News editor, Columbia Gorge

Date Posted	September 16, 2026
Industry	Nonprofit
Specialty	Local News
Remote / Telecommute	Hybrid
Job Status	Part-time
Salary	$36,400-$41,600

Description:

• Classification: Half-time, temporary through January 2027 with potential for longer term.
• Reports to: Community journalism director.
• Compensation: Starting hourly rate between $35-$40, depending on experience.  
• Location: Based in the Columbia River Gorge. This is a work from home position. Some local and possibly longer travel may be required.

What is Uplift Local?

Uplift Local is a community-centered news and information service. We seek to fill information gaps to better serve the needs of Columbia River Gorge communities, specifically in Hood River, Wasco, Klickitat and Skamania counties. Our team grows, changes and develops together in a way that is responsive to community needs.

Who are we hiring?

Providing local news, created by members of Columbia Gorge communities for those communities, is central to Uplift Local’s mission of developing a new kind of participatory journalism. We are hiring an editor to manage our news services for communities across the Columbia Gorge region, which include both English and Spanish news products. This person will oversee editorial direction and production; support and manage production and editorial staff, as well as freelancers; and collaborate in the management of Uplift Local’s Documenters program. This position involves deadlines and coaching. While this is not a reporting or production position per se, duties may involve some reporting or hands-on production work.

Sound fun? We’re excited to meet you!

Job responsibilities

Oversee editorial direction and news production (60%)

Uplift Local aims to report and share trustworthy, useful and relevant news and information. Editorial direction and news production focuses on producing and delivering Uplift Local’s regular news products, which currently include a bi-lingual website, an English-language email newsletter, a Spanish-language WhatsApp channel, Spanish-language audio reports, and social media.

Specific editorial and production responsibilities include:

• Ensuring the quality and timeliness of Uplift Local’s news products.
• Managing editorial and production staff and freelancers.
• In collaboration with editorial staff, setting editorial direction and making assignments.
• Editing stories and reviewing edited Documenter notes.
• Maximizing newsroom resources across news products.
• Assist in tracking the impact of the editorial team’s work.
• Developing ideas and strategies to improve usefulness and engagement of news products.

Coach staff in journalism skill development (20%)

Uplift Local strives for representative journalism, sharing the skills to deliver trustworthy and relevant information. Coaching staff in journalism skills is a central part of the editorial mission and folded in to routine editorial work.

Specific coaching responsibilities include:

• Providing direct support and feedback to individual staff journalists to increase their skills over time.
• Identifying newsroom training needs and working with the community journalism director to fill them.

Co-manage Uplift Local’s Gorge Documenters program (20%)

The Gorge Documenters program is the backbone of Uplift Local’s news operations and a central component of its overall mission. Understanding and co-managing the program is necessary for smooth integration of the Documenters work with the overall newsroom.

Specific responsibilities of co-managing Uplift Local’s Documenters program include:

• Working closely with the Community Editor, who is involved in all aspects of the program and takes the lead on agency listings and editing notes.
• Creating or overseeing weekly Documenter assignments from the plethora of public meetings.
• Reviewing edited Documenter notes for clarity, accuracy and story ideas.
• Working closely with other staff involved in recruitment and training of Gorge Documenters.

Uplift Local is a startup organization. These responsibilities may change as different needs arise.

Key skills and qualifications

To thrive in this position, candidates must bring a commitment to flexibility, inclusivity, transparency, community-mindedness and growth. Residency in or strong ties to the Columbia River Gorge is required. Essential skills include:

How You Work

We’re looking for candidates who are:

• Collaborative: You thrive in team settings and are comfortable both leading and contributing. You bring ideas and you know how to listen, and you are comfortable making decisions in a setting that puts a premium on team input.
• Flexible: You can see what needs to be done and know how to get it done, and are able to operate in a dynamic startup environment.
• Goal-oriented: You are comfortable setting stretch goals that contribute to both personal and organizational growth.

What You Bring

We’re looking for candidates who have:

• Journalism experience that demonstrates a commitment to accuracy, fairness and journalistic ethical standards. There is not a specific length or range of journalism experience required to be successful in this position; we will look at the combination of experience, interests and achievements each individual brings.
• Experience in editing, training, coaching or mentoring in journalism, or relevant experience that can demonstrably translate to journalism.
• A desire to experiment and test new models of local news and information.
• Experience across media platforms is a plus.
• Spanish-language skills are a plus.
• Ability to work remotely and meet in person when required.

We recognize that excellent candidates may not have every qualification listed. If you are passionate about this work generally, we encourage you to apply.

Work conditions

Most of the work for this role will be done during the traditional work day, with some evening or weekend work required. This is a work-from-home position with local and occasionally further travel A laptop is provided. The person in this position may be exposed to a wide variety of information, including some that could be challenging or traumatic. This is a temporary position through January 2027 with potential for longer term.

Compensation

This is a 20-hour/week staff position with compensation range of $35-$40/hour, depending on skills and experience. A comparable contract will be considered.

Benefits

The position includes:

• Reimbursement for work-related expenses, including mileage.
• Paid time off, pro-rated from 15 days/year.
• Paid sick leave, pro-rated from 5 days/year.
• Ten paid holidays.
• Access to a 401k retirement savings account.
• A company-provided laptop.
• Training opportunities.

Uplift Local is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to building a team that reflects the communities we cover, and we welcome applicants of all backgrounds. We do not discriminate in hiring or employment on the basis of age, color, creed, gender identity or expression, genetic information, linguistic fluency or speech characteristics, marital or civil union status, medical conditions of disability, military or veteran status, national origin or ancestry, neurodivergence, parent or caregiver status, political beliefs or affiliations, pregnancy or lactation status, race (including natural hair and protective hairstyles), religion, sex, sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.

To apply

We are excited to hear from you! If you are interested in this position, please complete this application form. It includes three short essay questions (minimum 300, maximum 700 word answers) and uploading your resume or C.V.

In your resumé, please think expansively about your experience. Feel free to include details of volunteer and community work you have done. We want to see what you can do, not only what you’ve been paid to do.

Hiring process and timeline  

In the spirit of transparency, we want to share our planned hiring timeline and process. This may be updated, as needed.

• This position is open until filled, with the goal of hiring immediately.
• The process may include several interviews. 
• The process may include completing a work sample. If so, you would be compensated for completing it.
• It may require reference or background checks.

You are welcome to contact Uplift Local community journalism director Emily Harris (emily@upliftlocal.news) with any questions about this position.

Reasonable accommodations

Uplift Local is committed to providing reasonable accommodations for anyone who needs them. Please contact emily@upliftlocal.news to request a reasonable accommodation during the application process.

Thank you for your interest! We are looking forward to being in touch.

Apply

https://upliftlocal.news/hiring-news-editor-columbia-gorge/