TL;DR: QueerAF is launching a new scheme, to invest in marginalised LGBTQIA+ journalists, that as well as delivering talent opportunities, mentoring and training, will fill a growing news gap the LGBTQIA+ community faces
Investigative journalism is a revered art - one that has been documented in books, films, TV shows and art. Journalism's power to track stories as they happen and reveal scoops that set global agendas is not always seen in real time.
However, the swell of consistent investigative journalism is remembered in history as a pivotal part of social change.
But our community faces a growing mainstream media that, at best, fails to do justice to our stories and, at worst, woefully misrepresents them.
To fight back, we need information at our fingertips, to hold power to account and march forward. The only way we can do that is by investing in a new generation of LGBTQIA+ journalists to lead that fight. Better still, we should skill them up, so they can take that approach to newsrooms all over the country.
QueerAF was founded to embody and set into action a theory of change. At the heart of that is a plan to develop a new generation of resilient LGBTQIA+ creatives who can go on to change the way stories about queer lives are told.
We started off as we mean to carry on - in our first four years, we've mentored 150 queer creatives to bring the LGBTQIA+ community the content it needs to stay informed and to fight back with.
From day one, that has meant that, in addition to the work we do to interpret the headlines that impact our community, we have had to invest in investigative journalism of our own that the media industry has failed to produce.
This week, that work deepens. Thanks to crowdfunding support from you, significant donations from individuals, and our partnership with the Good Law Project, we are launching a new scheme.
It will offer emerging, student and underrepresented queer journalists the opportunity to get published, receive mentorship, grow their craft and gain renown as a media professional who delivers critical, exclusive journalism.
We are now taking pitches across exclusive news, in-depth explainer, and for students on investigative journalism placement schemes.
We've been trialling the schemes already, to get them in the best shape before launching. So you've already seen the impact they can have.
Stella Rogers’ investigation led to harmful books that advocate for a form of, what the experts we spoke to called akin to conversion practices, being removed from libraries. It led to action by readers like you all over the country. Just this week, we heard from another reader who took this investigation and contacted their library with it. Stella not only got paid and published, but was mentored, and got a byline credit while doing a critical work-experience module for her university course. That's alongside scoops by our lead investigative journalist, and explainers on big issues like Trans+ sports bans.
Ludovic Parsons, QueerAF's lead investigative journalist, says “investigative journalism is important because it holds power to account.
"With white supremacist and fascist governments flexing their muscles on the global stage, LGBTQIA+ people – alongside many others – are seeing our rights and lives targeted by powerful forces. Investing in independent, queer-led investigative journalism is a vital part of fighting back.
"QueerAF’s new scheme will support a new generation of queer and trans journalists to learn how to do this challenging and time-consuming work – something that will greatly benefit the British media landscape and, more importantly, LGBTQIA+ people in the UK."
The stories we broke over the last year alone weren't getting the attention they deserved, and we knew that we needed to spread the word so our community could take action. That work continues, and as we head into a year since the Supreme Court decision on the definition of a woman under the Equality Act, exposing the anti-trans machine is critical and urgent. It also comes at a time, when queer media is under great strain, and some of the biggest players are divesting from news.
This scheme will enable even more journalists to pick up the torch, dig up the dirt, and share the hidden agenda with you - so you can fight back.
QueerAF memberships (from as little as the cost of a coffee) are the best way to support our crucial work: Investing in a new generation of LGBTQIA+ journalists, and filling a growing news gap so you can get the information you need, to fight back
