Leading Australian journalists selected for inaugural Beyond the Headlines Fellowship

Our Watch is proud to announce the inaugural fellows of Our Watch’s Beyond the Headlines Fellowship. 

The first-of-its-kind Fellowship brings together journalists and media professionals from across Australia to strengthen respectful, culturally safe and accountable reporting on violence against Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women, children, trans and gender diverse people. 

Running from 14 to 16 September, Beyond the Headlines will be guided by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander media and prevention experts, with facilitated discussions, practical reporting exercises and opportunities for participants to learn from experts and each other. 

The Fellowship was created in consultation and collaboration with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander journalists, editors, academics and sector specialists. 

Fellows will deepen their understanding of the historical and contemporary context of violence against Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women, strengthen culturally safe approaches to interviewing and reporting, and explore how media can challenge harmful prejudice and bias. 

The Fellowship will also support participants to shift reporting away from deficit-based narratives and stereotypes towards reporting that recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander resilience, strength and hope. 

The inaugural Beyond the Headlines fellows are: 

• Chantelle Al-Khouri, ABC News, Journalist 

• Grace Atta, ABC News Darwin, Digital Producer 

• Gemma Breen, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Digital Journalist and Editor 

• Selina Bryan, ABC News, Journalist / Presenter / Producer 

• Mary Card, ABC Radio, Producer / Content Maker 

• Stephanie Corsetti, SBS, Podcast Producer 

• Nina Funnell, Freelance / News Corp, Senior Journalist 

• Anna Harrington, Australian Associated Press, Sports Journalist 

• Phebyn Joseph, La Trobe University / SBS Hindi, Lecturer / External Contributor 

• Emily Kaine, The Sydney Morning Herald, Journalist 

• Mozhdeh Kashani, SBS, Cross-platform Journalist 

• Meredith Kirton, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Content Creator / Radio Producer 

• Rachael Knowles, SBS, Digital Journalist and Site Editor 

• Abraham Simon Maddison, Australian Associated Press, South Australian Correspondent 

• Ella McIlveen, News Corp, News Reporter 

• Ruth McHugh-Dillon, The Conversation, Deputy Health Editor 

• Lucy Meyer, Freelance Journalist 

• Sherele Moody, Australian Femicide Watch, Journalist, Researcher and Founder 

• Jessica Naunton, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Journalist / Radio Presenter 

• Lauren Novak, News Corp, Journalist 

• Amanda Parkinson, Freelance Photojournalist 

• Amanda Shalala, ABC Sport, Deputy Sport Editor 

• Bec Symons, ABC Gippsland, Journalist 

• Kerrin Thomas, SBS News, Multiplatform Reporter 

• Grace Tong, ABC, Editorial Policy Adviser 

• Kelly Wong, ABC, Digital Journalist, Social 

• Emily Woods, Australian Associated Press, Gender Equality Reporter 

Our Watch CEO Patty Kinnersly congratulated the inaugural Fellows and was impressed by the caliber and breadth of the cohort. 

“We are thrilled to welcome such an outstanding group of journalists and media professionals to the inaugural Beyond the Headlines Fellowship,” Ms. Kinnersly said. 

“The media has enormous influence over how Australians understand violence against women, whose voices are heard, where responsibility is placed and what needs to change. 

“Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women experience disproportionate rates of violence, driven by the intersecting impacts of colonisation and gender inequality. How these stories are told matters. 

“This Fellowship is an exciting opportunity for journalists and media professionals to learn from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander experts, strengthen their practice and contribute to reporting that centers respect, accountability, strength and hope. 

“We congratulate everyone of the inaugural Fellows and look forward to seeing the impact of their work in newsrooms and communities across Australia.”