Introduction
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 – please see eligibility requirements below. 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 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]
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.
- 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.
Funding
Funds will be disbursed in one installment, in US dollars or Euros depending on region. Funding amounts will range from the low thousands for small hyper-local newsrooms to low tens of thousands for larger newsrooms, with variations per region.
