Five BC Journalists Receive Webster Fellowships to Cover Latin America Development Issues

NEWS RELEASE

VANCOUVER, B. C.

Five BC Journalists receive Webster fellowships to cover Latin America development issues

The Jack Webster Foundation today announced five recipients of the fourth Seeing the World through New Eyes fellowship establishedin partnership with the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA).

These five BC journalists will visit Latin American in early 2009 to experience firsthand reporting from developing countries:

Susan Hollis, freelance, Vancouver

April Lawrence, CHBC Television News, Penticton

Travis Lupick, The Georgia Straight, Vancouver

Catherine Rolfsen, The Vancouver Sun, Vancouver

Brooke Ward, The Northern View, Prince Rupert

“These fellowships benefit BC journalists who want an opportunity to see beyond their borders and view the developing world from a perspective of the people who live there,” said Deb Sweeney, Co-Chair of the Jack Webster Foundation

“By arranging these fellowships with the support of CIDA, it is the Foundation’s goal to offer British Columbia journalists an experience that will widen their horizons in a globally significant way.”

A training seminar in November will precede February travel to Honduras and most likely Peru with project team leader Don Cayo, Vancouver Sun columnist and veteran reporter on global development issues. Neither the Jack Webster Foundation nor CIDA will have editorial control on the resulting work of the fellowship recipients.

Seeing the World through New Eyes was a juried competition for BC-based journalists aged 30 or younger, or in their first five years of journalism. The competition was open to full time employees of media organization or freelancers with a record of printed or aired work. The jury panel (Don Cayo, Joan Marshall, John Richards, and Scott Macrae) evaluated 26 entries from a diverse section of BC print and broadcast journalists. Earlier in 2008, five journalists traveled to Rwanda and Mozambique in the third CIDA-funded Seeing the World Through New Eyes program. The Jack Webster Foundation will be offering the fellowship in 2009/10 to Africa.

The Jack Webster Foundation, named after the late broadcaster who was Western Canada’s best known and most influential reporter, was established in 1986 to recognize excellence in British Columbia journalism.

The work of the Foundation is made possible by the generous sponsorship of Accenture, British Columbia Lottery Corporation, Bell Canada, CGA Association, HSBC Bank Canada, CN, Labatt Breweries, Terasen Gas, Vancouver International Airport, Port Metro Vancouver and WorkSafeBC.

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For more information, contact:

Nora Newlands, Executive Director

Jack Webster Foundation

Tel. 604-261-6184Fax 604-261-1964

Email: Website: