The No Stone Unturned Journalism Fellowship has launched to support a journalist for one year on issues linked to the 2017 documentary of the same name and the arrests of Barry McCaffrey and Trevor Birney.

Cormac Kehoe, an investigative reporter who has contributed to the Guardian, Observer, and BBC, will serve as the first fellow.

The program receives funding from half of the £4,000 awards each that the Investigatory Powers Tribunal granted to Trevor Birney and Barry McCaffrey after ruling that the PSNI and Metropolitan Police conducted unlawful surveillance on them. The other half of those funds went to the Turas Irish language project in east Belfast.

Barry McCaffrey stated that he and Trevor Birney view independent investigative journalism as vital for scrutinizing institutions and rebuilding public trust amid distrust. He added that they are pleased to support Kehoe and future journalists after receiving similar aid early in their careers.

The fellowship aims to enable reporting on Troubles legacy matters and state surveillance risks to journalism.