Help us spread the word: News414 is hiring | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
February 4, 2020
The Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service, along with two other nonprofit newsrooms, is excited to be moving ahead on News414. If you know any outstanding candidates to help lead this project, please send them our way. (Photo by Sue Vliet)
We need your help.
And we need it quickly.
News414 is hiring a project manager and engagement manager to lead a public service journalism project that seeks to build connections to underserved Milwaukee neighborhoods, address residents’ most pressing needs and provide them with interactive text messages delivered to their phones.
The project is a collaborative effort of three nonprofit and nonpartisan news organizations — the Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service, Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism and Outlier Media. It is supported by the Google News Initiative.
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The newsrooms are joining forces to deliver news to residents of 18 Milwaukee neighborhoods that are underserved by traditional media. Using innovative technology and research techniques, the collaboration will build direct connections between newsrooms and neighborhood residents, investigate the neighborhoods’ most pressing issues and deliver accountability journalism to the residents and the broader public.
Information — both “news you can use” and in-depth pieces exploring the causes of problems plaguing low-income neighborhoods — will be texted directly to residents’ cell phones. Subscribers to the free texting service will also become crucial sources of news tips and on-the-ground information that may be published on Wisconsin Watch, NNS, and News414. (For more about this model, read this.)
The News414 Project Manager is responsible for coordinating the work of the three partner newsrooms and activities of other key figures, including the News414 Engagement Manager, to keep the project focused, on schedule and on budget.
Position description
The News414 Project Manager will:
This is a full-time contractor position. Some evening and weekend work is necessary.
This position is currently funded through mid-November 2020, and we will assess a potential extension as the project unfolds.
You should apply if you:
If you have just some of the skills listed here, or others we failed to list, please consider applying for this position.
Experience: We are looking for detail- and deadline-oriented candidates with experience managing projects. Successful applicants should be collaborative and have excellent interpersonal communication skills. Preference will be given to candidates with experience working with culturally diverse populations — and a zeal for ensuring that all are provided a voice in our society. The ideal candidate will have a deep knowledge of Milwaukee and its history; connections to community groups and organizations in the neighborhoods; the ability to work with diverse networks; ideas of how to engage and empower community members to participate in the project; and a passion for the role that journalism serves in our democracy. Experience in event planning and a knowledge of best social media practices are preferred.
Location: The News414 Project Manager will be based in Milwaukee and will have the option of working out of the NNS newsroom at Marquette University.
See details here for information about the engagement manager position.