What are the responsibilities and job description for the Housing reporter Job at MLK50: Justice Through Journalism in Memphis position at MLK50: Justice Through Journalism?
MLK50 : Justice Through Journalism is an award-winning nonprofit digital news site based in Memphis, Tennessee. Our work focuses on the intersection of poverty, power and policy. We examine the systems that make it hard for workers to make ends meet and interrogate those who profit from the status quo. Our goal is to help Memphians — especially workers — have enough resources to thrive and demand that public and private policy support their success. We strive for our newsroom culture to reflect the values we prize : community, accountability, courage and justice.
We’re looking for someone to explore not just housing but the idea of home. This housing reporter will write stories about renters and homeowners, housing quality and housing stock, being evicted and living unhoused, the lasting effects of segregation and the tolls of government policy. They’ll also dig deeper into Memphians’ lived experiences by exploring where and when we feel at home and those who make us feel that way. They’ll tell stories of those who’ve had to leave their homes and create a new place to live and be. They’ll chronicle those who fight to have homes that are safe and livable. And because housing overlaps with health, economic opportunity, public safety and education, they’ll collaborate with their colleagues on projects with wider scope and tools of analysis.
Our reporting centers our community, so this reporter should also be excited to spend time in the communities they cover and deeply listen to its residents. We know these stories can inform our readers, have an impact and make change.
Our ideal candidate would have at least five years of full-time reporting experience. They should be able to produce two to three stories a month. They should be good at cultivating community sources, navigating (sometimes hostile) government bureaucracies and handling research. They should have a solid grasp of AP style. They will have mastered story structure and organization, be passionate about accuracy and history and be willing to explore a variety of storytelling forms. Collaboration is one of our key values, so the candidate should welcome working with colleagues on stories, projects and audience engagement.
This position, which reports to the managing editor, is central to our goal of building a just, inclusive community where Black working-class Memphians can connect and thrive.
Salary starts at $65,000 and can increase based on experience.
ESSENTIAL DUTIES
- Write between 2-3 stories a month, with a mix of enterprise and quick turn pieces
- Produce clean and concise content that displays outstanding spelling and grammar skills and a solid grasp of AP style
- Develop and manage a diverse portfolio of source relationships; help maintain a shared source database
- Use data to tell stories; request public records
- Work with the audience engagement manager and visuals editor to develop one-pagers, social media, in-person events and partnerships around stories and related topics
- Create approaches for the distribution of work in the communities we serve
THE IDEAL CANDIDATE IS :
ABOUT US
Founded in 2017, MLK50 is an ambitious nonprofit digital newsroom focused on poverty, power and policy in Memphis, Tennessee. Our mission is to report on the intersection of poverty, power and policy, and to bear witness to movement-making and lived experiences. At MLK50, we believe journalism is a tool for liberation and we are here to help people — especially Black people, people of color, poor people and everyone who has been pushed to the margins — get free.
MLK50 and its journalists continue to garner national recognition for work that makes a meaningful, tangible difference in people’s lives, including the Selden Ring Award for investigative reporting. We believe in collaboration : We’ve partnered with national outlets such as ProPublica, Next City and The Marshall Project. Our investigative reporting led a hospital system to erase nearly $12 million in medical debt for more than 5,300 patients and helped stop an oil pipeline that would have threatened a low-wealth Black community. Our impact includes reporting that led the city and county to reverse its decision to end the local Emergency Rental Assistance program.
BENEFITS
LOCATION AND WORK TRAVEL
Candidate is based in the Memphis metro area or is willing to relocate. Remote candidates will not be considered.
TO APPLY
We are eager to learn more about you and how you fit this role. When you apply, don’t limit your upload to a résumé; show us what you’ve done. To do so, put together a single PDF that includes the following, in this order :
Email it to jobs@mlk50.com. Put “housing reporter” in the subject line.
To learn more about this position, contact executive editor Adrienne Johnson Martin at jobs@mlk50.com.
This posting will stay open until the job is filled. Strong candidates will be asked to complete a paid writing test. If you have an accessibility request, please let us know.
MLK50 : Justice Through Journalism is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, religion, national origin, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, disability, age, or any other category protected by local, state, or federal laws. We are committed to building a diverse, equitable, and inclusive staff team. We strongly encourage applicants who are people of color, LGBTQ, women, trans and gender non-conforming people, people with disabilities; and / or formerly incarcerated people.
J-18808-Ljbffr
Salary : $65,000