The Graduate School of Journalism at Columbia University announced today the establishment of The Ira A. Lipman Center for Journalism and Civil and Human Rights which will, among other activities, award fellowships for journalists pursuing important work related to these subjects.
The center, to be directed by Jelani Cobb, the Ira A. Lipman professor of journalism, will begin awarding two annual fellowships in 2018. The fellowship is intended to produce a significant piece of reportage concerning civil and human rights in the United States. The fellows will be known as The Ira A. Lipman Fellows in Journalism and Civil and Human Rights.
“With contentious debates around immigration, religious freedom, voter suppression, crime and police accountability, we need journalism that can inform and shape our understanding of race, gender, diversity, and the evolution of civil rights,” said Dean Steve Coll in announcing the Center. “We are fortunate that we have in Ira A. Lipman a champion of both public interest journalism and equal rights for all Americans.”