The Conversation U.S. (TCUS) is an independent, nonprofit media organization that publishes daily news analysis and commentary written by academics, edited by journalists and aimed at the general public. Our editorial team works with scholars across the U.S. to help the general public make sense of important news and research. We take our work seriously, but we also offer a fun and flexible work culture with great benefits and lots of opportunity to shine.
The associate editor will cover a wide range of topics – from the Federal Reserve’s rate hikes and unemployment to consumer trends and inequality – by commissioning and editing articles from scholars in a variety of fields to help us inform our broad general audience.
The ideal candidate will have knowledge of business, economics, finance and similar topics, as well as experience working in a daily news environment as either a reporter/writer or editor. Experience working directly with scholars is a definite plus.
Key responsibilities:
- Work closely with the Senior Editor for Economy and Business to cover topics and build on the applicant’s interests and past experience
- Stay abreast of key economic, business and financial news and trends and regularly come up with story ideas that scholars could cover based on their research and expertise
- Commission at least 4-5 stories each week from academic experts on business and the economy and edit them for a general readership, with a focus on covering breaking news
- Help TCUS achieve the goals of its Diversity Initiative by finding and commissioning new scholars among women and minorities
- Create and maintain clear, timely and professional communications with academic authors and fellow editors
- Participate in brainstorming and planning discussions for stories and series in collaboration with other desks and Conversation editors in other countries
Skills/Knowledge:
- Reporting skills and news judgment to generate ideas for stories and seek out meaningful or undiscovered new research
- Interest in working in a team-focused newsroom that offers ample opportunities to collaborate with colleagues, learn and grow
- Care in thoughtfully commissioning scholars to avoid real or apparent conflicts of interest and to highlight diverse voices
- Ability to work with scholar-authors to structure stories, simplify research without losing nuance, line edit copy into plain English and fact-check
- Good grammar and story structure skills
- Exceptional organizational skills and attention to detail
- Ability to choose appropriate and arresting photos, graphs and other visual elements to accompany stories
- Ability to give substantive, honest and diplomatic feedback to pitches from member schools’ scholars and communications teams
- Ability to purposefully collaborate and be part of a dynamic team
- Ability to learn and apply our house style
- Willingness to ask for help when needed
Qualifications:
- Bachelor’s degree
- Minimum of 3-5 years of journalism work experience
- Exceptional organizational skills, meticulousness, insight and clarity (or fluency) of expression
- Ability to be highly productive while working independently and remotely
- Skill at developing story ideas of interest to the public
- Experience in online content production and ability to learn new content management systems
- Ability to be productive while working remotely
- Willingness to travel for work occasionally
Reporting manager: Senior Editor, Economy, and Business
Salary: 65k-75k
Please send your cover letter and updated resume to sumalita.bhuyan@theconversation.com.
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