The Google News Initiative Student Fellowship initiative, aimed at developing and supporting students of colour who are interested in careers in journalism, has opened applications for a 10-12 weeks paid programme.

The selected fellows will be given a travel payment of $1,000, plus a stipend of $5,000 for the course of the programme which will run from roughly September to December, Google said on Monday, adding that applications close on August 1.

"All fellows, who will have the opportunity to work remotely, will be selected by nine host newsrooms: Eugene Weekly, Houston Press, Isthmus, al Día en America, La Noticia, Vida Newspaper, the Washington Informer, the Omaha Star and the NNPA Newsroom," Ashley Alese Edwards, U.S. Partnerships Manager, News Lab at Google, wrote in a blog post.

"Fellows will have the opportunity to work on editorial, revenue, and technology projects at the host publications."

The newsrooms in the US often do not reflect the diversity of the audiences they cover.

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A 2019 survey by the American Society of News Editors estimates that less than a quarter of newsroom employees identify themselves as a person of colour, compared to the US population, which is 24 per cent. The percentage is even smaller for newsroom leadership.

Google said its News Initiative Student Fellowship programme intends to address the barriers of access to early career opportunities many students of colour face, as well as support investigative journalism, technological innovation, and digital transformation in local newsrooms that serve diverse and underrepresented populations.

"Lack of internship and fellowship opportunities contributes to why many U.S. newsrooms don't reflect the communities they cover," Edwards said. (IANS)