Criminal Justice and Public Safety Reporter-Missoula, MT

Description:

Criminal Justice and Public Safety Reporter-Missoula, MT

The Missoulian, the largest of Lee Enterprises’ five Montana newsrooms, is seeking an ambitious and resourceful reporter to cover criminal justice and public safety.

This position in our digital-first newsroom requires a versatile journalist who can handle daily crime stories and rally to breaking news while also working on longer-term, in-depth investigative and enterprise reporting. This established beat also includes keeping a close eye on the local police and fire departments and other criminal justice institutions, following local, state and federal court cases that play out in Missoula, and acting as a watchdog for victims of crime and the public safety.

Qualifications:

• Demonstrates strong news judgment and an ability to make decisions quickly as news happens
• Willingness to pivot and jump on breaking news
• Ability to take an aerial-view approach to covering criminal justice and public safety. Gone are the days of just writing up felony briefs. Our reporting should be of service to our community.
• Desire to take a trauma-informed approach to reporting on crime
• Ability to lead your own coverage, while also being accepting of pitches from editors
• Knowledge of the court system is a plus

Missoula, nicknamed the Garden City, is an outdoor recreation haven situated in a valley surrounded by five mountain ranges and boasting three rivers. Besides the skiing, mountain biking, hiking, trail running and river floating opportunities that abound, Missoula has a rich arts and entertainment scene, a bustling downtown with a variety of restaurants, bars and breweries. We’re home to the University of Montana, the state’s flagship, and less than three hours from Glacier National Park and Yellowstone National Park.

Why Join Us?

Lee Enterprises, Inc. offers competitive wages in a dynamic, interesting work environment with career growth opportunities. We offer an extensive benefit program that can be personalized to your needs. Our benefit program includes medical, dental, vision, short and long-term disability, company provided life insurance and supplemental life insurance. In addition, we offer a 401K retirement plan with company match. We also offer generous paid time off to allow the flexibility to balance personal life and work. This includes paid parental leave for new parents.

Lee Enterprises is a major subscription and advertising platform and a leading provider of local news and information, with daily newspapers, rapidly growing digital products and nearly 350 weekly and specialty publications serving 743 markets in 26 states. Year to date, Lee's newspapers have an average daily circulation of 1.0 million, and our legacy websites, including acquisitions, reach more than 34 million digital unique visitors.

Lee Enterprises is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to attracting and retaining a workforce whose diversity reflects the communities we serve. Lee embraces change, and we recognize that we must create and maintain a culture of fervent inclusion. For more information about Lee, check us out at www.lee.net.

We are focused on building a diverse and inclusive workforce. If you are excited about this role but do not meet 100% of the qualifications above, we encourage you to apply at https://lee.net/careers/ and search for Missoula. Be sure to include a cover letter, resume, and links to clip (or clips) of your work.