Media Newsletter – 20 June 2023

Find out how journalist Dorcas Sheffy Bello built her brand by telling positive African stories, and how you can be funded to tell stories that show the continent beyond stereotypes.

1. Journalism trends: The biggest tool any journalist has at the moment is a smartphone. It has all the audio-visual tools and technology needed to produce high-quality news, without needing expert multimedia skills. This is why journalist Emmanuel Yegon believes that Mobile Journalism, or MoJo, is the hottest trend in journalism at the moment because it’s a way for recent journalism graduates to start working professionally and build a portfolio. MoJo allows journalists to tell the stories that are closest to them, which, Yegon says, is also creating more content that tells human stories beyond doom and gloom.Check out this free, self-paced MoJo course offered by the Thomson Foundation.

2. Who’s funding: Does your journalism tell better stories and tell stories better about Africa? Africa No Filter’s Kekere Storytellers Fund could support your next project. Better stories are the ones that show Africa’s exceptionalism and highlight our creativity and innovation. They inspire, as well as show the unexpected and promote the positive. These are stories that centre new voices, new heroes and new stories with characters who have agency. The fund pays micro-grants worth $500 to $2000 to journalists who are already creating and publishing unique and compelling content that offers fresh and alternative perspectives of Africa, to show a continent that’s innovative, evolving, and creative. Deadline: Rolling. More info in EnglishandFrench.

3. Training opportunity: Here’s an opportunity to develop your leadership and public service skills. The Hubert H. Humphrey Fellowship Programme is currently looking for applicants from anywhere in Africa to take part in a year-long non-degree program hosted by the University of Maryland and the U.S. Department of State. The fellowship covers tuition, fees, travel, book and computer allowance, and room and board. Deadline: Rolling. More info.

4. In the spotlight: Nigerian journalist Dorcas Sheffy Bello is proof that good news can make an impact, so she passionately tells stories of hope and inspiration about her communities in Jos and Abuja, Nigeria. This has turned her into a multiple award-winning journalist, with recognition that includes being named among the Top 100 Changemakers by the state of Jos. Her podcast, @unzipped_storiesAfrica, has captivated audiences in 56 countries with conversations that celebrate innovation, creativity and resilience. It’s on Spotify, Google Podcasts, Podtail, and Apple Podcasts. She also writes forbird news agency, which pays journalists to tell alternative stories of Africa.

5. Stories that moved us: More reminders that Africans are acting against climate change. Take Xoli Fuyani, whose non-profit organization, Black Girls Rising, is mentoring girls aged between 12 and 18 to become climate activists. In Lesotho, Liapeng Raliengoane, a journalist serving as the Early Day executive director in Lesotho, is spearheading a project that trains journalists on climate reporting inspiration she took from a similar project in Zimbabwe.

Are you an African journalist who wants to tell better stories about Africa? bird news agency is looking for you, but first, you have to complete the African Stories: A guide for journalists on how to tell better stories about Africa course. It’s free, digital, and only takes three hours to complete. Then you can pitch and get paid to publish on bird.