Now more than ever, the importance of independent, fact-based journalism is at the forefront in the battle against digital propaganda, manufactured news and intensifying attacks on press freedom. In order to address this, the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism (Columbia J School) has placed a dedicated emphasis on computation and investigative reporting in its curriculum and programming. To bolster this effort, funding from The Tow Foundation will be used to create the Tow Computational Journalism Fellowship and expand the Investigative Reporting Resource (IRR) at the Columbia J School. The Tow Computational Journalism Fellow will work in the emerging field of digital forensics to research and analyze the state of information security in the digital age. Similarly, the Investigative Reporting Resource will provide expanded funding to students and recent alumni doing in-depth reporting in the public interest, with an emphasis on using data to find and illustrate stories.
