Managing Editor

The Evanston RoundTable is seeking a full-time managing editor to lead our daily newsroom, direct our coverage and help usher in the next stage of our development as a nonprofit, independent local journalism outlet.

In 1998, Mary and Larry Gavin founded the RoundTable with a mission to publish in-depth accountability reporting about our city government and public schools. In 2020, reckoning with steep revenue declines and the closure of local newspapers across the country, we became a nonprofit, digital-only reporting operation. Since then, we’ve built a daily email newsletter that goes out to 10,000 subscribers every morning and a website with about 350,000 page views a month.

We’re looking for someone with a background as a scrappy, shoe leather reporter who is hungry to take the next step in their career and guide our newsroom of talented young journalists, freelancers and volunteers. This is a people-oriented position. We want someone who will be in constant contact with our staff and freelancers, helping them to improve their writing and reporting skills every day and backing them up when they need it.

We want to maintain our identity as a small community paper, and that means being willing and able to work with a very diverse group of reporters, including our full-time news team and our freelance and volunteer feature writers. The RoundTable benefits from including voices with a wide array of backgrounds and journalism skills. The successful applicant will be able to fit comfortably into that environment while also helping us achieve public service, solutions oriented accountability journalism.

Availability on nights and weekends is a must. This is not a 9-to-5 job. Much of our coverage includes night meetings, whether they be community events or official City Council or school board business. You can also expect the occasional weekend breaking news.

Responsibilities

Serve as the public facing leader of the RoundTable newsroom:

Communicate regularly with dozens of freelance and volunteer feature writers and editors to shape their pitches and improve their stories

Set organizational priorities alongside our executive editor

Develop relationships with leaders of the key institutions that we cover and communicate with them as needed about stories and coverage concerns

Direct our coverage:

Develop an intimate understanding of the nuances of the Evanston community to better serve our readers

Regularly pitch new ideas to reporters and hold them accountable for producing high quality stories that matter to Evanston, from the restaurant down the street that closed to what residents should expect in their property tax bill

Coach our reporters and help them become better journalists and writers. Give them confidence in their career path and put them in positions to succeed based on their unique skillset

Direct our newsletter each day with an eye toward how it can be better

Expand our readership and donor base:

Identify topics that resonate with Evanstonians and continue to build those beats

Boost our reporting about all of Evanston's diversity, including communities that have been historically overlooked or ignored

Brainstorm ideas for newsroom partnerships, events, sponsorships, etc. that will bring more people into the RoundTable community

Qualifications

Bachelor’s degree, ideally with 5+ years of reporting experience and 3+ years of editing experience managing reporters; experience in nonprofit news a plus

Excellent communication skills and ability to coordinate coverage and edit stories in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment

Proven ability to lead with clear direction, collaborate effectively and develop young writers into experienced reporters

A demonstrated interest in the RoundTable’s nonprofit, public service journalism mission

Familiarity with Evanston politics and government is preferred but not required

Familiarity with the Wordpress content management system is preferred but not required

We know there will be many talented candidates who don’t necessarily meet each and every one of these qualifications, and that’s OK! Please consider applying anyway.

Benefits

This job is full-time and has health insurance benefits and a 403(b) plan.

The salary will vary depending on experience, with a range starting at $80,000.

How to apply

Please send a resume, cover letter and three to five work samples (they can be stories you’ve written or edited; please provide PDFs if the link is paywalled) to Managing Editor Duncan Agnew at duncan@evanstonroundtable.com and Executive Editor Tracy Quattrocki at tracy@evanstonroundtable.com by the deadline of 11:59 p.m. Tuesday, April 15, 2025.

We’re striving to build a newsroom that reflects the community we cover. The RoundTable is an Equal Opportunity Employer, and we encourage interested candidates of all backgrounds to apply.