Oregon Public Broadcasting seeks an indigenous communities reporter

We’re seeking a reporter dedicated to expanding and enriching coverage of Indigenous communities and sovereign nations.  As the Indigenous Communities Reporter, you’ll play a crucial role in contributing comprehensive news coverage, and building lasting relationships within diverse communities.

The position will balance short form and long form storytelling with a stronger emphasis on feature coverage, allowing for a deeper exploration of topics. You’ll have an opportunity to collaborate with other beats which will result in nuanced reporting. Beyond storytelling, you will also be contributing cultural conversation, delving into topics such as land and environmental issues, government affairs, and community development from Indigenous perspectives. We are enthusiastic about the selected candidate’s potential to amplify Indigenous voices and contribute to a more interconnected understanding of pacific northwest regional news. If you are passionate about authentic storytelling and dedicated community engagement, we invite you to apply.

We have an expectation that the successful applicant will have firsthand involvement in the Indigenous communities we serve. We recognize the disparities of representation in media of Indigenous people in our community. We believe that the experiences of these communities must be valued in the work we do. Hence, we strongly encourage applications from people with these identities.

Position Details:

This Reporter/Producer produces high quality enterprise and breaking news stories for OPB that appear on multiple platforms and consistently meet daily deadlines, as well as ethical, technical, legal and aesthetic standards. This involves daily research, writing, online filing, photography, voicing and production. The bulk of this reporter/producer’s newsgathering efforts will focus coverage of Indigenous communities in Oregon and Southwest Washington, including both day to day life and culture within the Pacific Northwest’s Native populations and the impact broader topics have on Tribal communities. This reporter will be part of the OPB news department’s regional team.

Responsibilities:

• 80% – The reporter/producer reports, writes and produces breaking and enterprise news stories on multiple platforms, including audio and digital with a focus on Indigenous communities in Oregon and Southwest Washington.
• 5% – Participate in local news programming by appearing as a guest on shows like Think Out Loud or being debriefed by an on-air host. Support efforts to include other local voices in OPB’s on-air programming.
• 5% – Produces reports for national news programs and newscasts, as assigned and with approval of supervising editor.
• 10% – Other duties as assigned, including participating in outreach functions and working collaboratively with journalists from other news organizations with a focus on Native issues and populations.

Additional Information:

• This position reports to Managing Editor and is benefits eligible.
• The probable hiring range for this nonexempt position is between $28.85 and $35.24 per hour, depending on qualifications, which is the equivalent of $60,000-73,300 annually.
• This position requires a valid driver’s license and will requires consent to OPB conducting a driving record check. Employees will not be allowed to use a company or personal vehicle for work purposes without completion and satisfactory results of this check.
• Did you see that we are hiring another reporter position Please visit OPB’s careers page to check out the Bend Reporter/Producer opportunity.

Requirements

Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in journalism or related field or the equivalent combination of education, training and experience that provides the requisite knowledge, skills and abilities for this position.
• 3 years of journalism experience
• Experience reporting on the issues of particular interest to Indigenous populations or familiarity with those topics through professional or lived experience.
• Ability to work effectively and efficiently under tight deadlines on multiple platforms.
• Strong writing and interviewing skills.
• Familiarity with photography, audio, video and social media in the presentation of news stories.
• Commitment to high ethical standards in reporting.
• Ability to file live reports and participate in breaking news.
• Enthusiasm for the mission of OPB.
• Enthusiasm for the changing news production environment and the tools and software used to facilitate our work.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in journalism.
• Experience using digital audio recording and editing equipment.
• Experience covering a reporting beat and developing and maintaining sources.
• Bilingual in English and another language.
• An eye for diverse voices and sources in stories.
• Photography or video production skills.

How to Apply:

• For application instructions, please visit OPB’s careers page. You will be asked to create an account, upload your cover letter and resume and answer a few position related questions. Once you click “submit” you cannot make changes to your application.
• Your application materials are due by 8:59 PM Pacific Time on January 2, 2024.

For further details click here.