease than White children, yet they are less likely than White children to receive medical technology that can improve blood-sugar management, which would help them avoid vision loss, kidney failure, poor circulation, and more. Sarah identified numerous systemic issues that contribute to the disparities is disease management and outcomes. Among the solutions: better patient and parent education by culturally competent health care provides, mandated insurance company for state-of-the-art blood-sugar management devices.
- For his National Fellowship project, Jay Price, then with the Charlotte Observer, investigated why Blacks in North Carolina had the highest rate of death from prostate cancer than in any other state and why they are nearly two times as likely as Whites to be diagnosed with it and nearly three times as likely as Whites to die from complications. Among the systemic reasons he identified: Black men are more likely to be uninsured or underinsured than White men and hence less likely to have regular checkups. In addition, distrust of medical practitioners is widespread among Blacks, largely because of the infamous Tuskegee Experiment, so some don't seek preventive care even if they have insurance. And changes in screening recommendations over the last seven years left many men confused. Among the solutions: more culturally appropriate outreach to Blacks, elimination of barriers to preventive care, provision of state-of-the-art cancer care.
The USC Center for Health Journalism's California Impact Fund provides reporting support — funding and mentoring — to journalists who think big and want to make a difference. Our Impact Funds helps journalists bring untold stories to light and investigate promising approaches to chronic ills. We welcome applications from journalists who want to tackle ambitious investigative or explanatory projects – individually, as a newsroom-wide undertaking or as a collaboration with other media outlets in their communities. The Fund aims to advance what the Center for Health Journalism calls “impact journalism,” which marries powerful narratives, data and community engagement to serve as a catalyst for change. Proposed projects should have the potential for impact, including changing the conversation about the issues addressed or sparking new policies, practices or laws. Depending on the scope of the project, competitively selected grantees receive grant funds of $2,000 to $10,000. We also provide six months of mentoring while grantees work on their projects, providing guidance on everything from story development to mapping out how to tackle reporting, to ways to improve storytelling.
The Fund seeks proposals for:
- groundbreaking reporting on the health of underserved communities
- reporting that illuminates national and state debates on health care policy and ongoing or proposed changes to the social safety net
- exploration of health disparities and their causes and promising solutions
- investigations into how poverty, education, environment, structural inequities or race/ethnicityinfluence health and wellbeing
- reporting projects that advance public understanding and health policy for specific underserved or vulnerable populations, which could include people living in low-income neighborhoods, rural areas, jails, prisons, foster or group homes, juvenile detention centers or homeless encampments.
Who Can Apply
The 2021 Impact Funds are open to professional journalists who work for or contribute to print, broadcast and online media outlets based in the United States. Applicants do not need to be full-time health reporters, but should have a demonstrated interest in health issues. We prefer that applicants have a minimum of three years of professional experience; many have decades. Journalists writing for ethnic media are strongly encouraged to apply. Proposals for collaborative projects between mainstream and ethnic news outlets receive preferential consideration, as do projects produced for co-publication or co-broadcast in both mainstream and ethnic news outlets. Freelancers are welcome, but need to have a confirmed assignment and should earn the majority of their income from journalism. Applicants must be based in the United States. Students and interns are ineligible.
To strengthen your chance of being selected, we recommend that you schedule a conversation with us to discuss the your proposed project. Write Martha Shirk at CAHealth@usc.edu to schedule a conversation.
All applications must be filed through our online application. by November 30, 2021. We suggest that you begin preparing your application in Word or another text-based format so that you can cut and paste the components into the online application.
The application asks for the following:
- A statement of purpose
- A project proposal
- A statement of impact
- A proposed budget
- Three samples of professional work
- A current resumé
- A letter of reference
- An Editor's Checklist signed by a supervising editor and confirming the media outlet's intent to publish or broadcast the project
Applicants must join CenterforHealthJournalism.org and post a profile and photo.
Personal Statement: Use 500 words to tell us who you are. Describe your general reporting or editing experience and aspirations, as well as your health reporting or editing experience, including the types of health care stories you currently cover or edit. Include a description of your publication, broadcast outlet or website, including the size, nature and geographic reach of its audience and how it's measured. (For websites, we require Google analytics or an equivalent.) If two or more reporters are applying as a team or two or more editors are proposing a cross-outlet collaboration, a single application may be filed, but it should include details about each of the journalists who will be involved, including their names, affiliations, short bios, and resumes and the size, nature and geographic reach of each of the participating outlets’ audiences. Describe your and/or your team’s general reporting or editing experience and aspirations, as well as your and/or your team’s health reporting or editing experience, including the types of stories you and/or your team currently cover or edit.
Project Proposal
In no more than 1,000 words, summarize a major reporting project. Consult our webpage for examples of topics we are interested in funding. Summarize likely themes, multimedia components and any social media and audience/community engagement strategies you anticipate (strongly encouraged), such as community forums, interactive digital features, partnerships with other media outlets or community organizations and so on. Tell us what sources or datasets you anticipate using or that you'll be looking for. Your proposal should be well-researched and should demonstrate that you have done some deep thinking about the relevance of the topic to your community. Be specific about deliverables (e.g. a three-part multimedia series, three seven-minute radio pieces, a 60-minute TV documentary and so on). Think big.
Statement of Impact (up to 250 words)
Tell us why your proposed project is important and whether it will break new ground. Explain why this project is needed now and what impact a project like this might have. Include information on how this builds on or distinguishes itself from other journalism on this topic.
Proposed Budget (up to 250 words)
The maximum grant is $10,000; grants of this size will most likely go to multi-newsroom collaborations. Specify the size of the grant you’re seeking, and justify it. The size of the requested grant should be commensurate with the scope of the proposed project. Grants are meant to cover out-of-pocket expenses such as travel, dataset acquisition, translation services and multimedia components that your newsroom is not equipped to provide itself (e.g. videography and data visualization). In exceptional cases, we will permit part of each grant to be used to compensate for otherwise uncompensated time. If you’re a freelancer, the media outlet that agrees to publish or broadcast your project should be expected to provide the bulk of your compensation.
Three Samples of Your Work: Submit three samples of your best work. (For work that has only appeared online, please provide working URLs, as well as Word documents or PDFs of the published stories.) Broadcasters should submit links to working URLs of their online stories or CDs/DVDs. If you are an editor, submit work that you supervised and edited, along with an explanation of your role in shaping the content. If you write in a language other than English or Spanish, we prefer to receive translations of your work. If that is not possible, send a comprehensive two-paragraph summary in English of each story.
Resumé: Please include a current resumé. Note: Any misrepresentation that is discovered after you are admitted to the Fellowship will result in your dismissal.
Letter of Reference: Please supply a letter of reference from your assigning editor, producer, or news director that discusses your abilities and potential as a journalist in detail and the newsroom's support for your project
Editor/Story Checklist (download pdf): Download it, complete it, get your assigning editor's signature on it, and scan it into your computer to submit with your online application or FAX it to us at (877) 413-3873. Both freelance and employed journalists must submit written confirmation of a news organization's commitment to publish or air the work resulting from the grant, assuming it meets its standards. If several newsrooms are proposing a collaborative project, an editor from each outlet must sign an Editor/Story Checklist.
How We Select Grantees:
When choosing grantees, we consider each candidate's personal and professional accomplishments and potential, as well as the potential contribution of his or her proposed project on the public's understanding of health issues. We value diversity in both our grantees and their media outlets. The Center will only review complete applications submitted by the November 30 deadline.
Tips for Maximizing Your Chances of Being Selected
- Think big journalistically.
- Provide lots of details about what we can expect from your project. Provides specifics, such as likely story count and multimedia components. We want to know what will result from our investment in you.
- We're looking for impact, so tell us what problem your project will expose and what might happen as a result of increased awareness by the public and policymakers.
- Tell us how you will engage the community with your project. It's not sufficient any more to just put something out there. Tell us how you will involve the public both in helping shape your journalism and responding to it.
Keep in Mind
These funds are not meant to replace salaries or freelance fees, although we are willing to consider allowing the grants to supplement income in some limited . Funds are principally meant to augment news organizations' resources — or to facilitate a collaborative project among outlets — to take journalism to a higher and more impactful level. Among the appropriate publishing- or broadcast-related expenses are travel, data set acquisition and analysis, videography, environmental or health testing and translation services. We generally do not fund the "tools of the trade," such as laptops or video or photographic equipment. The size of the requested grant should be commensurate with the scope of the proposed project. Projects must be published or broadcast within six months of receiving a grant.