Sr. Investigative Data Journalist

CBS News and Stations is seeking an experienced data journalist with a demonstrated track record breaking important stories and investigations using data, programming, records, open-source intelligence, and traditional and digital sleuthing. You will work with data journalists, investigative journalists, visual journalists, and innovative producers, in an environment where important stories are the North Star – stories that help people, make a difference in the communities we serve, reveal injustice and wrongdoing, and hold the powerful to account to find solutions. The right data journalist for this role is a reporter first, someone who is as comfortable talking to sources as working in a code editor, someone who brings the same enthusiasm to breaking news and local journalism as they bring to a big national investigation, and someone who works well with others in a culture committed to collaboration, respect, and excellence.

Primary Responsibilities:

Acquire and analyze data to reveal and produce original stories and investigations focused on helping people and solving problems.
Collaborate with local and national newsrooms, and teammates, on breaking news, emerging enterprise and investigations that make us essential to viewers and set our journalism apart from competitors.
Help produce unique and compelling data-visualizations and innovative storytelling on the web, television, and streaming platforms.
Clearly and concisely communicate findings from complex data and analyses to reporters, producers, newsroom leaders and the public.
Work diligently with data journalists, reporters, producers, newsroom leadership and legal counsel to ensure our journalism is fair, accurate and well-documented, and that it meets all CBS News’ standards.
Collaborate, advise, and review data work of colleagues as needed.
Report, interview, research and develop sources.
Know and effectively use federal and state open records laws.
Lead training courses in data journalism and advanced research. Ability to work independently, or to function as a team leader on investigative reporting projects when called upon.
Appear in broadcasts clearly and concisely explaining your work.
Relentlessly expand your knowledge of data and other sources beyond traditional, easy-to-get government datasets as well as your knowledge of computational investigative techniques.

Minimum Requirements:

10+ years’ experience as a data journalist, working in professional newsrooms, including 5+ years’ experience producing investigations.
Portfolio showing your ability to use data and programming to uncover and report important news stories and investigations with revelatory findings that are communicated clearly in writing, images, graphics, web design, and data visualization. While you may not have produced every visual in the work, you should show be able to show your ability to influence and work with designers, graphic artists and data visualization specialists.
Experience producing multiplatform content preferred, especially experience developing stories for video, streaming or broadcast.
Data analysis skills, preferably using at least one programming language such as Python or R. Expert-level skill with Excel or Google Sheets. Knowledge of geographic information systems, spatial analysis and SQL databases helpful.
Experience with charting platforms such as Datawrapper or Flourish are helpful. Ability to create data visualizations using D3 or other programmatic visualization tools are a bonus.
Your demonstrated ability to use data and programming to find and report stories that matter will weigh more than the tools you use.
Must have basic mathematic and statistics familiarity, ability to assess the reliability of datasets and sources, to and organize messy data.
Excellent reading, writing, spelling, grammar and organizational skills.
Voracious news consumer who has developed a diverse information diet that includes broadcast, digital, print and other sources.
Expertise and passion for any of the following topics is helpful: open-source intelligence, visual or forensic investigations, government and political accountability, climate change’s impact on people’s health, finances and quality of life, consumer fraud, public safety, and malfeasance involving emerging technology and surveillance.