The Ben Bagdikian Fellowship Program offers an industry-leading crash course in investigative journalism. Fellows fact-check our most ambitious and impactful reporting, and in doing so, learn about what it takes to publish hard-hitting stories that inspire change. As fact-checkers, fellows work closely with reporters and editors around the newsroom and across platforms to ensure the accuracy and fairness of our reporting.
Fellowships offered by the Center for Investigative Reporting are full-time positions. The 2025–2026 fellowship cycle will begin in August 2025, and run for one year. Applications are open, and are due at 11:59 p.m. Pacific Time on April 20.
Those who are still in school or are only available part-time are not eligible, nor can fellowships be used for course credit. Because the first two weeks of the fellowship consist of intensive group trainings, all applicants, without exception, must be prepared to start on August 4, 2025.
Fellows receive $26.67/hour, plus benefits including health, dental, and vision, as well as 12 sick days, and accrual of 15 vacation days. (The CIR workweek is 37.5 hours.) The fellowship is supported by grants from the Helen and Will Webster Foundation, and by the generosity of our contributors.
The editorial fellowship is a demanding, research-intensive foray into investigative journalism. Fellows’ primary responsibility is fact-checking our bimonthly print magazine, web stories, videos, and weekly radio show. By reverse-engineering our investigations and other reported pieces, fellows learn what it takes to report, organize, and write a sophisticated magazine or radio story.
Fellows can expect fact-checking duties to take most of their time. There may be limited opportunities to do original writing and reporting, or to become involved in various digital projects—working on our newsletters, helping with multimedia production, and aiding our Climate Desk partnership—depending on time, interest, and organizational needs.
Fellows receive training in many aspects of the editorial process, from research tools and methods to media law. They attend regular skill-building sessions covering topics that span the operations of a media organization.
We’re looking for candidates with a wide range of backgrounds and skillsets. Some of our current fellows have had previous journalism jobs, while others are working in a newsroom for the first time. If you believe that you could excel in this role, we encourage you to apply. Candidates should be curious, hardworking, and committed to learning the practices of independent journalism.
CIR believes that a diverse newsroom strengthens the quality of our workplace and reporting. We strongly encourage applications from members of communities that have been historically underrepresented in the media, including people of color, LGBTQ people, and people with disabilities.
We’re particularly interested in candidates who can work from our Washington, D.C., or San Francisco bureaus. We also have a bureau in New York City and will consider applicants based there as well as strong remote candidates who help us build the most well-rounded and capable cohort. Fellows are required to be able to work in the US and CIR is not able to furnish work visas.