A Journey of Shared Discovery for Russian and American Journalists

The International Center for Journalists (ICFJ) invited young journalists from Russia to take part in the “Journey of Shared Discovery for Russian and American Journalists” exchange program. Fourteen journalists, who were selected in competition, came to the United States for a program from Tuesday, May 17, to Monday, June 6. Applicants needed to speak English.

The program was supported with a grant to ICFJ from the U.S. Embassy Moscow, Public Affairs Section (PAS). During 2015, ICFJ brought fifteen Russian journalists to the United States as part of the “Russia-U.S. Young Media Professionals Exchange Program” with support from a PAS grant.

The new program built on the successes of earlier exchange programs whose goals were to allow Russian and American journalists to build professional relationships and friendships with one another and mutual understanding while dispelling negative stereotypes between their countries. The journalists accomplished these goals while learning firsthand about the media system of each country, including how digital media are changing the ways that journalists work today.

The program began with a pre-departure orientation in Moscow, an orientation and schedule of meetings in Washington, and individual assignments of two weeks for each journalist in an American newsroom.

The 2016 program had several new features:

• Each Russian journalist proposed a project to complete during the program
• Each journalist stayed with an American family during the assignments in U.S. newsrooms
• The Russian journalists visited New York, where they took part in meetings and discussed the program’s results
• After returning to Russia, the journalists received two months of mentoring online as they implemented their projects

The Russian journalists were asked to submit project ideas with their applications to the program. The projects were a lasting result of the program that the Russian journalists were able to share with their colleagues and media organizations. Projects included the production of a story, or a management goal, such as the reorganization of newsroom work flow, or incorporating the use of a new digital tool into the journalists’ work. The journalists worked on their projects while they were in the United States, and as needed, ICFJ’s online mentors helped them complete their work.

Because the program included individual two-week assignments at U.S. media organizations, the Russian journalists had to speak English.

Selection was based on professional qualifications, relevant experience and commitment to the program goals and to enhancing mutual understanding between the people of each country. For more information, please contact ICFJ’s Bob Tinsley at btinsley@icfj.org. 

The deadline to apply was Monday, December 14, 2015 (U.S. Eastern Time).

Program Schedule

• Pre-departure Orientation in Moscow: Monday, May 16, 2016
• Arrival in the United States: Tuesday, May 17
• Orientation in Washington: May 18-20
• Depart for Internships at U.S. Media: May 21
• Program Wrap-up and Debriefing in New York: June 3-5
• Return to Russia: June 6