United States Journalism Emergency Fund Application

This application is for the United States Journalism Emergency Fund, established by the International Women’s Media Foundation and supported by the Ford Foundation and Press Forward. The fund provides emergency assistance to U.S.-based journalists whose reporting on politically charged events in the United States has exposed them to harm, risk, or crisis.

Journalists covering elections, protests, civil movements, and other highly polarized or volatile environments may experience threats, harassment, injury, or trauma as a result of their work. This fund is designed to support journalists whose professional reporting placed them in danger or made them vulnerable to these impacts—whether through direct targeting, sustained harassment, or hostile conditions connected to their coverage.

You may request support for:

• Immediate needs related to your professional work, such as destroyed or stolen equipment and protective gear;
• Small grants for medical and psychological care for incidents directly related to threats and crises caused by one’s work as a journalist.

Please note that emergency grants are not available to student journalists

Applicants must provide proof of their financial need. Funding is available to both staff journalists and those working independently. To request assistance from the IWMF’s United States Journalism Emergency Fund, please complete this preliminary questionnaire. Requests that do not meet the criteria above will not be considered. 

For legal support if you have been arrested or face immediate threat of arrest, please contact the Reporters Committee for the Freedom of the Press at their free legal hotline (1-800-336-4243). The hotline is available 24/7. 

If you have any questions relating to the IWMF’s United States Journalism Emergency Fund, please email assistance@iwmf.org.