The Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard has announced the named fellowships for the class of 2025. These fellowships are supported by foundation grants and endowed funds that provide important financial assistance to journalists from the United States and abroad.
Diana Durán Nuñez, a Bogotá-based journalist who most recently was a reporter for the TV news magazine “Los Informantes” on Caracol Televisión in Colombia, is the 2025 Knight Latin American Nieman Fellow. The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation has funded dozens of Nieman Fellowships for journalists from Latin America since 1981.
Two journalists have been selected as the Murrey Marder Nieman Fellows in Watchdog Journalism: Lasha Kveseladze is an investigative journalist and co-founder of the Journalistic Data Processing Centre in Tbilisi, Georgia, and Gina Smith is the investigations and projects editor for McClatchy’s South Carolina newspapers and founder and director of SC Investigates, a nonprofit that provides free tools to South Carolina newsroom professionals. The fellowship honors the memory of Murrey Marder, a longtime Washington Post reporter and 1950 Nieman Fellow who funded and helped found the Nieman Watchdog Project.
Lina Chawaf, a Syrian journalist and CEO of Radio Rozana, an independent Syrian media network that broadcasts from France, and Anna Filipova, a visual journalist and documentary filmmaker who works and lives in the Arctic, are the 2024 Ruth Cowan Nash Nieman Fellows. Nash was best known for her work as an Associated Press war correspondent during World War II. She also served as president of the Washington Press Club.
Darcel Rockett, is a senior journalist at the Chicago Tribune who specializes in stories of racial justice, equity, activism, and accessibility, is the Louis Stark Nieman Fellow. The fellowship honors the memory of the New York Times reporter who was a pioneer in the field of labor reporting.
Nilesh Christopher, an India-based journalist covering the intersection of technology, business and society, is the Atsuko Chiba Nieman Fellow. The Chiba fellowship honors the memory of Atsuko Chiba, a 1968 Nieman Fellow from Japan.
Kyrylo Beskorovainyi, a media entrepreneur and science journalist and the co-founder and publisher of the Ukrainian popular science media company Kunsht, is the Robert Waldo Ruhl Nieman Fellow. Ruhl, a 1903 Harvard graduate, was editor and publisher of the Medford Mail-Tribune in Oregon from 1911-1967.
Sandrine Rigaud, a French investigative journalist and filmmaker who most recently served as editor-in-chief of Forbidden Stories, a global network of journalists pursuing the work of silenced journalists, is the Carroll Binder Nieman Fellow. The Binder Fund honors 1916 Harvard graduate Carroll Binder, who expanded the Chicago Daily News Foreign Service, and his son, Carroll “Ted” Binder, a 1943 Harvard graduate.
James Okong’o, a digital investigation journalist for Agence France Presse (AFP) who covers Anglophone African countries from Nairobi, Kenya, is the Barry Bingham Jr. Nieman Fellow. Bingham, a 1956 Harvard graduate, was the editor and publisher of the Courier-Journal and Louisville Times.
Elena Kostyuchenko, an exiled Russian journalist who collaborates with Meduza, an independent Russian news organization based in Latvia, is the William Montalbano Nieman Fellow. Montalbano was a 1970 Nieman Fellow and a prize-winning Los Angeles Times reporter who reported from 100 countries during his 38-year career.
The fellowships for Line Vaaben, an editor and immersive journalist at the Danish daily newspaper Politiken, and Benjamin Bidder, an economics and business reporter for the German news magazine Der Spiegel, are supported by income from a charitable remainder trust established by the late Nieman Foundation Curator Bob Giles and his wife Nancy Giles to support international Nieman Fellows.
The Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard educates leaders in journalism, promotes innovation and elevates the standards of the profession. More than 1,700 journalists from 100 countries have been awarded Nieman Fellowships since 1938. The foundation also publishes Nieman Reports, a website and print magazine covering thought leadership in journalism; Nieman Journalism Lab, a website reporting on the future of news, innovation and best practices in the digital media age; and Nieman Storyboard, a website showcasing exceptional narrative journalism and nonfiction storytelling.
