Fellowships

” I was a much more confident journalist — convinced, finally, that it really was possible to do big journalism in smaller communities — and I was more curious about the larger world, and where the communities I wrote about fit within them. ” Read more

“I came to Cambridge with a vision for the project, but what I didn’t have was confidence. There were no entrepreneurial journalists in Memphis for me to follow. I wasn’t sure how to raise enough money to pay our contributors fairly. And part of me wondered if I was crazy to try.” Read more

“When you hail from a small-market newspaper in a small state, convincing those outside of your readership area to take you seriously is a daunting task. When you are gifted with the stamp of Nieman at Harvard University, your work suddenly becomes indispensable.” Read more

“It was when I was at Harvard as a Nieman Fellow that, for the first time, I was really able to find good female role models and also to see how a woman could be a leader.” Read more

“Not only were the professors brilliant; they were generous and eager to hear my opinions. The Harvard community, including my Nieman Fellows, were curious, full of ideas, and really collegial. Thanks to the Nieman program, I began to think of myself as a leader.” Read more

“When I went back to my job … I carried the word ‘courage’ with me like a lucky charm, and to this day I’m fortified by the people who during my Nieman year helped me find it.” Read more

“Any time and every time that you face any kind of challenges in your workplace and in your career, you have now a whole bunch of [Nieman Fellows] you can consult. They’re all people with whom you have a personal equation. They’re scattered all over the world.” Read more

“One of things I was thinking about was Robert Moses and urban political power and how I would need to do a book to explain. And it took a lot of nights to think that through. That’s really one of the things the Nieman year did for me.” Read more

“One of the most wonderful things about the experience was meeting the international fellows, journalists who have had to put their lives on the line for their work.” Read more

“It’s a transformative year, completely, first because of the network and the relationships you build here.” Read more

“The Nieman Fellowship has supported people in countries that are very repressive. Comparing then and now, it’s day and night.” Read more

“Harvard as a whole has been an incredible gift to me. The professors have been outstanding. They’ve been incredibly generous with their time.” Read more

“People say, ‘Why’d you begin to write books?’ The reason I really began to write books is that, after my Nieman year, I felt I owed it to myself to go and do something out of the box. So that’s what I did.” Read more