CapRadio: Healthcare Reporter
Job Type
full_time
Job Location
Sacramento, CA
Website URL
Job Description
Department: Content/News
Status: Full-time, Exempt
End Date: Open Until Filled
Summary
CapRadio is hiring a new health care reporter — a crucially important role during this historic pandemic.
A priority for the health care reporter will be keeping communities informed and safe as we continue to navigate the COVID-19 crisis. We want a journalist who is eager to explain difficult issues, provide context and answer questions.
While it may feel like the pandemic is the only story affecting our lives, our next health care reporter must also be a journalist who wants to listen, build trust and serve community needs.
You also should recognize that reporting on health is not done in a vacuum. Can you find throughlines between issues such as housing affordability, climate change, policing and community health? If so, you will thrive in this position.
Investigating health inequities across geography, class and race will also be a priority. It’s not enough to highlight these disparities; we want your work to affect change and contribute to deconstructing systemic injustice.
Some weeks, the health care reporter will be quizzing lawmakers on policy at the state Capitol. Others, they may find themselves in a rural town reporting on health access. Northern California is diverse. We need a journalist who embraces this while identifying stories that are universally relevant.
Our hiring committee will be focusing on candidates with journalism experience: at least three years at a media outlet, or commensurate time as an independent contributor or freelancer. It’s important that you have demonstrated an interest, or perhaps a deep knowledge, related to public health and health justice.
Most of this journalist’s time will be spent on enterprise work, such as feature stories and special projects — maybe even a podcast. But there will be regular, weekly commitments to file daily-news stories for radio and digital.
The ideal candidate will be comfortable reporting for a variety of platforms: shining as an audio journalist, quick thinking and smarts on our talk programs, and adept at collaborating on content for digital and social.
We also are looking for a reporter whose instincts are to ask: Who is not included in this story but should be? Am I overlooking equity issues? What audiences need this information and how can we best serve them?
If you are a multilingual journalist or fluent in Spanish, that will help you in this role. We want to deliver for audiences who traditionally are underserved by public media.
We also encourage BIPOC journalists to apply for this position. You will be supported in our newsroom.
Editors and producers will be there to develop your craft. Our newsroom leaders also believe in self-care and taking time-off to recharge. We may occasionally meditate. Keep an open mind!
Your work will reach millions of Californians, including via our statewide network of more than five dozen public-media frequencies and websites. Sometimes you’ll also appear on NPR or NPR.org.
If you’re concerned that you may not meet every skill requirement laid out in this job description, that’s OK. We’ll give you the training needed and space to succeed — and fail — and will support you during your first year on the job.
In conclusion: This is a unique opportunity to cover health care during a historic pandemic, and in a state and city at the forefront of health policy and innovation.
We’re focused on building a diverse and inclusive organization and it takes all kinds of people so if you’re excited about this role but don't meet all of the qualifications listed below, we encourage you to apply.
Position Responsibilities:
- Pitches, develops, enterprises, reports, writes and produces “feature-length” audio stories and digital articles
- Delivers special projects on a quarterly or bi-annual basis for all platforms
- Reports and writes daily content for digital audiences, including regular web stories. You will be expected to deliver stories each week, of varying lengths and scope of reporting
- Reports, writes and produces daily content for broadcast.
- Files stories for the statewide CapRadio Network broadcast service
- Appears on CapRadio’s talk programs, including Insight
- Files content for NPR and other national outlets as needed
- Collaborates with colleagues at regular meetings
- Participates in community-engaged journalism work
- Works with Content team on source-tracking work
- Participates in on-air fundraising and other CapRadio company activities
- Comes to work each day with drive to collaborate, a willingness to listen and learn and a sharper sense of humor than the managing editor
Newsroom experience is strongly preferred. If you lack this qualification but can demonstrate the skills, expertise and ability to do the job, then we will review your application. Yes, our name is CapRadio. But we value skills in digital reporting and reporting for non-broadcast platforms, such as podcasts and on-demand, customized audio. We are true believers in public media and independent, nonprofit journalism. We hope that you’re a big fan of NPR and also value clear-headed news reporting and programming. We also value local news and centering our communities in our work.
COVID-19 COMPLIANT
We’re open to a hybrid schedule, however, this role is deemed essential and will require an on-site presence at least 65% of the time. You must be able to commute to our Sacramento, CA office.
After the pandemic, this position requires you to work on-site from our Sacramento office, with the possibility of working from home up to 35% of the time per week.
CapRadio has a mandatory vaccination policy for Covid-19. Reasonable accommodation is available for those with a medical condition, disability, or religious belief that prevents them from being vaccinated.
Salary
The annual salary for this position is $65,000 a year. CapRadio also offers:
- Competitive medical, dental, vision, chiropractic, and acupuncture insurance
- Retirement plan with employer matching
- Paid holidays
- Flexible Vacation
- Two weeks of flexible, accruable paid time-off
- Paid sick leave
- Long-term disability and group life insurance
- Flexible spending plan for health and dependent care
Apply
So, you’re going to apply? Excellent! Please provide us:
- in fewer than 300 words, tell us why you are interested in the position.
- a one-page resumé
- provide us web link to two of your best examples of reported work
You can address your letter to the hiring manager for this position, Nick Miller (he/him), Managing Editor of News& Information. If you have any inquiries or trouble submitting your application materials to the link, please contact us at careers@capradio.org.
CapRadio
Attn: Human Resources
7055 Folsom Blvd.
Sacramento, CA 95826
Capital Public Radio is an equal opportunity employer.
