'New U' Project Grant for Journalists of Color

UNITY: Journalists of Color, Inc. has received a $100,000 grant from The Ford Foundation to implement New U: News Entrepreneurs Working through UNITY, and they want YOU to apply for this exciting new program. The New U project is intended to increase the number of innovative thinkers and product developers who are of color, providing them with a forum in which to develop and express innovative ideas.

It will support the creative ideas of participating journalists of color through a series of two-day "boot camps" at each of the four summer 2010 UNITY alliance partners’ conventions. In addition to offering training and one-on-one mentoring, the program will include a competition for start-up funding to assist news entrepreneurs to realize their ideas.


Four participants will be chosen from a competitive applicant pool in advance of each UNITY alliance partner convention, and notified of their acceptance. Participants' travel expenses will be covered through the grant, as well as the cost of the program.

Application periods for the partner conferences varies--the application deadline for NABJ is July 2. The New U boot camps will take place at the following conventions:

National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ)
28th Annual NAHJ Multimedia Convention and Career Expo
June 23-26, 2010
Denver, Colorado

Native American Journalists Association (NAJA)
26th Anniversary NAJA Conference
July 21-24, 2010
St. Paul, Minnesota

National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ)
NABJ 35th Anniversary Convention & Career Fair
July 28-August 1, 2010
San Diego, California

Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA)
21st Annual AAJA National Convention
August 4-7, 2010
Los Angeles, California

For more information on the New U program, including the application, visit www.unityjournalists.org/NewU/index.php.