The Investigative Journalism Bureau is pleased to announce this year’s two Unifor Summer Interns and two IJB interns who will spend four months with the organization working on in-depth journalistic projects with academics and senior journalists.
Inori Roy and Danielle Orr will be this year’s Unifor Summer Interns. The Bureau is also pleased to welcome Naama Weingarten and Raneem Alozzi as IJB interns for 2021.
The four young reporters were chosen from among 80 applicants from across the country by a panel of senior journalists for their extraordinary skills and investigative aspirations.
“We were inspired by the sophistication, savvy and skills of so many of the country’s young journalists,” said Robert Cribb, director of the IJB who was on the selection committee with investigative journalists David McKie and Martha Troian. “We feel very grateful to be joined by these smart, impassioned reporters.”
“It was an honour to be part of the IJB hiring committee and to meet and witness so many insightful and eager journalists,” said Troian, a Winnipeg-based investigative journalist and producer. “The newly hired journalists will now take on important and much-needed investigations.”
“Inspirational is the word that came to mind when interviewing these talented young professionals,” said McKie, who teaches journalism at Carleton University and is the deputy managing editor of Canada’s National Observer. “They displayed passion, skill and a determination to make a difference.”
Unifor, Canada’s largest private-sector union, has committed to funding two internship positions for five years. “Unifor is proud to be part of this unique journalism program, and we are glad to see it helping such talented young journalists get their start in this vital industry,” said Unifor National President Jerry Dias. This is the second year that Canada’s brightest emerging journalists have worked at the IJB because of Unifor’s contributions.
Last year’s Unifor Summer Interns – Charlie Buckley and Giulia Fiaoni – both played key roles in the IJB’s inaugural series, Generation Distress. The ongoing investigation into North America’s expanding youth mental health crisis involved more than 80 researchers from 10 universities across Canada and the United States. The investigation has published more than a dozen articles in campus, local and national publications to date. The research is also the basis of upcoming academic peer-reviewed articles.
2021 Unifor Summer Interns:
Inori Roy is a freelance journalist whose work has previously appeared in the Toronto Star, the CBC, Unearthed, and The Local, where she was an inaugural journalism fellow in autumn 2020. She is a recent graduate of City, University of London’s MA Investigative Journalism program.
Danielle Orr is a multi-media journalist and licensed private investigator specializing in open-source intelligence research. She was the host of the podcast Truth Be Told for Sheridanlife Radio, which highlighted indigenous change-makers and covered issues pertaining to indigenous communities in Canada. Only months into her journalism career, Danielle interviewed key figures like David Suzuki and was the lead researcher for an interactive documentary website Case Cold, covering the cold case of an undercover OPP officer. Most recently, she worked as an associate investigator with the Immigration Consultants of Canada Regulatory Council (ICCRC). Danielle holds an Honours Bachelor’s degree in Criminology and Socio-Legal Studies from the University of Toronto and a post-graduate certificate in New Media Journalism from Sheridan College. In her free time, she can be found hiking the Bruce Trail, volunteering, or perusing a local bookstore.
2021 IJB Interns:
Raneem Alozzi is a storyteller always looking for new opportunities to learn and grow, as an individual and a journalist. She has a keen interest in the intersection of racism in public institutions, as well as stories on immigration and national security. Raneem is a 2020 graduate of the Ryerson School of Journalism at Ryerson University and was a breaking news reporter working out of the Toronto Star’s Radio Room, and a news and media editor at The Eyeopener, Ryerson’s Independent Campus Newspaper. When she’s not transcribing interviews, you can find her on a run, watching Arabic tv shows, or trying to practice French.
Naama Weingarten is a third-year student at the Ryerson School of Journalism. Prior to joining the IJB, she conducted investigations for outlets like Vice and CBC and coordinated the morning newscast for her university radio station, CJRU 1280AM.
The Investigative Journalism Bureau (IJB) at the University of Toronto’s Dalla Lana School of Public Health is a non-profit investigative unit conducting collaborative research projects with academics and journalists while training student researchers and reporters in investigative techniques. It operates in collaboration with the Dalla Lana’s Journalism and Health Advocacy programs, home of the Fellowship in Global Journalism and the Certificate in Health Impact.
CONTACT:
Robert Cribb, founder/director: robert.cribb@utoronto.ca; 416-579-0289