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Editor, Politics & Government

Chicago, IL (Hybrid workplace)

About Chicago Public Media

Home to WBEZ and the Chicago Sun-Times, Chicago Public Media is the largest local non-profit news organization in the country. WBEZ and the Chicago Sun-Times serve more than 2 million people weekly across broadcast, print, and digital platforms. As a mission-driven organization, we aspire to become the essential and most trusted news source that Chicago turns to each day for understanding the people, events, and ideas that shape our community.

WBEZ is home to local and national news programming as well as a growing portfolio of popular podcasts. WBEZ serves the community with fact-based, objective news and information, and its award-winning journalists ask tough questions, dig deep for answers and expose truths that spark change and foster understanding. WBEZ is supported by 77,000 members, hundreds of corporate sponsors and major donors.  In 2024, Chicago Public Media won 33 national and local awards including from the National Headliner Awards, National Association for Black Journalists, Public Media Journalists Association, Radio Television Digital News Association, Chicago Headline Club, Chicago Journalists Association, Media for a Just Society, and the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation. 

Chicago Sun-Times is Chicago’s oldest continuously published daily newspaper serving Chicago and is known for its hard-hitting investigative reporting, in-depth political coverage, timely behind-the-scenes sports analysis, and insightful entertainment and cultural coverage. Chicago Sun-Times is the winner of eight Pulitzer Prizes and countless other awards.  In recent years, the Sun-Times has focused on a digital transformation to deliver its news and content to a growing digital audience. Most recently, the Sun-Times dropped the paywall on suntimes.com to expand access to its journalism, and shifted to a community-funded digital membership program supported by voluntary member donations. 

Chicago Public Media believes independent journalism is essential to a well-functioning democracy and access to fact-based, objective news and information is a right of every citizen. We serve the public interest by creating diverse, compelling content that informs, inspires, and enriches. We connect diverse audiences and help them make a difference in the community, the region and the world.  And, we employ 300+ staff who want to belong to an organization that inspires, supports, and challenges them to do their best work.

For more information, please see the Chicago Public Media Annual Report.

The Opportunity

The Editor, Politics and Government, helps guide and lead a staff of reporters to produce a wide range of enterprising, audience-focused coverage across digital, audio, print and social media platforms. Working with the Senior Editor, Politics and Government, this editor helps set the priorities and standards for the politics and government desk; edits breaking, daily and longer-term audio and text stories; supervises and develops staff members to meet their professional goals, the goals of the newsroom and of Chicago Public Media; actively helps shape coverage across the newsroom; and collaborates to build and engage our audiences and connect with communities throughout Chicago.

 

General Responsibilities

  • Help supervise and guide a staff in producing informative, enlightening and impactful news and distinctive, must-read breaking and daily stories along with enterprise pieces and investigations that stand out from the competition in informing and serving our diverse communities, providing original, insightful coverage and providing people with the information they need to understand Chicago better, make the most of our region and participate in their communities.
  • Help ensure that we have a compelling mix of digital, audio and print stories to serve our different audiences on our many products and platforms.
  • Plan, produce and promote news stories, short- and long-term enterprise and investigations that shine a light on politics and government, extending beyond coverage of official actions, wrongdoing and corruption to ensure a better-informed and more engaged citizenry.
  • Help empower readers to better understand the actions and impact of government and politicians, and to hold public officials accountable for not only wrongdoing but also for falling short.
  • Help reporters find stories and voices from Chicago’s diverse communities through stories that engage and resonate with readers, rather than speak at them.
  • Help reporters find and produce reports that break and explain important stories and show how they affect people and that help community members understand how our government and city work and how they can effectively participate.

Supervisory Responsibilities

  • Help set the goals, strategy and plans to achieve the growing ambitions for our coverage and help build audience engagement, loyalty and membership.
  • Plan and guide original, impactful and enterprising news stories, short- and long-term investigations and other enterprise reporting, helping to elevate storytelling across platforms to produce compelling stories online, on air, in print, on social media, in newsletters and anywhere else.
  • Help supervise a team that includes reporters with a wide range of experience, developing and inspiring journalists at all levels while creating a collaborative, supportive work environment to help a diverse range of employees succeed.
  • Collaborate with the other editors and other stakeholders in the newsroom, including the audience, audio news production and visuals teams.
  • Build collaboration and communication in the newsroom and organization and with any other news organizations with whom we might partner. This includes actively communicating about coverage in advance through newsroom systems and meetings and soliciting feedback early and often to make the most of all of our work.
  • Help team members develop their talents, get appropriate training, set goals for growth and achieve their ambitions.
  • Help improve our overall editorial excellence, workplace culture and impact. 
  • Promote diversity, equity and inclusion.
  • Represent our newsroom and organization, building our reputation in our communities and our industry.
  • Work collaboratively in a union environment.

 

Skills & Experience

  • A record of excellence in guiding and editing news and enterprise work of distinction, experience leading and inspiring a diverse mix of journalists, a collaborative bent and a belief in the mission and power of public media.
  • A proven ability to help conceive a wide range of top-quality short- and long-term reporting and to guide and edit that work under deadline pressure across platforms while maintaining the highest standards of journalistic ethics and excellence.
  • Audio editing experience is a must.
  • Familiarity with Chicago is a plus.

 

Compensation

The expected pay range for this position is $86,700 to $96,300 per ANNUM.

Chicago Public Media provides pay ranges representing its good faith estimate of what the organization reasonably expects to pay for a position.  The pay offered to a selected candidate will be determined based on factors such as (but not limited to the scope and responsibilities of the position, the qualifications of the selected candidate, departmental budget availability, internal equity, geographical location, and external market pay for comparable jobs.

 

Working at Chicago Public Media

At Chicago Public Media, we care deeply about our employees as we know attracting, developing, and growing talent is key to our success and enhancing our impact.  

Our culture is one where collaboration, diversity of ideas, and innovation are encouraged.  We value colleagues who will enhance our culture by bringing new ideas, divergent experiences, and talents to our dynamic workplace.

At Chicago Public Media we believe dedication to a great workplace includes supporting our employees and their families. As a result, we provide a broad and generous benefits package for employees at hire and in the years to come.

Our benefits include a competitive salary and benefits package which includes medical, dental, vision, vacation, holidays, life insurance, disability coverage, retirement savings, and a commuter benefits plan.

Chicago Public Media is an Equal Opportunity Employer and we actively seek and welcome people from all backgrounds, orientations, and life experiences to join our team.

 

The essential functions described above are not all-inclusive and are not intended to create any contractual or other legal commitment. Chicago Public Media may change the content or format of this job at any time in its sole and exclusive discretion without notice.

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