This has been a challenging year for journalists, and CJA wants to create an inclusive and accessible 86th Anniversary Awards Ceremony for all journalists to attend. Therefore, we are pleased to announce that The Field Foundation of Illinois is sponsoring a select number of FREE tickets to laid-off journalists.

More than 8,300 journalists have been laid off nationwide since January 2022. That’s 9% of the 89,330 people employed as newspaper, broadcast and online editors and reporters in 2023, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

If you have been laid off from a Chicago area news outlet in the past two years, please email us (chicagocja@gmail.com) to be considered for one of these FREE tickets, which are available on a first come, first served basis.

Supporting journalists through comradeship is at our core, and we extend our deepest gratitude to The Field Foundation of Illinois for its generosity to support our local journalists.