Job Details
Reporter II or Sr. Reporter, Health, MPR News
Reporter II or Sr. Reporter, Health, MPR News
$26/hour - $45/hour
• Intermediate Level
Skills:
Writers
Summary
You will be our lead health reporter, initially covering COVID-19, and collaborating with reporters who focus on the pandemic. You will be responsible for developing and maintaining sources in government and industry for reporting that is timely and distinctive.
Category
Journalist/Reporter
RADIO
Location
Greater Minneapolis-St. Paul Area
Time Period
Full Time
Posted Date
Sep 10, 2021
Start Date
N/A
End Date
N/A
Job Description
Description
Who We Are
At American Public Media Group/Minnesota Public Radio (APMG/MPR News), we strive to deliver essential information to a regional audience in an engaged, creative way. We believe in continuing to improve our relevance to new and existing listeners, readers and digital audiences, including those beyond our traditional broadcast reach. We provide award-winning audio and digital products, such as podcasts. Our newsroom believes in teamwork, we nurture talent and strive to regularly beat the competition with exclusive, compelling content. We believe in fostering a newsroom that deeply reflects and connects with the communities we serve.
In addition to working with your immediate team(s), you'll be supported by a newsroom full of reporters, producers, photographers, newscasters, editors and hosts who are eager to collaborate. MPR News reaches more than 500,000 listeners each week, and our radio signal can be heard by 95 percent of the state's population. We are an NPR member station, partner with more than 40 news organizations across the region and work under the same umbrella as APM Reports, Brains On!, Marketplace, The Splendid Table and more.
Candidates should be committed to our strategic goal of creating and retaining a diverse and inclusive workforce that reflects our changing state. Minnesota is approaching 20 percent Black, Indigenous and People of Color and the Twin Cities metro area is approaching 30 percent BIPOC.
An inclusive environment supports employees who feel pride in all that we do, feel welcome in our culture, and see a future with us. Our strength lies in staff diversity and people that contribute their time and talents to APMG/MPR. We have a deep belief in our commitment to create trusted and meaningful listening experiences with and for curious people in the state of Minnesota. It is our aim that our employees, leadership and Board of Trustees reflect and embrace these core principles.
Your Role
You will be our lead health reporter, initially covering COVID-19, and collaborating with reporters who focus on the pandemic. You will be responsible for developing and maintaining sources in government and industry for reporting that is timely and distinctive. Eventually the beat will encompass broader issues of health and equity, with an eye on research. You, along with editor input, will produce regional radio stories for magazine programs, Morning Edition and All Things Considered, briefer pieces for newscasts, as well as report versions for digital platforms. Other duties include live Q&As with MPR News hosts, recording and uploading audio from the field.
MPR News trains all new employees, whether remote or in person. We also have regular and collaborative news meetings twice a day to engage the entire staff in the editorial process, and your contributions will be important. You will be given beat-specific guidance on assignments as your primary role, and you will be assigned some general assignment stories. While you will have an assigned shift, per the news cycle and staffing needs of a daily news organization, you may be assigned to work an early morning, night and/or weekend shift.
This position will be either a Reporter II or Senior Reporter position depending upon the selected candidate’s experience.
What We Offer
This is a position within the SAG-AFTRA bargaining unit at MPR News. We offer a competitive benefits package, including health, dental and 403B.
Reporter II compensation range: $26.49 - $41.30/hr
Sr. Reporter compensation range: $29.66 - $46.30/hr
Exact hourly rate determined by experience and education related to the role, organizational compensation structure and internal equity.
Application Deadline: November 19, 2021
Job Location: St. Paul, MN or Remote, USA
Position Responsibility
- Research, write and produce radio and digital stories to own the health beat
- Generate distinctive reporting with deep sources
- Incorporate data reporting
- File general assignment stories not on your beat, as assigned
- Possess an enterprising and self-starter spirit
- Report on live radio broadcasts as assigned
- Collaborate with editors, digital producers and reporting staff
Required Education and Experience
- Reporter II Level: 3+ years reporting or similar experience
- Reporter level: 5+ years reporting or similar experience, radio reporting and beat experience a must. Preferred experience in leading projects
- BA degree or equivalent work experience in journalism
Required Skills, Knowledge and Abilities
- Demonstrated ability to write for radio and print and meet daily deadlines
- Experience digging into and reporting a health beat
- Ability to construct stories with multiple interviews and scenes
- Pitch stories regularly
- Desire to learn new skills that stretch you
- Command for developing long-term projects, and pivot to breaking news
- Willingness to work a flexible schedule, including weekends, in step with the news cycle
- Social media fluency that builds audience/followers and upholds journalistic standards
Preferred Skills and Experience
- Data journalism a plus
- Creative and innovative and able to develop tone of voice
- Knowledge of a second language, such as Hmong, Somali or Spanish
Reporting To This Position: None
Physical Demands and Working Conditions
- Must be able to perform the essential duties of the position with or without reasonable accommodation.
- Ability to manage some work outside of standard office hours as needed.
- Physical Demands:
- Required to move about in an office environment and sit for extended periods of time
- Required to move about in the community
- Frequent use of hands for data entry/keystrokes and simple grasping
- Working Conditions:
- Moderate noise level
Diversity creates a healthier atmosphere: All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by law.
We are committed to hiring a breadth of diverse professionals and encourage members of diverse groups to apply.
Job Type
Full Time
Weekly Limit
N/A
Shift
Day, Evening
Attached Files
N/A