Data-Driven Journalism Program in Western Hemisphere

• Eligibility Criteria
  – U.S. or foreign not-for-profit organisations, including think tanks and civil society/non-governmental organisations;
  – U.S. or foreign public and private educational institutions;
  – U.S. or foreign for-profit organisations;
  – Individuals are not eligible to apply;
  – In order to be eligible to receive an award, all organisations must have a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) number;
  – Applicants are only allowed to submit one proposal per organisation. If more than one proposal is submitted from an organisation, all proposals from that institution will be considered ineligible for funding.
• Type of Funding: Programmatic
• Target Region: Western Hemisphere
• Application Language: English

The U.S. Embassy in Paraguay announces an open competition for organisations to submit applications to carry out a program to cultivate data-driven journalism in the Western Hemisphere for countries that maintain diplomatic relations with Taiwan.

Program Objectives and Goals

• In the Western Hemisphere, seven countries maintain diplomatic relations with Taiwan. Publics in these countries thus have less frequent exposure to information about how the People’s Republic of China (PRC) relates to countries with which it maintains official relations. Likewise, journalists have fewer opportunities to develop expertise on the PRC and its relations with other countries, leaving them and the publics they serve relatively more vulnerable to misconceptions and disinformation on related topics. Many publics in Taiwan-recognising countries maintain idealised views of the benefits that switching to official relations with the PRC would bring.
• The goal of this award is to improve access to accurate information in Western Hemisphere Taiwan-recognizing countries about the full impact of diplomatic relations with (in particular, switching to diplomatic relations with) the PRC.

Program Activities

It is recommended that the data-driven journalism program include at least the following activities:

• An in-person training workshop for journalists from participating countries
• Assessment of fulfilment of promises used to attract countries to change their recognition from Taiwan to the PRC.
• Data sources, data analysis, and use of data in audience-relevant reporting related to PRC behaviour in Latin America.
• Training for journalists on digital security best practices and tools and detecting and responding to disinformation and manipulative social media techniques.
• A support mechanism for journalists in their home countries as they conduct research and develop stories about the PRC and Taiwan in the region/in their own countries.
• A study tour in a PRC-recognizing country in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Funding Information

• Total available funding: $475,000
• Award amounts: awards may range from a minimum of $450,000 to a maximum of $475,000
• Number of awards anticipated: 1 award
• Length of performance period: 20 to 24 months

See here to learn more and apply.

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