Denverite is hiring a housing and hunger reporter

Welton Street seen from the Blair-Caldwell African American Research Library as developers meet with the Five Points community to announce new plans for the Rossonian Hotel. April 16, 2018. (Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite)

Welton Street seen from the Blair-Caldwell African American Research Library as developers meet with the Five Points community to announce new plans for the Rossonian Hotel. April 16, 2018. (Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite)

Denverite is hiring a reporter to tell stories about housing and hunger in Denver.

Here’s the short version: With the help of 18 Colorado nonprofits, we are creating a new reporter position that will be funded through November 2019. The reporter will cover some of the hottest stories in Denver, focusing on housing and hunger in various forms over that time, and will support or moderate live events to further explore these areas.

What are the responsibilities?

The new hire will spend most of their time reporting on neighborhood-, city- and metro-level stories about housing and hunger, ranging from specific, personal stories up to policy stories. They will, as all Denverite newsroom staffers do, support in the creation and sending of our flagship newsletter and help produce events that highlight and support our journalism.

The abilities to plan ahead and to work quickly are critical.

Who are you hiring?

The ideal candidate will:

  • have experience in local news — knowledge of the Denver metro area is a definite plus, although if you have demonstrated the ability to develop a beat in a new city in the past, let’s talk
  • have strong attention to detail
  • generate great story ideas in the focus topics that speak to varied, real, human experiences of living in Denver
  • be able to find room for voice and humor in their work
  • provide a perspective not currently well represented in the Denverite newsroom
  • be able to dive into group reporting projects
  • be able to engage with readers and represent Denverite in the community — Denverite staffers help create and host or moderate live events with our audience, like our panel event focused on homelessness and housing insecurity, our Bike to Work Day party or
  • our members-only happy hours
  • be committed to earning and maintaining a loyal, trusting audience

Bonus: Be able to conduct interviews in Spanish.

Candidates do not necessarily need deep experience in housing or hunger reporting, but should be able to talk comfortably about how they’ve built expertise on a beat before and how they’d do it now.

Listing experience levels is tricky and problematic, but this is not a straight-out-of-school job and it also doesn’t require decades of harrowing newsroom experience.

We strive to build an exciting, inclusive, diverse, nimble and rewarding workplace. We started from zero just over two years ago, and this is an opportunity to be part of shaping the future of local journalism.

Women and people of color strongly encouraged to apply.

How are you hiring?

Please send an email to [email protected] with “Housing reporter application” in the subject line.

Just put your cover letter — nothing stilted and overly professional, please use a casual, comfortable voice — in the body of the email. Include links to some of the work you’re proudest of, placing an emphasis on variety. Also include links to social media accounts where you’re publicly active. And, of course, attach a resume.

Why are you hiring?

A group of 18 Colorado nonprofits united in their focus on housing affordability and food security have generously agreed to fully fund a full-time Denverite reporter to cover housing and hunger for a little over a year. Denverite has been covering these areas from the beginning and we intend to take this opportunity to increase our focus on issues that are at the center of many critical conversations and decisions for the Denver metro area now and in the near future. The nonprofits will not be involved in editorial decisions, and the new hire will report to Denverite’s editor, as do all other newsroom staffers.

What’s Denverite?

Denverite is for the curious and concerned in our ever-changing city. We’ve got reporting from the Capitol and from City Hall, eyes on new development in Denver neighborhoods, guides to weekend fun and much more. We hold live events that help inform, engage or entertain our audience. And we send out a morning email — you should probably read several of these before you apply — designed to help people understand their city and find the best journalism, whether it’s ours or not, in just a few minutes each day.

Spirited Media, Inc., Denverite’s parent company, is an equal opportunity employer.