Mississippi Today is seeking an experienced journalist who can lead our new Health team.

The Community Health Editor will be the integral, founding member of our new Health team, which will create a hub for Mississippians to access data, fact-finding and dissemination of in-depth and explainer public health journalism. Through this team, we will report on how the healthcare system works, and in some cases does not, in Mississippi. We will dig deep on how healthcare providers, hospitals, insurers, governments and consumers are interconnected and impacted, with an eye for equity and access. We will build a readership targeted at thought leaders and everyday Mississippians who most need accurate and easy-to-understand information on health matters.

The ideal journalist will be a thought leader — someone who understands the health care considerations of rural and suburban Mississippians alike. This candidate will lead a four-person Health team — including two reporters and a data journalist — to thoughtfully create a multifaceted portofolio of reporting, including daily/breaking news stories as well as deeper-dive investigative features, to explore our state’s complicated public health framework and bring some much-needed transparency to its processes. 

Mississippi is a gold mine for eager journalists. What happens in Mississippi often affects the trajectory of the nation. Between the state’s abortion ban soon to be taken up by the highest court in the nation, an ongoing campaign to encourage Mississippians to get their COVID shots or else remain one of the least vaccinated states, and a brewing battle over Medicaid expansion, the public health stories to be told here are limitless.

Expectations:

• Oversee a team of journalists who report directly to you
• Work directly with the Editor-in-Chief and Managing Editor to plan and publish short term stories, medium-term investigations and longer-term projects
• Work with our Audience Team and data and visual journalists to create compelling story presentations.
• Manage day-to-day editing, scheduling and publishing of stories and collaborate closely with the Mississippi Today Audience Team.
• Implement a distribution mindset among leadership and staff, helping reporters to think early about possible publishing partners on the local and national level

It’s a plus if you have:

• Newsroom editing experience
• Experience guiding longform stories and investigations from conception to publication
• A demonstrated ability to work quickly, and under tight deadlines
• A knowledge and understanding of nonprofit journalism
• Copy editing experience
• Experience working in a collaborative setting

What you’ll get:

• The opportunity to work alongside award-winning journalists and make significant contributions to Mississippi’s only fully staffed, nonprofit, nonpartisan digital news and information source.
• Highly competitive salary with medical insurance, and options for vision and dental insurance.
• Cell phone stipend.
• 29 days paid time off.
• Up to 12 weeks of parental family leave, with return-to-work flexibility.
• Simple IRA with 3 percent company matching. Group-term life insurance provided to employees ($15,000 policy).
• Support for professional training and attending industry conferences.

How to Apply:

Fill out an application at this link.

We’re committed to building an inclusive newsroom that represents the people and communities we serve. We especially encourage members of traditionally underrepresented communities to apply for this position, including women, people of color, LGBTQ people and people who are differently abled.

Questions? Email Editor-in-Chief Adam Ganucheau at adam@mississippitoday.org or Managing Editor Kayleigh Skinner at kayleigh@mississippitoday.org.

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