Former Welsh affairs editor at Reach’s Wales Online Will Hayward has launched a fund aiming to support young investigative journalists.
The total fund of £10,000 consists of money coming partly from Hayward’s Substack business and partly from a private charitable grant.
Hayward originally wrote The Will Hayward Newsletter, covering Welsh politics and Welsh issues, for Wales Online but left Reach and relaunched it independently last year.
He said the newsletter has since “exceeded my wildest dreams” and is bringing in the vast majority of his income. It has just been shortlisted for best specialist/regional newsletter at Press Gazette’s Future of Media Awards, as was the podcast he co-creates For Wales, See Wales.
Hayward now wants to help address challenges for other journalists in Wales.
“One of the challenges we have in Wales is that we have a limited media landscape. The journalists we do have are very good but we don’t have enough of them.”
Some Welsh local authorities are severely lacking in local media coverage, maps produced by Press Gazette last year found.
“This challenge is compounded by the fact it is very hard for young/newly qualified journalists to develop and hone their investigative/in-depth reporting skills,” Hayward continued.
“When you are early in your career you tend not to have the contacts, experience or time to really delve into an issue. You also don’t have the portfolio or profile that makes news organisations inclined to give you that chance.
“We know that with a Welsh Parliament election in 10 months, the amount of misinformation will soar and the need for informed public interest journalism will be higher than ever. We also know that young people and those in deprived areas are already the main targets for this misinformation.”
Hayward is offering successful applicants to the fund between £150 and £500 for a pitched article depending on the “depth or investigation needed”.
Successful applicants will also benefit from personalised support from Hayward to aid their investigation and research, with the opportunity to use his contacts where necessary.
Upon the publication of their article, writers will be credited in the byline and on Hayward’s social media channels, with Hayward saying this would help them start building a portfolio of published work to help them pitch articles to other organisations.
To apply for the fund candidates must meet the following criteria be Welsh or based in Wales, be relatively young or early in their career and have some experience or training in journalism.
They must pitch an article that fit within one of these topics: climate change and biodiversity loss, poverty, the rise of the far right and/or political extremism, and exposing misinformation or disinformation.
Hayward added: “I am so excited about this. Wales desperately needs more people championing Welsh issues and holding those in power to account. I hope this can go a small way towards doing that.”
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