Investigative reporter

Date Posted	March 31, 2026
Industry	Nonprofit
Specialty	Not Specified
Remote / Telecommute	Telecommute
Job Status	Full-time
Salary	$90,000 to $100,000

Description:

Title: Investigative reporter

Type: Full-time remote, grant-funded position

Reports to: Senior Investigations Editor

The Examination is seeking an investigative reporter with a track record of producing impactful stories to join our award-winning lead reporting team. 

This is a position for someone with a collaborative mindset and a passion for human-centered accountability reporting. In this role, you would be responsible for producing original reporting and stories about the commercial drivers of lead poisoning, a scourge that afflicts tens of millions of children worldwide, in every corner of the globe. 

The ideal candidate will have experience investigating companies and/or public health harms, and is not daunted by the challenges of reporting across borders and geographies. Willingness to work with other journalists, on The Examination’s team and in partnering newsrooms, is an absolute must. Previous experience reporting on lead is not required. 

This is a two-year, grant-funded position. Continued funding for the position after May 2028 is contingent upon future grant support.

Job Summary

In this position, you will pitch, report, and craft stories about the industries that poison the environment and people with lead, the government bodies that fail to prevent it and the communities in harm’s way, focusing on sources that include batteries, food and paint. 

You will prioritize stories that cross borders and present opportunities to collaborate with journalists in other countries. You will have the opportunity to work with scientists on original research. And you will coordinate with our impact team to raise the likelihood that your reporting drives real-world change.

We already have a track record of groundbreaking investigations into lead poisoning in Africa. After we reported that lead recyclers in Nigeria that supplied the U.S. auto industry were poisoning residents, Nigerian officials closed the plants and launched a testing program, and a U.S. battery maker stopped buying Nigerian lead. Authorities in Togo tested for lead after we revealed soil contamination there. And in Democratic Republic of Congo, a battery recycler was closed after we revealed that it too was poisoning its neighbors.

We now want to broaden our reach, and our impact. You will be a vital part of that effort. 

Qualifications

Lead poisoning is under-reported and, in many corners of the world, unknown. The ideal candidate will bring international expertise, a creative, persistent mindset for solving reporting challenges, comfort reporting everywhere from open-air markets to corporate boardrooms, technical or scientific fluency, and a drive to tell the stories of people who are harmed by corporate wrongdoing and government inaction. 

The ideal candidate has:

• At least five years of experience producing original accountability journalism, regardless of whether your job title had the word “investigative” in it

• A track record of investigative journalism that has led to change

• Comfort in working with data and data journalists

• Experience covering some or all of the following: corporate wrongdoing, supply chains, public health and science

• Experience creating story pitches and viable reporting plans

• Experience producing or meaningfully supporting non-text-based stories. Though we understand that many investigative reporters are text-based, we are looking for someone who can identify the best format for the story and deliver the reporting and sources needed to tell it.

In addition, we strongly prefer people with these skills and attributes:

• Experience working on cross-border collaborations. We work with newsrooms around the world; you should be comfortable working with  journalists in countries with different professional cultures and practices than your own.

• Experience reporting in countries other than your own.

• Proficiency in a language other than English. (Your colleague on the beat speaks English and French.)

• A source network, particularly one including people outside the U.S. and Europe, that will give you a head start in developing the beat.

Pay and benefits

The estimated salary for this position is $90,000 - $105,000 USD, commensurate with experience, achievements, and location. We welcome international candidates and will adapt the terms of engagement depending on the country of residence. We offer a fully remote newsroom environment, with strong health and retirement benefits, generous leave policies, and support for professional development.

People of color, people with disabilities and LGBTQ+ people are strongly encouraged to apply. We are an equal opportunity employer and have zero tolerance for discrimination or harassment of any kind.

How to apply

Please send your résumé and a brief cover letter explaining why you are the right person for this role and how you would approach the lead beat. Please include links to or copies of three investigations or accountability stories you reported, along with a description of innovative techniques, challenges you overcame and anything else that shows your contribution, to work@theexamination.org.  

If your experience does not match everything described here but you believe you can bring something essential to the role, we encourage you to apply and make your case.

Deadline to apply: April 17, 2026

About us

The Examination is an independent, nonprofit newsroom dedicated to investigating preventable health threats and empowering affected communities through fearless, evidence-based reporting. Guided by scientific rigor and empowered by global collaboration, we go deep to report on commercial products and processes that contribute to preventable disease and death, which destabilize families, communities, health systems and economies. Coverage areas include the tobacco, food and fossil fuels industries.

Since our launch in 2023, our award-winning investigations have exposed corporate and governmental forces that undermine public health. We’ve teamed up with media partners around the world, ranging from leading newspapers to small investigative outlets confronting limited resources and attacks on press freedom. Our mission is to hold the powerful to account, inspire positive change and build a healthier world.