The Social and traditional Media And Research Tools Lab, or SMART Lab, a new core facility within the College of Journalism and Mass Communications, is issuing a call for proposals for SMART Lab Seed Data Grants. These grants will be available to University of Nebraska researchers needing access to “big data” from social and traditional media sources, including X, Reddit, Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram, news, blogs, forums and more.
Researchers, including any scholars eligible to apply for federal funding, are invited to complete a brief proposal to request harvesting/mining of media data for one project during the spring or summer of 2025, at no cost to the researchers. Data includes up to 10,000 mentions, such as posts or data records, of a research project’s keywords. Researchers may be able to purchase data above the 10,000-mention limit for their projects.
All grantees would be expected to submit a report 90 days after data is provided outlining key findings and their plan for extramural funding.
Proposals can be submitted here.
A small number of projects will be selected for these SMART Lab Seed Data Grants, while resources last. Priority will be given to early proposals, research expected to lead to external funding or publications and first-time applicants. Projects that do not support external funding requests or publications are unlikely to receive an award without compelling rationales for the need.
Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, until all data grants have been made.
Learn more about the SMART Lab online or email smartlab@unl.edu with any questions.
