SW Washington Bureau Chief

Application instructions for this and all current OPB employment opportunities are available at OPB's careers page.

About OPB

OPB is a leader in public media, serving diverse communities of the Northwest with fact-based, in-depth news and information about politics, the environment, science, arts, history, and cultures; business, education and more. Powered by the generous support of members, OPB seeks out a variety of voices in our communities and lifts up authentic stories of the people, places, events and issues of the region, providing context and a deeper understanding. OPB’s independent journalism and programs are available at opb.org, on OPB Radio and OPB TV. Follow us on, Instagram, YouTube and Facebook. 

The Opportunity

We're seeking a versatile and experienced journalist to join OPB as SW Washington’s Bureau Chief and lead coverage in that area. This is a hybrid role, based in Downtown Vancouver, Washington. Your primary role will be as both an editor and reporter; producing engaging stories about government, transportation, growth in Clark County and other beats that serve to inform communities in the Pacific Northwest.

Ideal candidates will have a solid background in journalism, with a knack for both reporting and editing, along with strong news judgment, a self-starting attitude, ability to build sources, and organizational skills. Collaboration with our news editing team is key to ensuring cohesive and impactful coverage across all platforms. This is a fantastic opportunity for a seasoned reporter looking to transition into a management editorial role. While you'll receive support from OPB’s team of news editors, independence and flexibility are crucial for success in this role, as you will play a pivotal role in representing OPB with coverage of SW Washington as the sole employee in the bureau to start. If you're passionate about impactful journalism and want to be part of storytelling in this region, we’d love to hear from you!

Position Details

This editor leads OPB’s coverage of Vancouver, Clark County and the rest of OPB’s coverage area in Washington state, assigning and editing stories for the Vancouver reporter for the radio and web, planning and leading coverage of enterprise reporting and breaking news in Southwest Washington, and ensuring OPB’s coverage sets the standard for our region. As part of their daily duties, this editor will both edit and report newscast items, radio and digital features, magazine conversation scripts and longer-term investigations and projects. This position serves as a member of OPB’s news editing team and reports to the Managing Editor of News,

Supervises

The position plans, assigns and approves work, responds to grievances, disciplines and rewards, recommends hiring and hires, recommends salary adjustments, prepares and signs performance reviews for one employee.

Responsibilities

70% - Lead OPB’s coverage of Southwest Washington, including:

• Report, write and produce their own breaking news and enterprise reporting focused on Southwest Washington.
• Supervising one reporter focused on Vancouver and Clark County. Edit stories for radio and digital platform and managing employee’s professional development and job performance.

20% - Serve as a member of OPB’s editorial leadership team, including attending daily and monthly planning meetings, biweekly editorial team meetings, editing OPB reporters whose editors are out or otherwise occupied, ensuring breaking news editors and digital producers are aware of news and potential partner content from Southwest Washington.

10% - Other duties as assigned, including representing OPB as the leading face of our Southwest Washington coverage for fundraising and member service purposes. 

Working Conditions

Most work is done Monday through Friday, though some evening and weekend work should be expected. This is a hybrid position, with some work from the office required. Most work is done in an office, studio or other indoor location with extended periods working at a computer. There is occasional local or regional travel required

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in journalism, communications, or a related field, or equivalent combination of education, training and experience that provides the requisite knowledge, skills and abilities for this position.
• 3 years of professional journalism experience.
• Experience providing editorial direction and developing a story from idea to final product both as an editor and a reporter.
• Ability to recognize a wide range of stories appropriate for OPB across radio and digital platforms.
• Share OPB's commitment to covering all the communities in our coverage areas reflecting a diverse range of people and perspectives in our content.
• Exceptional time management, organizational and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to work with digital audio workstations and office computer software.
• Enthusiasm for the mission of OPB and for the role of public media in a changing journalism environment.

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in journalism.
• Experience using digital audio recording and editing equipment
• Experience editing reporters for radio or web.
• Experience reporting or editing in a bureau or remote environment.
• Bilingual in English and another language, preferably one spoken in communities in the Pacific Northwest (for example, Spanish, Mandarin, Cantonese, Vietnamese and Russian).
• A voracious news consumer with a passion for journalism.
• Knowledge of major stories and issues in the Northwest.

Additional Information

• This position reports to the Managing Editor and is benefits eligible
• The probable hiring range for this nonexempt position is between $70,000-$85,000 annually, depending on qualifications.
• For the safety of our employees, the contractors/vendors we work with, and the public we serve, OPB has a mandatory COVID vaccination policy and all employees are required to show proof of vaccination