Jessica Barrett awarded 2013 Michelle Lang Fellowship

TORONTO — The 2013 Michelle Lang Fellowship in Journalism has been presented to Jessica Barrett, Postmedia Network announced Wednesday.

Barrett has held reporting and editing roles at the Vancouver Sun, WE Vancouver and North Shore News. Still in the early stages of her career, she has received a number of awards for her work, including Best Feature from the Canadian Community Newspapers Association in 2012.

“We are excited to welcome Jessica to our team in September,” said Lorne Motley, editor-in-chief of the Calgary Herald. “The fellowship offers aspiring and talented reporters such as Jessica the opportunity to work alongside Postmedia’s award-winning journalists and continues to celebrate Michelle Lang’s passion for reporting.”

The fellowship is named after Michelle Lang, an award-winning Calgary Herald journalist who died in December 2009 while on assignment for Canwest News Service in Kandahar, Afghanistan.

Barrett has chosen to pursue a story on Canada’s changing workforce, job market and economy. She will spend six months working at Postmedia News in Ottawa and six months at the Calgary Herald.

“Being chosen as the recipient of this prestigious fellowship is a great honour,” Barrett said. “I’m excited for the opportunity to work alongside the remarkable journalists at the Herald and Postmedia News.”