February 2026: The 31st Annual Community Media Awards nominations are open! We’re launching a Health Reporting and Research Fellowship
Hey, Narrative Change Community!
Photo of Jhmira Alexander by Matthew Ewing for Public Narrative.
For nearly 40 years, Public Narrative has created opportunities for Chicago’s storytellers to be seen, heard and celebrated for their acts of courage, kindness and justice. As we kick off awards season, I’m reminded of the importance of staying focused, regardless of external circumstances that arise.
This month, I was invited to a leadership development event hosted by the MacArthur Foundation. Our facilitator led us through a series of prompts that challenged us to explore the ways we’ve exercised courage, and it was the most enriching experience.
Reflecting on all shared among my partners and I during the event, I found the common denominator in all of our experiences: Continuity.
The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines continuity as uninterrupted connection, succession, union or duration.
Examples of continuity are found in the countless ways many of you reading this newsletter show up for the communities who depend on your work. It’s my hope that your own communities of support provide you a listening ear and a shoulder to lean on when times are most challenging for you, the leader.
While reading this newsletter in its entirety, please consider inviting your community to attend the programs and events featured. You never know–they may find much needed care and support to brave the days, weeks and months ahead.
With sincerity,
Jhmira Alexander
President and CEO
NOMINATIONS OPEN: 31st ANNUAL COMMUNITY MEDIA AWARDS
Support local media! Check out upcoming events on the Chicago Local Media Events Calendar!
The Community Media Awards celebrate storytelling in the Studs Terkel tradition, and it’s crucial that the essential work of journalism continues now more than ever.
The 31st Annual Community Media Awards will take place Thursday, May 14, 2026 at the Chicago Cultural Center.
Help us highlight the incredible journalists, individuals, and civic organizations who continue to make a difference by keeping us informed and connected.
Celebrate with us by honoring those making a difference. Nominations close Friday, February 27!
See Categories and Nominate Today
Don’t Miss DePaul University Institute for Journalism and Racial Justice Launch with speaker Lori Lightfoot
Join us for the launch of The DePaul Institute for Journalism and Racial Justice, an innovative new resource as part of the local media community network. The featured conversation will be a media community briefing on the new platform, Report ICE Now, led by Mayor Lori Lightfoot, to increase transparency and accountability for ICE activities in Chicago and beyond, with a relevant update from Deborah Douglas, Director of Medill Solutions Journalism Hub at Northwestern University.
Health Science Reporting Fellowship for Chicagoland Community Media Journalists
The Health Science Reporting Fellowship for Journalists is co-led by Public Narrative & the Alliance for Research with Chicagoland Communities at Northwestern University.
The goal of the Fellowship is to support Chicagoland community media journalists in making health science, data, and issues accessible, understandable, and actionable for the benefit of the public’s health.
The Fellowship is an opportunity to:
Grow the field of journalists covering health science in the Chicago area.
Enhance journalists’ capacity to understand health science, data sources, and issues.
Cover the changing health landscape, including shifts in health and science misinformation and disinformation, the public’s health and science literacy, and trusted messengers.
This 3-month Fellowship will support a cohort of 4-5 Fellows and provide to fellows a reimbursement of up to $4,000, capacity building sessions including a mix of in-person (2-3) and virtual workshops (2-3), informal virtual cohort check-ins, resources, and connections.
Applications close March 16, 2026 (11:59 PM).
See what’s being published this month.
Evanston RoundTable // Les Jacobson: Walking with Dr. King.
Les Jacobson: Walking with Dr. King // Evanston RoundTable
We can find our ‘great purpose’ by being a volunteer. “We remember that, regardless of our backgrounds or our current circumstances, we are, in the words of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., ‘caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny.’ We are obligated, by our profound and inescapable interconnection, to help one another through life’s many challenges, and beyond the forces of division, hate and fear that threaten.” Rev. Eileen Wiviott of Unitarian Church of Evanston.
Read more: Les Jacobson: Walking with Dr. King
The Collective Art of Puppeteering: How Latino Artists Are Carving Out Spaces For Themselves And Generations to Come // City Bureau
Underrepresented in the niche puppet scene, a community of Latino artists including Changosnakedog are leaning on one another for mentorship, and striving to make their performances accessible across generations, languages and music genres.
SNAP 2026: What To Know About New Federal Changes // Borderless Magazine
New work eligibility rules for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, known as SNAP, started on Feb. 1. Borderless Magazine breaks down who’s still eligible, what to know about these changes and what immigrants can do now.
Read more: SNAP 2026: What To Know About New Federal Changes
Explore Chicago's opportunities and jobs.
Executive Director // United Working Families
Policy Operations Manager // Arts Alliance Illinois
Director of Communications // Housing Authority of Cook County
TJA Reporting Fellowship // Trans Journalists Association
February 20: GLORY! GLORY! // Women Unite!
A group exhibition examining symbolism, citizenship, and collective power through contemporary Black art.
March 18: Beyond the Headlines: A Candid Conversation between Kim Foxx and Tracy Brown // YWCA Metropolitan Chicago
An evening with former Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx and WBEZ's Tracy Brown as they engage in a candid conversation exploring leadership in the public eye, navigating scrutiny, and building resilience with purpose.
Add your organization’s event to PN’s new Chicago Local Media Events Calendar!
