Great Lakes Reporter

The Trace is hiring a reporter who lives in the Great Lakes region to cover gun violence across Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. 

We are looking for someone who can thoroughly report stories as assigned and help spot new ones, who is familiar with the region and has the flexibility to travel within it, and has an enterprising spirit that will help them deliver in-depth coverage on our beat. The ideal candidate has six to 15 years experience and a proven ability to develop sources, identify juicy areas for accountability reporting, and get records and information through requests and human sources. 

As The Trace’s Great Lakes correspondent, you will develop coverage that goes beyond breaking news and create a steady stream of accountability stories. This may include policy and legislation news; human-centered profiles; analysis of data and research; and watchdog reporting on gun dealers or the gun rights movement. 

More information — including the link to apply — in the full job description linked above. Any questions not covered there can be emailed to: jobs at thetrace dot org.

• Reports and writes 12 to 18 stories that drive change per year
• May work on one to three projects or deep feature stories per year, as scheduling allows
• Develops and maintains a deep bench of sources with knowledge of all aspects of gun violence
• Follows the news and pitches frequently
• Delivers clean, factual copy that is a pleasure to read and works collaboratively through editing to make stories as good as they can be
• Works collaboratively with editors and other staff and contributes to a supportive workplace culture overall
• Is highly organized and self-motivated

• Has at least 6 years of reporting experience, ideally in the Great Lakes region and/or on the criminal justice beat
• Demonstrates exceptional on-the-ground news gathering skills (variety of well-cultivated and maintained sources; generates story ideas; skeptical of what they gather) 
• Works well with colleagues to share information, insights, and ideas
• Is committed to public interest journalism and wants to see gun violence coverage of Great Lakes states go beyond standard coverage by delving deeper