Photo by Lauren Gray via Unsplash
Do you have an article to pitch but aren’t sure where or how to send it? AHCJ now has over 40 market guides available on our Freelance Center, with the four most recent being: bioGraphic, Capital & Main, NBCNews.com and STAT.
Jane C. Hu, Brady Huggett and Pamela Weintraub (pictured from left to right) will talk about how to break into narrative journalism during a July 24 webinar.
Great narrative journalism takes readers on a journey with scenes and characters as well developed as those in a good novel. Skilled narrative journalists use story arcs, vivid descriptions and intimate interviews to capture and hold readers’ attention while illuminating a complex issue.
May 24, 2023
Good morning!
This week, we extend an exuberant THANK YOU to the many volunteer judges who helped with this year’s Awards for Excellence in Health Care Journalism. Since 2004, the Awards for Excellence in Health Care Journalism have recognized the best health reporting in print, broadcast, and online media. The contest was created by journalists for journalists and is not influenced or funded by commercial or special-interest groups.
Each year, we rely on the expertise of dozens of journalism professionals to sift through entries and help us recognize the best in health journalism and each year the contest needs new judges. Serving as a judge does not bar you from entering the contest. Our committee works to avoid conflicts of interest for judges as well as reporters/entries from their outlet. For questions about judging or if you are an AHCJ member interested in serving on the contest committee, please contact AHCJ Membership Manager Tina England at tina@healthjournalism.org.
Interested in volunteering as a judge for the 2023 contest? Sign up here.
Now in its 19th year, the Association of Health Care Journalists’ annual Awards for Excellence in Health Care Journalism is a professional and public affirmation of the importance of health care as a beat. To select the most powerful, poignant and effective stories from all the submissions requires significant time, dedication and care. For that, we thank the dozens of volunteer judges who make it all possible.
 HealthBeat San Diego-based inewsource investigative reporter Jennifer Bowman has tracked policymakers’ responses to the region’s rising count of people with mental illness experiencing homelessness and the often futile efforts of family… May 23, 2023 |
 HealthBeat Stories about health disparities — even ones about CDC statistics — need context about the social causes that contribute to them. Five academic reports about the history of laws and… May 18, 2023 |
 HealthBeat On May 24, the U.S. Department of Agriculture will hold a ribbon-cutting ceremonyfor theNational Bio and Agro-Defense Facility in Manhattan, Kan. The facilitywill monitor and respond to biological threats involving… May 17, 2023 |
We’re seeking a reporter with a strong interest in environmental health to join our team of HealthBeat leaders. These freelancers focus on helping AHCJ’s members do better journalism and share resources, tips, and terms that deepen our members’ understanding of timely and important subjects. The environmental health beat leader will guide our members’ reporting on how climate change, lack of access to clean air and water, energy and agricultural issues and other environmental challenges, are negatively impacting the physical and mental health of many Americans.
Continue reading →
Journalism’s Essential Value (A.G. Sulzberger for Columbia Journalism Review)
From birth to death | An AP series (AP News)
Drug Shortages Near an All-Time High, Leading to Rationing (Christina Jewett for New York Times)
Remote Work: An Underestimated Benefit for Family Caregivers (Joanne Kenen for Kaiser Health News)
Social Media Can Be a ‘Profound Risk’ to Youth, Surgeon General (Catherine Pearson and Matt Richtel for New York Times)
Freelance members, our monthly Lunch and Learn will be on hiatus until September 21. If you’re interested in revisiting past discussions, check out our Freelance Center networking section.
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May 17, 2023
Good morning!
The threat posed by COVID-19 has begun to feel more distant to most people, and the public health emergency ended last week. But there’s consensus among experts that there will very likely be another pandemic and that the U.S. is no better prepared for it than in early 2020 when life changed forever. In fact, in some ways we may be worse off than we were before because of the state of the U.S. public health infrastructure, a lack of data and the absence of a supply chain “control tower,” among other issues.
Even with concerns growing about avian flu, there’s a bright spot in this grim story: At the end of this month, the federal government is launching the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility to monitor and respond to biological threats from human, zoonotic and foreign animal diseases.
AHCJ members have an excellent opportunity to learn about this new facility and what it will do on Thursday in a webinar hosted by infectious disease beat leader Bara Vaida. She’ll talk to Ambika Bumb, deputy executive director of the Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense, about what reporters need to know about zoonotic threats, the biodefense of animal agriculture and why it’s important to keep reporting on pandemic preparedness. She’ll also talk about what kind of coordinated government effort is needed to reduce the risk of another global pandemic.
So join us at 1 p.m. CST/2 p.m. ET, on Thursday, May 18 for the conversation, and bring your questions for the Q&A. We look forward to seeing you.
AHCJ Webinar – What journalists should know about avian flu and pandemic preparedness The webcast link will go live shortly before 1 p.m. CST/2 p.m. ET
Meeting ID: 993 6565 0877 Passcode: 404320
AHCJ recently welcomed Kaitlin Washburn, a Chicago-based independent health reporter, as the organization’s first firearm violence and trauma HealthBeat leader (formerly known as core topic leader).
Funding for the new role comes from the Joyce Foundation, which also provided support for AHCJ’s fall summit in 2022 on firearm violence as a public health issue. >>READ MORE
 HealthBeat Just as gag orders conceal the activities of sexual predators, they are routinely used to bury instances of poor patient care. Typically it happens like this: The family of a… May 15, 2023 |
 HealthBeat This year, I found an accountability partner to help me meet writing deadlines, increase the rate at which I pitch ideas to editors and guide me through tough decisions. AHCJ… May 10, 2023 |
 HealthBeat Pear Therapeutics made headlines in 2017 as the first company to have a prescription digital therapeutic (PDT) cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for treatment of disease. Despite… May 9, 2023 |
May 18: AHCJ Lunch & Learn – Pitching and writing profiles, 1 p.m. ET
Join other freelance members to discuss a designated topic over Zoom every third Thursday of the month at 1 p.m. Eastern Time. The Zoom link goes live shortly before each event.
May 18: AHCJ Webinar – What journalists should know about avian flu and pandemic preparedness, 2 p.m. ET
Fellowships, Internships & Training Date posted: 04/18/23
The new Nova Media Fellowship supports print, broadcast, and digital journalists who wish to immerse themselves in the health field and complete media projects that explore the many factors that promote well-being, prevent disease, contribute to healing and increase an individual’s ability to flourish and live a fulfilling life. Ideal applicants are full-time journalists with established records of publication or broadcast in local, regional, or national markets or among targeted audiences/constituencies and have relevant full-time experience. Fellowships are full-time, last for 12 months and receive an award of $105,000. Applications close July 5, 2023. MORE INFO
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Consider becoming a member to take advantage of the following resources:
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Association of Health Care Journalists | info@healthjournalism.org | HealthJouralism.org
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May 10, 2023
Good morning!
One of the biggest health care stories of 2023 will break when the U.S. District Court in the Northern District of Texas rules in the case of Braidwood Management v. Becerra. Join us today at 12 p.m. ET for a webinar discussing the implications of the lawsuit.
A. Mark Fendrick, M.D., will join Joseph Burns, AHCJ core topic leader for health reform and insurance, to break down a pending case that could have massive implications for preventive care in the U.S.
Covering the lawsuit that could limit free preventive care
The webcast link will go live shortly before 12 p.m. ET
Meeting ID: 995 4005 4278 Passcode: 237533
 HEALTH BEAT The Association of Health Care Journalists (AHCJ) and its sister organization, the Center for Excellence in Health Care Journalism, announced that it will end its relationship with the University… May 9, 2023 |
 HEALTH BEAT Researching and writing queries can be the most dreaded part of being a freelance writer. But the work and time that goes into creating… May 5, 2023 |
 HEALTH BEAT More than two years after a federal rule required all hospitals to post what they charge patients, compliance with the rule has been poor.… May 3, 2023 |
May 10: AHCJ Webinar – Covering the lawsuit that could limit free preventive care, 12 p.m. ET
May 18: AHCJ Lunch & Learn – Pitching and writing profiles, 1 p.m. ET
Join other freelance members to discuss a designated topic over Zoom every third Thursday of the month at 1 p.m. Eastern Time. The Zoom link goes live shortly before each event.
May 18: AHCJ Webinar – What journalists should know about avian flu and pandemic preparedness, 2 p.m. ET
May 31: AHCJ Webinar – Reporting on Cancer in older adults. 1 p.m. ET
Fellowships, Internships & Training Date posted: 04/18/23
The new Nova Media Fellowship supports print, broadcast, and digital journalists who wish to immerse themselves in the health field and complete media projects that explore the many factors that promote well-being, prevent disease, contribute to healing and increase an individual’s ability to flourish and live a fulfilling life. Ideal applicants are full-time journalists with established records of publication or broadcast in local, regional, or national markets or among targeted audiences/constituencies and have relevant full-time experience. Fellowships are full-time, last for 12 months and receive an award of $105,000. Applications close July 5, 2023. MORE INFO
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We’re grateful for your membership. As a reminder, our members have access to the following resources:
*|END:IF|*
*|IF:MEMBER != Yes|*
Consider becoming a member to take advantage of the following resources:
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Association of Health Care Journalists | info@healthjournalism.org | HealthJouralism.org
If you’d no longer like to receive emails from AHCJ, you can unsubscribe here.
