The Laadli Media Fellowship 2026, supported by UNFPA. The fellowship invites journalists interested in gender-sensitive and ethical reporting.  The theme for this year is Child Marriage in India: Exploring Its Gendered and Intersectional Dimensions. Journalists are encouraged to report on the social and human realities that sustain child marriage, including adolescent health, SRHR, poverty, climate change, migration, community roles, masculinity, survivor voices, and inter-generational impacts.  Journalists with 3–5 years of experience in social or development reporting can apply. The fellowship will run from February 1 to March 30, 2026. Selected fellows will receive an honorarium of ₹20,000 for two original, in-depth stories published in their media outlet.  The deadline to apply is January 28, 2026.  

Image edited by Dinesh Raj M   Here’s the thing. The most effective form of intimidation doesn’t always arrive with handcuffs. Sometimes it shows up as paperwork, quietly stamped, politely worded, and endlessly renewable. In Jammu and Kashmir, journalism is being disciplined not through bans or arrests, but through a slow procedural grind that turns reporting itself into a liability. Summons. Undertakings. Bonds. Hours of questioning. Promises not to repeat what has already been published. This is not law enforcement correcting errors. It is the state training journalists to anticipate punishment. That is the real story behind the recent summoning of reporters from national outlets such as The Indian Express and Hindustan Times for covering the police’s profiling of mosques, imams, and seminaries. The reporting was not the provocation. The visibility was. According to detailed reporting by The Wire and Madhyamam Online, Indian Express reporter Bashaarat

Political parties in Jammu and Kashmir have voiced concern over the recent summoning of Srinagar-based journalists by police, calling the move an overreach and a threat to press freedom. Over the past several days, reporters working with national media organisations have been summoned to the Cyber Police Station in Srinagar for questioning in connection with a January 13 report on the profiling of mosques and imams in the Union Territory. Journalists said they were questioned about routine reporting, with some claiming they were asked to sign bonds or undertakings. One reporter from a national daily was reportedly called for questioning for three consecutive days. Hindustan Times reporter Ashiq Hussain also received an oral summons, but the newspaper has sought a written notice stating the reasons before responding. The controversy follows criticism on January 14 over police distribution of forms to village officials seeking details of mosques and madrasas, including financial rec

The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on authorities in the eastern Indian state of West Bengal to swiftly and impartially investigate a series of attacks on journalists covering protests in Murshidabad district and to ensure the safety of members of the press, particularly as the state heads into elections in the coming months. At least four journalists were assaulted over two days beginning January 16 while reporting from Beldanga in Murshidabad district. According to CPJ, On January 16, Soma Maity, a journalist with broadcaster Zee 24 Ghanta, and her cameraman were attacked by a mob while reporting from the area, according to multiple news reports and the journalist, who spoke with CPJ by phone. Maity said two men grabbed and lifted her, pulled her hair, restrained her legs, and tore at her clothes while others touched her body. Her cameraman sustained head injuries during the assault and was hospitalised. The following day, ABP Ananda reporter Parthapratim Ghosh and photo

The annual conference of Media Cares Odisha placed a strong spotlight on the health, welfare, and social security of journalists and their families, particularly in the aftermath of the COVID‑19 pandemic, Orissa Diary reported. Formed to support mediapersons affected during the pandemic, the organisation has brought together around 250 journalists in Rayagada district, sustaining mutual aid without organised funding. District Chairman Dr. Badal Kumar Tah praised the collective effort as a matter of pride that has helped address critical issues. The conference began with a tribute to 33 journalists who lost their lives, followed by a silent prayer. Senior journalist Janmejay Swain highlighted the contributions and health needs of 14 senior journalists above 60, demanding immediate implementation of a family pension scheme on the lines of other states. General Secretary Ranjan Rath presented the activity report, while Treasurer Goparanjan Baxipatra placed the financial statemen

Mi3's Fast News - originally positioned as an AI experiment - is an experiment no more as it has been folded into the core Mi3 product. The AI-powered news service launched two years ago and was originally delivered to readers as a unique newsletter but will now be part of the primary Mi3 Daily Edition, which is expanding to a five-day per week cadence. News is also now integrated into the core online story list, rather than existing as a silo. Writing about the change on Mi3, publisher Nadia Cameron said that it had been an "eye-opening, sometimes frustrating and sometimes jubilant two years since we launched Mi3's Fast News". However, the AI automations had proven themselves, both in their ability to sustain newsroom efficiencies, but also their ability to attract an audience. "By integrating our AI-supported, transactional news into the overall Mi3 masthead offering, we’re signalling AI-supported content delivery is a new, permanent reality of news