The Knight-Bagehot Fellowship Program in Economics and Business Journalism was created at

Columbia University in the City of New York Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhattan, it ...

in response to the growing public interest in financial news and the increasing demand for trained editors and reporters to cover the field of business and economics. The Fellowship offers free tuition plus a $70,000 stipend.

History

In 1975, under the leadership of Dean

Elie Abel Elie Abel (October 17, 1920 – July 22, 2004) was a Canadian-American journalist, author and academic. Early life Born in Montreal, Quebec, Abel received a Bachelor of Arts degree from McGill University in 1941 and a Master of Science in journa ...

, the

Columbia Graduate School of Journalism The Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism is located in Pulitzer Hall on the university's Morningside Heights campus in New York City. Founded in 1912 by Joseph Pulitzer, Columbia Journalism School is one of the oldest journalism sch ...

sought to address the problem of deficiencies in business news coverage by establishing the

Walter Bagehot Walter Bagehot ( ; 3 February 1826 – 24 March 1877) was an English journalist, businessman, and essayist, who wrote extensively about government, economics, literature and race. He is known for co-founding the ''National Review'' in 1855 ...

(pronounced badge-it) Fellowship, an intensive year-long program of instruction in economics and business for working journalists. The co-founding directors were Stephen B. Shepard and Soma Golden Behr. Also serving as directors were Christopher J. Welles (1977-1985); Mary Bralove (1985-1987); Pamela Hollie Kluge (1987-1990) and Pauline Tai (1990-1993). Terri Thompson served from 1993-2018, when she retired. Raju Narisetti was director from 2018-2019. Ann Grimes was director from 2020-2021. Robert Smith, the current director of the program, took the position in July 2021. Originally named in honor of the 19th-century economist and editor of The Economist, it was renamed the Knight-Bagehot Fellowship in 1987 in recognition of the John S. and James L. Knight-Foundation's $3 million gift as an endowment for the program. Today, the Knight-Bagehot Fellowship is the only academic full-time degree-granting mid-career program for journalists devoted to the study of business and economics. Fellows receive full tuition and a living stipend to attend Columbia for one academic year. The chief criterion for selection is demonstrated journalistic excellence. Between 1975 and 2020, nearly 400 accomplished journalists completed this rigorous program; many now hold positions in newsrooms around the world.

Directors (past and present)

* Stephen Shepard (1975–1976) * Soma Golden Behr (1976–1977) * Chris Welles (1977–1985) * Mary Bralove (1985–1987) * Pamela Hollie Kluge (1987–1990) * Pauline Tai (1990–1993) * Terri Thompson (1993–2018) * Raju Narisetti (2018–2019) * Ann Grimes (2020–2021) * Robert Smith (2021-present)

Notable alumni

Julia Angwin Julia Angwin is an American investigative journalist, author, and entrepreneur. She co-founded and was editor-in-chief of ''The Markup'', a nonprofit newsroom that investigates the impact of technology on society. She was a staff reporter at the ...

* John Authers * Janet Bodnar * Neill Borowski * David Cho *

Gail Collins Gail Collins (born November 25, 1945) is an American journalist, op-ed columnist and author, most recognized for her work with ''The New York Times''.

* Kate Davidson *

Barbara Demick Barbara Demick is an American journalist. She was the Beijing bureau chief of the ''Los Angeles Times''. She is also known for her books '' Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea,'' ''Eat the Buddha: Life and Death in a Tibetan Town,'' ...

* Emmanuel K. Dogbevi * Liza Featherstone *

Karl Taro Greenfeld Karl Taro Greenfeld (born 1965) is a journalist, novelist and television writer known primarily for his articles on life in modern Asia and both his fiction and non-fiction in ''The Paris Review''. Biography Born in Kobe, Japan, to a Japanese m ...

Gail Gregg Gail Gregg (born 1951) is an American mixed-media artist and journalist based in New York City.Landi, Ann. "Gail Gregg," ''ARTnews'', January 2008, p. 126.DiGiovanna, Rebecca. ''Blurring Boundaries: The Women of American Abstract Artists, 1936 � ...

* Jan Hopkins * Dawn Kissi *

Mara Liasson Mara Liasson (; born June 13, 1955) is an American journalist and political pundit. She is the national political correspondent for NPR,Dave Lindorff Dave Lindorff is an American investigative reporter, filmmaker, a columnist for ''CounterPunch'' and a contributor to '' Tarbell.org,'' ''The Nation,'' ''FAIR'' and ''Salon.com''. His work was highlighted by Project Censored 2004, 2011 and 2012. ...

* Phillip Longman * Amanda Macias *

Larry Madowo Larry Madowo (born 14 July 1987) is a CNN International Correspondent and host of thAfrican Voices Changemakersand Playmakers series. He was previously a North America Correspondent for the BBC and also anchored breaking news and presented '' B ...

Floyd Norris Floyd Norris (born September 6, 1947 Los Angeles) is the former chief financial correspondent of ''The New York Times'' and ''International Herald Tribune''. He wrote a regular column on the stock market for the ''Times'', plus a blog. He now ser ...

* Donna Rosato * John Saunders *

Anya Schiffrin Anya Schiffrin (born December 6, 1962) is the director of the Technology, Media, and Communications (TMaC) specialization at Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA), and a senior lecturer at the School of Internati ...

* Donna Shaw-Bielski * Seth Stevenson * Craig Torres * Ann Scott Tyson * Mary Williams Walsh *

David Wessel David Meyer Wessel (born February 21, 1954) is an American journalist and writer. He has shared two Pulitzer Prizes for journalism. He is director of the Hutchins Center on Fiscal & Monetary Policy at the Brookings Institution and a contributing ...

Gerri Willis Gerri Willis is an American television news journalist and former host of ''The Willis Report'', a daytime program on Fox Business, focusing on consumer and personal finance issues. Early life and education Gerri Willis was born on August 14, 1 ...

* Christine Young-Pertel

References

{{Reflist

External links

Official Site
Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism Journalism fellowships