The William Southam

Journalism Fellowships

The William Southam Journalism Fellows are an integral part of the Massey College community. Since 1962, the program has gathered over 250 esteemed Canadian and international journalists for an academic year of education, reflection, and fellowship. 

Applications must include a professional biography, current CV, a statement of intent explaining why you wish to be considered for a Fellowship and what course(s) of study you feel will contribute most to your professional development, how you would benefit from the multidisciplinary environment at Massey College, and how you would contribute to the Massey community. We also ask for three samples of recent work and the names of two referees that will provide reference letters. 

Massey College is committed to fostering a culture of inclusivity and advancing equality – we encourage journalists from traditionally excluded and marginalized groups to apply.

Applications for 2024/2025 Fellowships are now open and will close on March 31st at midnight. 

Meet the 2023-2024 William Southam Journalism Fellows

Webster McConnell Fellow

Garvia Bailey is a co-founder of the award-winning production company Media Girlfriends, which amplifies underrepresented voices in media. A Jamaican-born, small-town raised Torontonian, Garvia’s career spans two decades as a producer, host, and columnist for the CBC and JazzFM and as a freelance journalist. Her work includes the award-winning Canadian Black history podcast series, Strong and Free/Fort et Libre, which she hosted, co-wrote and co-produced.  She is co-creator of Storytelling with a Focus on Podcasting, a Carleton University course. Garvia is a judge for the Hillman Prize for Investigative Journalism. 

Julia Caron

CBC Radio-Canada Fellow

Julia Caron is the host of Quebec AM, Quebec’s only English-language province-wide daily morning show. Prior to working for the CBC she freelanced and was a regular contributor to Shameless Magazine, Racialicious, Jezebel and had successful features in Al-Jazeera and WORN Journal. She holds a BA Honours from Trent University and a Masters in Documentary Film Studies from Université Laval. 

Hamutal Dotan

William Southam Journalism Fellow

Hamutal Dotan is an editor, editorial consultant, and journalism teacher in Toronto with fifteen years of experience in magazine, newspaper, digital, and broadcast journalism. Previously she was senior editor at The Walrus, Focus editor at the Globe and Mail, and editor-in-chief of Torontoist, as well as a political analyst for the CBC. Features she has edited have been nominated for or won National Magazine Awards, National Newspaper Awards, and the Canadian Association of Journalists Award, among others. Her particular loves are long-form storytelling, editorial strategy, and building more equitable newsrooms. 

Anna Mehler Paperny

St. Clair Balfour Fellow

Anna Mehler Paperny is an award-winning reporter with Reuters, covering everything from migration to health to justice. Her debut book, Hello I Want to Die Please Fix Me: Depression in the First Person, was a national bestseller and was shortlisted for the Hilary Weston Writers’ Trust Prize for Nonfiction. She’s worked at The Globe and Mail and developed globalnews.ca’s award-winning Investigative Data Desk. Her work on deaths in Canadian prisons won an RTDNA Dan McArthur Award for investigative journalism. 

 

Hasan Shaaban

CJFE / Massey College Fellow

Hasan Shaaban is a freelance photo journalist originally from Beirut, Lebanon who recently moved to Canada after facing death threats for his reporting. He was covering water shortages in a village in southern Lebanon when Hezbollah members threatened and attacked him. After covering Lebanon for years, the risk became too great, and he was forced to flee. Hasan has worked in a freelance capacity for the The Guardian, The Washington Post, The Globe and Mail, Der Tagesspiegel and many others. 

The Southam Podcast

EPISODE 1: The Story Behind Unfounded

The Globe and Mail’s Robyn Doolittle talks about her nearly two-year investigation into police response to sexual assault complaints.

EPISODE 2: Care and Consent

Veteran journalists Carol Off (CBC), Michelle Shephard (Toronto Star), Manisha Krishnan (VICE), Shawney Cohen (VICE), and Kathy English (Toronto Star), discuss how they keep their sources safe while doggedly pursuing the story.

Program Overview

William Southam Journalism Fellows are outstanding Canadian journalists in mid-career who are invited to spend a year at Massey College, a graduate college within the University of Toronto. The objective of the fellowship program is to encourage improvement in journalism, offering journalists an opportunity to broaden their horizons by studying in a university setting.

Fellows are selected by a committee appointed by the President of the University and the Principal of Massey College. They are chosen for professional competence and future potential as effective and responsible journalists.

Three or more fellowships for Canadian journalists are awarded annually, tenable for one academic year, September to May.

Applicants must be full-time news or editorial employees with Canadian newspapers, news services, radio, television, or magazines, with at least five years’ experience. Freelance journalists working consistently in the media over a five-year period are also eligible.

Fellows enrol in any graduate or undergraduate courses, and have access to the full facilities of the University. There are no educational prerequisites for a Fellowship. Fellows do not receive credits or degrees for work done during the year.

The academic program typically combines general education with concentration in at least two courses; one course must be taken in full and all assignments completed.

In a parallel extra-curricular program, the Fellows meet regularly for informal seminars to discuss contemporary issues with guests invited from a wide variety of professions.

To obtain the maximum benefit of the program, the successful candidates agree to refrain from all professional work, including writing and broadcasting, during the period of the Fellowship. Personal holidays or travel is restricted to University holiday periods. Those selected are appointed Fellows-at-Large at the University of Toronto, with all the privileges of a Senior Resident at Massey College.

Fellows are invited, throughout the fellowship, to create a piece of reportage (in the format of their choice) that reflects Massey’s academic pursuits. Fellows will be expected to share  their work through publication on the Massey College website.

The Fellowships underwrite: (1) A stipend of $4,900 per month, for the eight-month university year, from September to April; (2) All university fees; (3) Travel expenses up to the cost of economy air fare to and from Toronto for the Fellow and family; (4) Travel expenses for organized trips during the program.

If you are interested in the Gordon N. Fisher/JHR Journalism Fellowship, please see the information and application instructions below.

The Gordon N. Fisher/JHR Journalism Fellowship provides an opportunity for a journalist from one of JHR’s program countries in the Middle East and Sub Saharan Africa. Run in tandem with the Southam Fellowships, the same conditions apply.

 

Please visit the JHR Website for more information, and to apply for the Gordon N. Fisher/JHR Journalism Fellowship.

In furthering vibrant democracies and protecting journalists’ freedom of expression, Massey College in partnership with Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE) are pleased to provide an opportunity for an international journalist in need of refuge because they face persecution or danger for their work defending freedom of expression, human rights or democracy in their home countries. Run in tandem with the William Southam Journalism Fellowships.

William Southam Journalism Fellows Alumni Roster

2022-2023

Zuhal Ahad

Wanja Gathu

Natasha Grzincic

Hannah Hoag

Omayra Issa

Valérie Ouellete

 

2021-2022

Michael Barclay

Rebecca Collard

Patrick Egwu

Mujtaba Haris

Jonathan Montpetit

Jalal Nazari

Wency Leung

2020-2021

Nana aba Duncan

Emefa Dzradosi

Keith Gerein

Kyaw Soe Oo

Wa Lone

Duncan McCue

Leslie Young

2019-2020

Joey Coleman

Dana Gibreel

John Perry

Sarah Rogers

Martha Troian

2018 - 2019

Amy Dempsey

Richard Goddard

Lagu Joseph Kenyi

Richard Warnica

Chris Windeyer

2017 - 2018

Esther Mngodo

Silvia Rosa

Siobhan Roberts

Naheed Mustafa

Jim Rankin

Natalie Alcoba

2016 - 2017

James Lebans

Martine Laberge

Hugo de Grandpre

Katie Daubs

Rodney Sieh

2015 - 2016

Luiz Hidalgo Nunes Jr.

Mustapha Dumbuya

Elizabeth Renzetti

Jennifer Moroz

Emily Mathieu

2014 - 2015

Verena Klein

Samuel Awami

Lisa Godfrey

Sarah Lazarovic

Catherine Solyom

Angela Sterritt

2013 - 2014

Amara Bangura

José Peralta

Jody Porter

Veronique Morin

Kelly Crowe

David Rider

2012 - 2013

Luis Najera

Mary Triny Mena

Murray Whyte

Mary Agnes Welch

Gil Shochat

Teresa Chirwa

Peter Kuitenbrouwer

2011 - 2012

Ato Kwamena Dadzie

Neil Sandell

Luis Najera

Lee Pitts

Shawn Micallef

Robert Cribb

Elizabeth Bowie

2010 - 2011

Jeff Warren

Hugo Rodrigues

Susan Mahoney

Yong Ho Kim

Elizabeth Church

2009 - 2010

Ivan Semeniuk

Kevin Robertson

Rachel Pulfer

Eric Lemus

Marina Jimenezeu

2008 - 2009

Graham Thomson

Robert Mukasa

Michelle Gagnon

Eric Foss

Susan Delacourt

2007 - 2008

Andrew Teyie

Sheree-Lee Olson

Liane Faulder

Jeffrey Brown

2006 - 2007

Rob Warner

Kevin Sylvester

Marcus Gee

Nazim Baksh

Emmanuel Akli

2005 - 2006

Bashir Tariq

Kirk Makin

April Lindgren

Maureen Brosnahan

Shaughnessy Bishop-Stall

2004 - 2005

Marie-Reine Roy

Claude Mills

John Geiger

Don Butler

Avril Benoit

2003 - 2004

Philip  Preville

Sandra Martin

Teddy Katz

Margo Harper

Rozima Ali

Aaron Berhane

2002 - 2003

Lynne Robson

Konstantin Parshin

Omatie Lyder

Monika Delmos

Shawn Blore

Richard Blackwell

Folagboye Adekeye

2001 - 2002

Doreen Zimbizi

Danielle Savoie

Sheila  Pratt

David Napier

Peter Goodspeed

Kate Bell

2000 - 2001

Ransford Tetteh

John Racovali

Francois Pouliot

Sean O’Malley

David Miller

Joan Leishman

Charles Campbell

1999 - 2000

Vijay Thapa

Lynda Shorten

David Parkinson

Janet McFarland

Agnes Gruda

1998 - 1999

Sadia Zaman

Debkumar Mitra

Kimberly Lunman

Marta Gold

Robert Everett-Green

Yun-Xian Ding

1997 - 1998

Catherine Wallace

Sara Sseggane

Val Ross

Anne Marie Owens

Steve Lukits

Cathy Chan

Lou Clancy

1996 - 1997

Isabel Vincent

David Staples

Lisa Priest

Kajubi Mukajanga

Barbara Crook

Annie Cheng

1995 - 1996

Luca Pocci

Juliet O’Neill

Jongho Na

Anne Dawson

Anne Budgell

1994 - 1995

Daniel Schwartz

Sheila Robertson

Anne Collins

Patience Akpan

1993 - 1994

Ian Urquhart

Chandni Sahgal

Jane O’Hara

Paul Kaihla

John Ibbitson

Dawna Friesen

1992 - 1993

Lois Sweet

Thyra Obuobi

Douglas Fischer

Dale Eisler

Helen Branswell

1991 - 1992

Joe Sornberger

David Prosser

Judy Piercey

Sam Omatseye

Riccardo Fontani

Sandra Bartlett

1990 - 1991

Sheryl Ubelacker

Siham Muntasser

Lorraine Locherty

Deanna Herman

Jennifer Dundas

Robert Crew

1989 - 1990

Andrew Ogle

Anne Mullens

Patrick Martin

David Gollob

Paule Des Rivieres

Elaine Carey

1988 - 1989

Helene Pichette

Christine Mushka

Massimo Maccherini

Brenda Dalglish

Stephen Bindman

Susan Helwig

1987 - 1988

Beverley Spencer

Sheldon Gordon

Joan Crockatt

Robert Carty

1986 - 1987

Edward Struzik

Gary May

Josef Knycha

Christopher Grosskurth

Ann Dowsett Johnston

1985 - 1986

Leslie Scrivener

Stanley Oziewicz

Peter Morton

Dorothy Lipovenko

Lewis Harris

1984 - 1985

Geoffrey White

Yolande L’Ecuyer

Thomas Hopkins

E. Fulton

Michael Cobden

1983 - 1984

Joann Webb

William Peterson

Wendylee Koenig

Linda Hossie

Maria De Magistris

Murray Campbell

1982 - 1983

Kathryn Warden

Janice Mawhinney

Norma Greenaway

Michael Cooke

Peter Calamai

1981 - 1982

Judith Timson

Susan Riley

Susan MacKenzie

Douglas MacKay

Bernard Descoteaux

1980 - 1981

Paul Vasey

J. McConachie

Raymond Giroux

David Cobb

Helen Bullock

1979 - 1980

Gerard McNeil

Catherine Ford

Michael Enright

Maxine Crook

Murray Ball

1978 - 1979

John Skinner

Daniel Proudfoot

Jenni Mortin

Agnes McFarlane

G. Kirby

1977 - 1978

Michel Nadeau

Denis Massicotte

Linda Hughes

John Aitken

1976 - 1977

Hendrik Overduin

John Miller

Frank Jones

George Hutchison

Kathleen Brooks

1975 - 1976

Christina McCall

Gordon D. Fisher

Ray Dick

Yvonne Burgess

John Brehl

1974 - 1975

Maggie Siggins

David Oancia

Lillian  Newbery

Donald MacLachlan

Real Bouvier

1973 - 1974

Nicolaas Van Rijn

Jonathan Manthorpe

Roger Lacasse

Sally Barnes

Mervin Anderson

1972 - 1973

Martin O’Malley

Hugh McCullum

Betty Lee

Arthur Bud Jorgensen

Francois Aubin

1971 - 1972

Arnold Zeman

David Stein

Bruno Gauron

Marian Bruce

John Brown

Dennis Anderson

1970 - 1971

Andrew Szende

Garry Smith

Philip McLeod

Kenneth Clarke

W. Harry Bruce

1969 - 1970

Albert Sokol

Lewis Seale

Paul Gibson

Guy Demarino

Peter Buckley

1968 - 1969

Robert Gravel

Reginald Vickers

Gary Oakes

Peter Jackman

Warren Gerard

Marcel Desjardins

1967 - 1968

Barrie Zwicker

Peter Ward

Peter Moon

James Ferrabee

Yves Bernier

1966 - 1967

Bernard Tierney

Robert Stewart

Richard Purser

Denis Grayhurst

Frank Adams

1965 - 1966

Donna Dilschneider

Carman Cumming

Mario Cardinal

Howard Bennett

Alan Anderson

1964 - 1965

Alan Morton

Allan Fotheringham

Arnold Bruner

1963 - 1964

Richard Snell

Robin Green

Robert Campbell

Jack Best

Robert Abra

1962 - 1963

Claude Tessier

Stephen Franklin

William Gold

Andrew Macfarlane

In association with Journalists for Human Rights, Canadian Journalists for Free Expression, Massey College and the University of Toronto are grateful for the generosity of the Alva Foundation, the estate of the late St. Clair Balfour, Lisa Balfour Bowen and the late Walter Bowen, Clair Balfour and Marci McDonald, Wilson J.H. Southam, the R. Howard Webster Foundation, the J.W. McConnell Family Foundation, CBC/Radio-Canada, the McLaughlin Centre, and for the generosity of past Journalism Fellows.

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For more information please contact:

Emily Mockler

Director, Partnerships and Programs

emockler@masseycollege.ca

416-978-6606

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