National Desk Editor, The Christian Science Monitor
Posting Details
Job Details
Description
Department: The Christian Science Monitor
SUMMARY
The National Desk Editor works with fellow US-based desk editors, bureau chiefs, and staff writers to help shape a robust body of U.S. news and features coverage for our daily digital output as well as our print magazine. As a key hub in a unified editorial content engine, the role is pivotal in producing content that demonstrates the Monitor’s unique and undivided approach to journalistic excellence. This includes briefs for the app as well as print-first franchises and enterprise stories.
The National Desk Editor approaches daily editing of U.S. news and features with curiosity and open-mindedness and a willingness to set aside personal bias or prevailing consensus. The editor reviews and selects pitches based on rigorous journalistic principles, and treats all points of view with diligent inquiry and respect. The incumbent prizes original reporting and builds stories that promote calm over fear and insight over assumption. A Monitor journalist depicts the subject of the story fairly and without embellishment, and eschews advocacy. The Monitor equips the reader to reach his or her own well-reasoned conclusions.
The National Desk Editor strives to uphold The Christian Science Monitor’s founding mission “to spread undivided the Science that operates unspent,” and its object “to injure no man but to bless all mankind.” That includes hewing to our five operational guidelines:
- Bring a healing, purifying thought to many homes.We counteract cynicism about news and humanity by upholding a higher standard of both.
- Get above the fray.Because we’re owned by a church, we’re free from corporate and political interests.
- Cover the day’s vital global news.We provide a trustworthy and concise compilation for our thoughtful, busy readers.
- Investigate ideals and endeavors, not just events.We keep abreast of the times by recognizing key currents of thought and their impact.
- Be clean, family-friendly, and non-sensational.We are “a newspaper for the home.”
ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
The National Desk Editor is responsible for coordinating and editing coverage of issues across the spectrum, including politics, government, and social and cultural issues. The incumbent works with both staff writers and freelancers to ensure coverage appropriate to the website, app, newsletters, and the print edition. The Desk Editor also works with writers to ensure smooth travel, proper security arrangements, and compliance with the Monitor Ethics Policy. This includes not taking any public position on any political or public-issue campaign, including through social media posts, participation in protests, or donations to political candidates or issues.
The National Desk Editor is an original and enterprising thinker. The incumbent knows that peoples and nations are more than politics; has a keen eye for news and feature stories that capture through rich description and variety of voices how societies govern, educate, and articulate their values and creativity; and knows that different types of stories require different approaches to editing and narration. Writing grows out of reading. The National Desk Editor is a voracious and deep reader who draws from a diversity of sources to stoke curiosity, sharpen ideas, and spot stories not yet told.
The National Desk Editor embraces our newsroom’s three culture pillars:
- We’re scrappy.We seek creative solutions. We’re hungry and nimble. We experiment and streamline.
- We’re rigorous.We embrace others challenging our ideas and our writing. We strive for editorial excellence, and we help each other continually improve. We know that feedback is a gift.
- We have unwavering fidelity to our mission.We make our founding mission the basis for every decision and initiative.
Editorial capabilities include but are not limited to the following:
- Practices editorial rigor resulting in strong story angles and incisive, energetic writing.
- Embraces a culture of feedback.
- Excels at forging trust in order to bring out the best reporting and writing in correspondents.
- Understands, respects, and consistently applies Monitor style and language sensitivities.
- Engages collaboratively with other desk editors and managers.
- Meets productivity goals set by National News Editor and/or executive management team.
- Demonstrates mastery of basic CSM style and grammar and can reliably provide strong copy editing when needed.
STAFF MANAGEMENT AND JOB CONTACTS
Supervisor: National News EditorRegular Contacts: Has regular contact with the National News Editor, Deputy National News Editor, and other National writers.
JOB REQUIREMENTS
Education/Experience
College degree and some editing experience, or at least 5 years of experience in journalism or comparable experience.
Knowledge/Skills
- Reads widely, deeply, and regularly for subject knowledge and breadth of perspectives.
- Expresses sound news judgment reflecting consistent and current awareness of daily events and how they shape or fit into broader trends.
- Has a strong background or base knowledge of relevant subjects for context and proportion.
- Effectively communicates information and ideas, both in writing and orally.
- Responds quickly to writers and fellow editors, facilitating efficient pitch approval and seamless communication on deadline.
- Edits quickly and calmly on deadline, preserving – and, when needed, adding – relevant facts and context. Accuracy is a must.
- Possesses strong fact-checking skills and a keen awareness of ethical considerations, from how stories represent sources to avoiding plagiarism.
- Writes compelling headlines and other display text, which are in line with the Monitor’s sensitivities and purpose to uplift.
Technology Skills
Experience with Google Suite applications (Google Docs, etc.), EZ Publish, social media platforms.
Work Environment
Three full days a week in the Boston newsroom. Remote work considered on a provisional basis. When not in person, it’s essential to always be quickly reachable during work hours.
Engagement with Christian Science
Membership in The Mother Church is valued, but is not required. The National Desk Editor respects that, while the Monitor is not a sectarian publication, it is grounded in the healing mission of the Church that publishes it. The editor is receptive to developing a deeper understanding of how that mission informs and uplifts our journalism. For more background, see
Pay Range:$87,428 - $113,655.80 annually
The pay ranges disclosed in our job postings are the compensation ranges the Church reasonably and in good faith expects to pay for a given position at the time of posting.
The offered salary will be determined by factors such as the applicant’s relevant education, experience, knowledge, skills, abilities; and benchmarking, work location, and internal equity.
In compliance with federal law, all persons hired will be required to verify identity and eligibility to work in the United States and to complete the required employment eligibility verification document form upon hire.
Qualifications
Equal Opportunity Employer
This employer is required to notify all applicants of their rights pursuant to federal employment laws.
For further information, please review the Know Your Rights notice from the Department of Labor.