Position: Freelance reporter with possible future part- or full-time employment/internship
Wages: $15/hour and up
The Lawrence Times — a tiny local startup independent online publication covering Lawrence and Douglas County, Kansas — is looking for journalists who can start some assignments in July with the possibility of becoming a part-time or full-time employee in late August or early September. If you’re interested in freelancing but don’t think you want to do more than that, that’s fine — just let us know upfront, please!
Ideal candidates will have news writing and photography experience, and be able to handle traditional inverted pyramid-style articles quickly and accurately, as well as write longer features that make readers feel something. Some experience with investigative reporting is preferred but not essential. Anything you can brag about on top of that is great — if you have video skills, graphic design talent, social media expertise, web design knowledge, etc., that’s awesome. Show us.
We’re flexible as far as reporting subjects go — if you’re interested in following developments in a certain beat, please let us know what that is. Hint: Poke around our website a little bit to get an idea of what we do, but certainly don’t let that limit you. (Sorry, but we don’t cover sports at this point, and most likely won’t at any point in the near future.)
We don’t have an office, so work will be remote, but candidates should live in Lawrence. You’ll need to be able to get around town to cover breaking news, meet with sources, cover events in person, etc.
Signing on with the Times means you’re helping us build this publication from the ground up. It won’t always be easy, but it will be great experience to help polish a wide range of skills. This is true local, community reporting. We have written stories on everything from a family’s cat rescued from a tree to national policy changes, but all of it holds significance to people in Lawrence.
<< Update, July 11, 2021: We’ll start serious review of applicants on Friday, July 16. >>
If you’re interested, please email joinus@lawrencekstimes.com with the following:
• Basic contact info and pronouns
• A résumé, if you have one
• A few links to samples of published work — ideally, show us a range of what you have done
• Your Twitter handle and whatever other social media you want to show off
And in the email (please no separate cover letter), please let us know:
• Whether you’re interested in freelancing, part-/full-time work or both;
• A few skills you want to highlight;
• What topics you’re most interested in covering for us;
• And what motivates you to be a reporter.
We’re not looking for novels — just an idea of who you are, what you can do and what drives you.
Want to set yourself apart? Pitch us a story that you want to write. We need creative and curious journalists on our team, and the ability to come up with your own ideas is essential.
Thanks in advance for your interest!
