Investigative Reporter

Job Description

The Illinois Answers Project, a nonprofit award-winning news organization published by the Better Government Association, is seeking an investigative reporter with data skills.

Illinois Answers has four concentrated areas of coverage, including stories on equity and economic opportunity. The ideal candidate will show a track record of generating original, deeply reported stories in that area.

The candidate also will know Illinois public records laws and how to use FOIA requests to create data sets, and can assist other reporters with data brainstorming and analysis. 

We are looking for a collaborative, enterprising journalist who wants to combine these data and technical skills with investigative and solutions storytelling.   

As a reporter for Illinois Answers, a successful candidate will:

• Pitch and execute original story ideas that fall within our key topic areas, with a focus on equity and economic opportunity. 
• Be comfortable juggling multiple short, medium and long-term investigative and solutions stories both independently and as part of a team.
• Establish sources by spending time in Chicago neighborhoods across the city, with an emphasis on the South and West sides, which have traditionally been undercovered by local media.
• Have experience with or an openness to Solutions Journalism.
• Be a self-starter with excellent time-management and organizational skills.
• Have a collaborative mindset and an eagerness to partner both internally and externally. 
• Have a strong grasp of key issues affecting communities across Illinois. 

Job Requirements

Candidate requirements:

• 7 years of reporting experience with demonstrated impact 
• Bachelor’s degree in journalism or other relevant discipline
• Data literacy and experience with Excel and/or Google Sheets
• Familiarity with Illinois public records laws
• Experience with version control or collaborating on data projects
• Familiarity or interest in SQL, R and/or Python
• Experience with making data more accessible for readers with graphics or interactives
• Applicants must be eligible to work in the United States

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