Deputy Research Editor

ProPublica; United States; Remote; USD 135,000 - 145,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Restaurant d'entreprise

Indemnités de stage/alternance

Job summary

ProPublica is seeking a Deputy Research Editor to lead our robust research team and strengthen investigative reporting across the newsroom. You will guide public records, OSINT and advanced verification while coordinating with editors and reporters on high-impact investigations.

You will supervise researchers, manage workflows, and help shape strategy for both long-term probes and urgent requests, with an emphasis on collaboration and rigorous sourcing.

Qualifications

• At least three years of experience managing a research team.
• Significant in-depth research experience in journalism or related fields.
• Strong knowledge of financial, corporate, government, legal or OSINT resources.
• Experience using AI in investigative reporting.
• Experience locating and analyzing public records across government levels.
• Ability to guide staff in evaluating information from diverse sources.

Responsibilities

• Manage research reporters and supervise the team.
• Escalation point for complex reporting challenges and sourcing issues.
• Prioritize incoming research requests balancing urgent needs and long-term projects.
• Assign work, shape strategy and ensure high-quality research support.
• Provide editorial guidance on records strategies, sourcing, databases and verification.
• Help build relationships with editors, reporters and partner newsrooms.
• Contribute to hiring, onboarding and mentoring across a distributed staff.
• Assist with management of research tools, databases and applications.

Skills

Leadership experience

Editorial guidance

Collaboration skills

Attention to detail

Communication skills

Tools

OSINT databases

Premium databases

Records databases

Job description

ProPublica is an independent, nonprofit newsroom that produces investigative journalism in the public interest.

We are seeking a deputy research editor to help lead and strengthen ProPublica's research team, guiding high-impact investigative work across the newsroom while supporting rigorous, collaborative and responsive research at scale.

The team works at scale and with flexibility, often supporting multiple major investigations while responding to urgent, high-priority requests tied to breaking news. Researchers typically balance two to three long-term projects at a time while fielding short-term needs, providing expertise in public records, financial and government research, OSINT and advanced verification.

This role reports to the research editor, and you'll work closely together to lead ProPublica's seven-member research team, which works collaboratively across our national, regional and Local Reporting Network desks.

As Deputy Research Editor, You Will:

• Alongside the research editor, manage research reporters as they work on investigative stories. You'll directly supervise reporters on the team.
• Serve as an escalation point for research reporters and newsroom staff, helping resolve complex reporting challenges, tight deadlines and sensitive sourcing or verification issues.
• Manage and prioritize incoming research requests, balancing urgent newsroom needs with longer-term investigative projects.
• Partner with the research editor to assign work, shape strategy and ensure consistent, high-quality research support across desks, beats and regions.
• Provide hands-on editorial guidance to research reporters, including coaching on records strategies, advanced sourcing, database use, OSINT techniques and verification.
• Provide hands-on editorial guidance to text editors and reporters, identifying training opportunities in the newsroom, including coaching on records strategies, advanced sourcing, database use, OSINT techniques and verification.
• Collaborate closely with reporters and editors to define research goals, frame investigations and connect the dots across large volumes of information.
• Support and strengthen ProPublica's research workflows, including documentation, organization and best practices that make work usable across teams.
• Help build and maintain strong relationships with editors, reporters, partner newsrooms and other specialty teams at ProPublica, ensuring research is integrated early and effectively into reporting.
• Contribute to hiring, onboarding, mentoring and giving performance feedback for a distributed research staff.
• Assist with management and administration of, and help inform contract negotiations for, research tools and resources used by the newsroom, including evaluating new technologies, databases and applications relevant to investigative reporting.
• Promote a collaborative, inclusive and supportive team culture that values rigor, curiosity and shared success.

Our Ideal Candidate Will Have:

• At least three years of experience managing a research team, ideally in a journalism capacity. We will prioritize candidates who have managed and supervised staff.
• Significant in-depth research experience, ideally in the investigative journalism context, but we're also open to candidates with deep government or other types of investigative research skills that can be useful to our work.
• In-depth knowledge of financial, corporate, government, legal or OSINT resources.
• An understanding of the use of AI in investigative reporting.
• Deep experience identifying, obtaining, searching and analyzing public records, with a strong understanding of government documents and processes at local, state and federal levels.
• Expert ability to guide staffers in evaluating and vetting information from diverse sources, including proficiency in searching and using premium databases.
• Demonstrated ability to identify and quickly use emerging technologies and applications relevant to investigative research.
• Experience building morale and fostering professional growth in a geographically distributed team.
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills, with an appetite for working across the newsroom and with external partners.
• Keen attention to detail and a proven ability to synthesize complex information and identify patterns and connections.
• Exceptional organizational, analytical and problem-solving skills, with a proven ability to manage multiple projects, meet tight deadlines and perform effectively under pressure.
• Willingness and ability to travel occasionally for staff retreats, training or other required events.

This job is full time and includes benefits . ProPublica has offices in New York City; Washington, D.C.; Atlanta; Chicago; Phoenix; and Berkeley, California. We are open to remote candidates, but those able to work from our New York or D.C. offices are strongly encouraged. Applicants must be eligible to work in the U.S.

The expected salary range for this position is $135,000 to $145,000.

This is a good-faith estimate of what we expect to pay for this position. The final salary figure will take into account a person's experience, accomplishment and location. ProPublica is committed to paying its staff equitably, and these ranges should not be considered career salary limits or caps.

We will begin reviewing applications as we receive them, but we will continue to consider candidates as long as the posting remains live on our site.

We are dedicated to improving our newsroom, in part by better reflecting the people we cover. (Here is a breakdown of our staff .) We are committed to diversity and building an inclusive environment for people of all backgrounds and ages, and we're taking steps to meet that commitment. We especially encourage members of traditionally underrepresented communities to apply, including women, people of color, LGBTQ+ people and people with disabilities. We are an equal opportunity employer and prohibit discrimination and harassment of any kind. All employment decisions are made without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, age or any other status protected under applicable law.

Additional Information 2025

We are committed to diversity and building an inclusive environment for people of all backgrounds and ages, and we're taking steps to meet that commitment. We especially encourage members of traditionally underrepresented communities to apply, including women and people of color.
The following questions are part of our efforts to ensure that we have attracted a diverse pool of candidates. Your answers to these questions will in no way affect your chances of being hired. We are an equal opportunity employer and prohibit discrimination and harassment of any kind. All employment decisions are made without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, age, or any other status protected under applicable law. It's also completely fine to indicate that you do not wish to answer these questions, and it will in no way affect your chances of getting hired.