WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Fund for American Studies (TFAS) is pleased to announce the 2026-27 Robert Novak Journalism Fellowship recipients. The Fellows are Frannie Block of The Free Press, Faith Bottum, Rago ’21, and Mary Julia Koch of The Wall Street Journal, Gilbert Guerra ’20 and Grayson Logue of The Dispatch, John Sailer of the Manhattan Institute and Liz Wolfe of Reason.
For the first time in the Fellowship's history, three TFAS alumni were selected: Faith Bottum completed the Rago Fellowship in 2021, Grayson Logue completed the European Journalism Institute in 2024, and Gilbert Guerra completed the Woodhouse Fellowship in 2021.
These seven journalists will spend one year researching and providing in-depth reporting on their chosen topics surrounding the principles of a free society.
This year’s cohort of outstanding journalists will dive into serious reporting on some of the most pressing issues in American life today. Fellows will explore topics including the evolution of philanthropy in America, public health communication and the growing partisanship of “Gen Z.”
The Robert Novak Journalism Fellowship is named after the late Robert D. Novak, renowned columnist, CNN broadcaster and reporter for The Wall Street Journal and The Associated Press. Since its founding in 1994, the Robert Novak Journalism Fellowship has empowered more than 200 promising young journalists to partake in research and long-form content creation that would not have otherwise been possible for them. Novak Fellows have gone on to win Pulitzer Prizes, lead national outlets and write bestselling books.
Notable fellows include Tim Carney, Novak ’03, senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) and senior political columnist at the Washington Examiner; Matthew Continetti, Novak ’08, senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute; Katherine Mangu-Ward, Novak ’05, Reason editor-in-chief; and Carine Hajjar, Rago ’22, Novak ’24, opinion journalist for The Washington Post Opinion.
Ryan Wolfe, director of the Center for Excellence in Journalism at TFAS, said this year’s Fellows are continuing to report on essential issues that matter most.
“For more than 30 years, Novak Fellows have gone on to break essential news and tell untold stories at the country’s most respected newsrooms,” Wolfe said. “We’re proud to help this next class carry that tradition forward as they report on some of the most consequential issues in American life.”
The 2026-27 Robert Novak Journalism Fellows will be formally announced during the 33rd Annual TFAS Journalism Awards Dinner on Nov. 10 at the Metropolitan Club in New York City. TFAS will also present the 2026 Joseph Rago Memorial Fellowship for Excellence in Journalism to Moira Gleason ’25, Anatoly Grablevsky and Adam Pack ’26.
For more information about the dinner and sponsorship opportunities, please visit TFAS.org/Jawards26.
About The Fund for American Studies:
The Fund for American Studies (TFAS) is an educational nonprofit that hosts academic internship programs for undergraduate and law students in Washington, D.C., international academic programs in Europe and South America, programs for high school students and teachers, and fellowships for journalists and public policy professionals. For more information on TFAS programs, visit www.DCinternships.org, www.TFASinternational.org or www.FTE.org. For general information about TFAS, visit www.TFAS.org.
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