Coverage of town affairs at the Press is done by reporters with an assigned beat. The more reporters on staff, the more beats we can assign, and the wider and deeper our coverage.
The state of our aquifers, the preservation of our forests and farmland, the creeping impact of climate change are important stories that deserve our attention, as does the work of related town boards and private trusts. And when the unexpected happens, such as the discovery of PFAS in private wells, or when nature asserts itself with extreme weather or a gentle spring migration of salamanders, the environment becomes breaking news, commanding our attention as the town’s best source of reliable information.
We’re looking for a reporter to help us create a new conservation and environment beat. The ideal candidate would have passion and curiosity for the subject, the ability to write clearly and succinctly about complex topics, and a schedule that would allow time to cover evening meetings of the Conservation Commission, the Bare Hill Pond Watershed Management Committee, the Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness subcommittee, the Energy Action Committee, and other groups dedicated to understanding and protecting our environment.
Reporting experience is always welcome, even if you gained it years ago working for a college paper or more recently on a community weekly in another town. We are a community-staffed and community-owned newspaper and want to keep it that way, so we understand the importance of fostering a culture where newbies can learn how to report and write and where the best among us can get better. It’s an approach we’ve honed since our founding in 2007. None of the reporter-winners of our first-place New England Newspaper and Press Association award this year for local government reporting is a graduate of journalism school or has ever worked full time for a news organization.
To learn more, please write to editor@harvardpress.net. Tell us why the subject appeals to you, what kinds of stories you’d like to pursue, and what experience you’ve had as an environmental professional, volunteer, advocate, or reporter. We look forward to hearing from you.
