IRE partners with Journalism Mentors to provide free mentorship

IRE is partnering with the Media Mentors program at JournalismMentors.com to provide mentorship and guidance to journalists looking to build skills in data and watchdog reporting. 

Media Mentors is a mentoring program from journalism-internships.com, a website dedicated to fostering the next generation of media leaders. Mentors listed on the website have volunteered to offer half-hour, one-on-one sessions for advice, guidance or general questions about navigating the media industry. The website is run by Adriana Lacy, who works at Axios, and Caitlin Ostroff, who works at The Wall Street Journal.

Mentors on the Investigative page of the JournalismMentors.com website will be IRE members who have volunteered to help others with skills such as data journalism, requesting public records, approaching an accountability interview and other watchdog reporting skills. Those seeking mentorship are not required to be IRE members, and mentorship sessions are free to all.

“The ease of navigating the journalism industry and getting into investigative reporting shouldn’t be determined by where someone lives or where that person studied,” said Caitlin Ostroff, a co-founder of Media Mentors. “Adriana and I benefited immensely from the advice of veteran journalists as we started our careers and are thrilled to work with IRE to reach more mentees and mentors.”

IRE encourages members who have previously mentored others to volunteer through JournalismMentors.com.

Previously, mentorship was available only at IRE’s two annual conferences. This program makes mentorship more widely available throughout the year and to those who cannot travel to conferences.

"We’re thrilled to offer a more robust investigative mentoring program for IRE members and the broader journalism community," said Kat Stafford, an IRE board member and Membership Services Committee chair. "Mentorship is at the heart of IRE's mission, and we’re grateful this new partnership will help us build the next generation of diverse investigative journalists and representative newsrooms.”

Through the website, mentors set up office hours when they are available, and mentees can choose a time to set up a chat through an automated system. In addition to the IRE partnership, Media Mentors also offers mentorship in other topics such as editing, marketing, design/photo and audience engagement. See the frequently asked questions page on JournalismMentors.com for more information.