Job Abstract

The Senior Editor, Editorial Review (aka The Backstop) will be part of a new team at NPR committed to providing additional editing support to our journalism and our journalists; to ensure that NPR maintains and solidifies its status as a trusted source of news and information for the American public.

As part of a team, the Senior Editor will review journalistic work from across the Content Division as a final look before air or publication. The focus will be on ensuring excellence, fairness, accuracy and consistency of individual works and across platforms, recognizing that formats, story selection and story-telling techniques for different platforms will and should vary, in service of specific audiences. The team will also maximize existing editing, legal and standards and practices protocols and facilitate additional editing support for critical content.

The ideal candidates are experienced journalists and editors with wide-ranging editorial experience, including expertise across different platforms and subject matter. They must be deeply curious, open-minded and flexible; be skilled at editing in a large, complex media organization where the topics and journalists vary greatly and where the deadlines and volume of content can be intense.

Important to note: Two Senior Editors will be hired through this posting, with the expectation that one will likely work a swing shift (mid-day through evening Eastern Time) and one will likely work weekend hours, although the precise shifts are still being finalized, as this is a new team being stood up. An additional Senior Editor will be hired to work overnight hours; please look for a separate job posting for this if you are interested in that shift.

This role is an on-site role based in Washington, DC, or at NPR West in Culver City, California (if appropriate for the swing shift E.T. role). The editors will be required to work onsite at a frequency set by their manager. There will be some flexibility to work remotely on occasion with manager approval.

This is a union represented role covered under the terms of a collective bargaining agreement with SAG-AFTRA.

• Edit journalistic content for accuracy, fairness and consistency, as a final editorial review before air or publication. The level/kind of review will vary depending on the type of work it is, for what platform and the circumstances surrounding it; for example, is this a breaking news situation or a long-term enterprise story?
• Determine what kind of additional editing may be needed for specific stories, depending on their complexity or subject matter, and depending on what kind of review has already been done by legal, standards and practices editors or others.
• Collaborate closely with the main editors for all content you’re reviewing, as well as with the show/platform leads for which this content will appear.
• With guidance from the Managing Editor or Deputy Managing Editors for Editorial Review, understand the expected content coming through for review on a day-to-day basis so as to effectively manage your workflow.
• Work closely with the Managing Editors for News and Planning and the newsroom Deputy Managing Editors who are managing both coverage planning and breaking news coverage so that your work is integrated with theirs, and you can effectively work as partners.
• Work closely with the Managing Editor for Standards and Practices and other leaders to develop guidance on editorial matters and best practices for the division.
• Review and understand data provided by content analysts about the division’s collective body of work and the review team’s impact on it; act on the findings as appropriate.

The above duties and responsibilities are not an exhaustive list of required responsibilities, duties and skills. Other duties may be assigned, and this job description can be modified at any time.

• At least 8 years of distinctive, original news reporting or editing experience on a national level.
• Demonstrated experience editing on multiple platforms and a familiarity with the different audience needs of individual platforms.
• Demonstrated excellence in editing breaking news, explanatory journalism and feature stories.
• Excellent communication skills and a track record of working on collaborative projects.
• Proven experience in editorial decision-making.
• Ability to handle multiple and complex projects simultaneously under stringent timeframes, with changing priorities/conditions.
• Ability to work quickly and efficiently under deadline pressure.
• Demonstrated commitment to data analysis and its use in understanding the division’s work and in service of audiences.
• Deep understanding of NPR’s core values and public service mission.
• Passion for connecting with diverse audiences on a range of platforms.
• Proven ability to consistently work well with others.
• Positive approach to embracing change.
• Well-developed interpersonal skills, ability to get along with diverse personalities.
• Ability to respect input but ultimately be confident enough to take decisive action and take responsibility for said action.

Bachelor's degree or equivalent in work experience

On-site: This is an on-site role based in Washington, DC or at NPR West in Culver City, California (if appropriate for the swing shift E.T. role). The editors will be required to work onsite at a frequency set by their manager. There will be some flexibility to work remotely on occasion with manager approval.

This is a full time, exempt position.

Salary Range: The U.S. based anticipated salary range for this opportunity is $122,500 - $150,000 plus benefits. The range displayed reflects the minimum and maximum salaries NPR expects to provide for new hires for the position across all US locations.

Benefits: NPR offers access to comprehensive benefits for employees and dependents. Regular, full-time employees scheduled to work 30 hours or more per week are eligible to enroll in NPR’s benefits options. Benefits include access to health and wellness, paid time off, and financial well-being. Plan options include medical, dental, vision, life/ accidental death and dismemberment, long-term disability, short-term disability, and voluntary retirement savings to all eligible NPR employees.

Does this sound like you? If so, we want to hear from you.

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