Application Deadline: April 29th, 2020 at 11:59 p.m. PT,
Google has launched a global Journalism Emergency Relief Fund through the Google News Initiative to support small and medium-sized news organizations producing original news for local communities
The Fund’s aim is to support the production of original journalism for local communities in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. Operating globally, it will provide an easily-accessible route to financial assistance at this critical time.
Application Eligibility Requirements
- Small and medium-sized news organizations producing original news for local communities during this time of crisis.
- Eligible applicants must have a digital presence and have been in operation for at least 12 months.
- The Fund is targeted at newsrooms employing between 2 – 100 full-time employee (FTE) journalists.
- Local publishers employing more than 100 FTE journalists can still apply and will be considered subject to Google’s discretion, based mainly on differing needs in different countries/regions.
- Organizations must be incorporated or registered in one of the eligible geographies. Unincorporated organizations must be based in one of the eligible geographies.
- Eligible applicants need to have a focus on core news provision, i.e. not lifestyle, sports, business-to-business.
- Eligible applicants can include for-profit or nonprofit traditional news organizations, digital natives, radio and/or TV broadcasters.
- Government-owned entities and individuals are not eligible to apply.
Eligible Regions
Organizations must be incorporated or registered in one of the eligible geographies (see below). Unincorporated organizations must be based in one of the eligible geographies. Please note that certain eligible geographies may have specific laws that apply to the receipt of funding from the Journalism Emergency Relief Fund and you are responsible for your compliance with any such laws, including, for example, by obtaining all necessary permissions from relevant authorities prior to receiving funding.
Middle East and Africa
Algeria, Angola, Bahrain, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo (Brazzaville), Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Djibouti, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Iraq, Israel, Ivory Coast, Jordan, KSA, Kenya, Kuwait, Lesotho, Libya, Lebanon, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Palestine, Oman, Qatar, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, South Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Turkey, Uganda, UAE, Western Sahara, Zambia, Zimbabwe
Selection Process
Initial selection of proposals will be done by teams of Google staff who have knowledge and experience in digital publishing and journalism in the regions detailed above. Applicants will then be contacted by email and offered funding before being asked to sign a funding agreement with Google. Selected applicants will then be required to enroll as a Google partner (if they are not already) in order to receive the funding.
Application Process
Applications may be submitted starting on Wednesday, April 15th, 2020. The application window will close on April 29th, 2020 at 11:59 p.m. PT, and may be extended or shortened at Google’s discretion. We encourage you to submit your application as soon as possible. We will process them on a rolling basis.
You will be asked via our online application form to provide basic information about your publication and overall organization (if applicable) and inform us of how the funds will be spent. By submitting an application, you accept and agree to the Journalism Emergency Relief Fund Terms and Conditions. Submissions will be reviewed and funded on a rolling basis. All applicants will be notified of the status of their application by email as soon as possible. Please note we expect a high volume of applications so we cannot guarantee a specific response time but will guide you as best we can along the way. It is our intention to provide funding as quickly as possible.
If you require assistance to complete the form please email [email protected]
For More Information:
Visit the Official Webpage of the Google Journalism Emergency Relief Fund