Chartered Institute of Journalists
Encyclopedia
The Chartered Institute of Journalists is a professional association for journalists
Journalism
Journalism is the practice of investigation and reporting of events, issues and trends to a broad audience in a timely fashion. Though there are many variations of journalism, the ideal is to inform the intended audience. Along with covering organizations and institutions such as government and...

 and is the senior such body in the UK and the oldest in the world. It was founded as the National Association of Journalists at a meeting at the Grand Hotel in Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...

 in October 1884, to promote and advance the common interests of the profession of journalism. It changed its name to the Institute of Journalists in 1888, and received a Royal Charter
Royal Charter
A royal charter is a formal document issued by a monarch as letters patent, granting a right or power to an individual or a body corporate. They were, and are still, used to establish significant organizations such as cities or universities. Charters should be distinguished from warrants and...

 from Queen Victoria in 1890. It petitioned for, and was granted, an additional Royal Charter in 1990, to become the Chartered Institute of Journalists, usually abbreviated as CIoJ.

It also operates as a form of trades union for journalists although it is strictly apolitical. It set up a benevolent fund for distressed journalists in 1898, and an orphans fund in 1891, and also operates a pension fund and another for convalescent members. Unemployment benefits were introduced in 1910 although such benefits, if granted, later became handled by the Benevolent Fund. These charities are all registered with the Charity Commission
Charity Commission
The Charity Commission for England and Wales is the non-ministerial government department that regulates registered charities in England and Wales....

 as number 208176.

Disaffected members left in 1910 to form the rival National Union of Journalists
National Union of Journalists
The National Union of Journalists is a trade union for journalists in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland. It was founded in 1907 and has 38,000 members. It is a member of the International Federation of Journalists .-Structure:...

, and unsuccessful attempts to merge the two bodies were made in 1921, 1928, 1943, and 1966. The last introduced a period of dual membership, but the experiment ended within 5 years.

The CIoJ created the Media Society in 1973, and was a founder member of the International News Safety Institute. Although based in the UK, it also has an international division for members outside the UK. It also includes groups for freelance journalists, press photographers, journalists working in broadcasting
Broadcasting
Broadcasting is the distribution of audio and video content to a dispersed audience via any audio visual medium. Receiving parties may include the general public or a relatively large subset of thereof...

 and press relations.
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