Senior Data Developer

Investigative Reporters and Editors Inc.; Austin, Northern (TX, KY); Hybrid; USD 86,000 - 105,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, vision and dental insurance

Monthly cellphone stipend

20 days of paid time off

12 paid holidays

Up to 16 weeks of paid family leave

Annual 401(k) match

Support for professional training and 

Remote working flexibility

Job summary

The Texas Tribune, the state’s go-to source for Texas politics and public policy news, is hiring a Senior Data Visuals Developer to build data tools and empower Texans to understand the state's political landscape. You will join an award-winning data visuals team spanning product and editorial.

Based anywhere in Texas, you will report to the Data Visuals Editor and focus on statewide coverage with opportunities to collaborate with Waco and Austin bureaus.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree and 8+ years of relevant experience or equivalent combination
• Experience building and maintaining back-end and API workflows using Django
• Experience with spreadsheet tools and data analysis using Python/SQL/R
• Experience creating clear data visualizations and strong journalistic storytelling sense
• Senior staff collaboration and leadership in editorial/product meetings
• Collaborative mindset and ability to work with rigor while learning and growing
• Ability to collaborate with product designers and cross-functional teams in a newsroom

Responsibilities

• Maintain and optimize the Django API powering election tools.
• Analyze election results to help Texans understand outcomes.
• Propose new ideas to advance visual storytelling and publishing strategies, including AI experimentation.
• Serve as Texas campaign finance expert to inform reporting on politicians and donors.
• Collaborate with local Texas bureaus in Austin and Waco as needed.
• Help strategize how to publish local election information for audiences in Austin and Waco.

Skills

Data visualization

Leadership

Collaboration

Python

SQL

R

Visual design

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Django

Python

SQL

R

Job description

The Texas Tribune , the state’s go-to source for Texas politics and public policy news, is hiring a Senior Data Visuals Developer to build data tools to empower Texans and help them understand where they fit within the state's complicated political landscape. This position is part of the Tribune's award-winning data visuals department, an experimental R&Dstorytelling team living between product and editorial.

This person will report to the Data Visuals Editor and can be based anywhere in Texas. The Tribune is headquartered in Austin, and we have journalists in cities across the state. The Senior Data Visuals Developer’s primary focus will be our statewide newsroom, with occasional collaborations with our new local newsrooms inWaco andAustin .

The salary for this position is $95,000.

• After the elections, you will also helpanalyze the results to help Texans understand what happened.
• Each election cycle, our coverage gets more visually ambitious. We are looking for someone with new ideas on how we can continue to serve our audience well.
• You will be in charge of maintaining the Django API that powers our election tools and optimizing this process in collaboration with our in-house engineering team.
• We’re looking for someone who is future-minded and eager to experiment with how and where we publish election information, including with AI.
• You will become a Texas campaign finance expert and help produce impactful reporting onpowerful politicians anddonors . We have an internal Django app that helps gather state campaign finance data and are open to ideas for how we can make this tool more useful for our reporters.
• You are eager to help the organization strategize about how to provide information on local elections for our audiences inAustin andWaco .

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree and 8+ years of relevant experience OR equivalent combination of education and relevant experience
• Experience building and maintaining back-end and API workflows using tools such as Django
• Experience with basic spreadsheet tools and running data analysis using tools such as Python, SQL or R
• Experience creating clear and concise data visualizations and the journalistic skills to evaluate when a story needs a big lift or could benefit from simplicity
• As a senior staff member, you’ll show an interest in leadership and be comfortable representing the data visuals team in editorial and product meetings when needed.
• A collaborative spirit and the ability to work with rigor while knowing that you are still learning and growing. (The data visuals team mascot is the capybara in a yuzu bath because we are pretty chill.)
• Visual design skills are a plus, but not required. However, the ability to collaborate is required —you’ll frequently partner with Tribune product designers on and off the data visuals team

We know some great candidates won’t check all of these boxes, and we also know you might bring important skills that we haven’t thought of. If that’s you, don’t hesitate to apply and tell us about yourself.

Location

The Texas Tribune office is located in downtown Austin, steps away from the Texas Capitol. This position is based in Austin, but we will consider candidates who are based elsewhere in Texas and can travel occasionally to our Austin office.

This job is full-time and has the following benefits:

• Medical, vision and dental insurance
• Monthly cellphone stipend
• 20 days of paid time off each year
• 12 paid holidays
• Up to 16 weeks of paid family leave, plus four weeks of additional job protection
• Annual 401(k) match
• Support for professional training and career development
• Remote working flexibility

The Texas Tribune is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We encourage applicants of all identities, backgrounds, ages, and abilities to apply. We can't wait to hear from you.

About The Texas Tribune

Here’s what you should know about the Tribune. From day one, we’ve had disruption, innovation and risk-taking in our DNA. We’re ambitious as all get out but still have the punch-above-your-weight mentality of a scrappy start-up. We believe we can meet the demands of our audience and our own expectations for excellence without breaking the bank — or our staff. We understand not everything is a story for us — we have to make choices — but we’re always looking to expand our boundaries.

We’re nonprofit because the challenging economic reality for media these days obligates us to find a different way, reliable and sustainable, to fund serious journalism. We’re nonpartisan because we live in the United States of Confirmation Bias — and we don’t need to be part of the problem. We don’t need to be yet another source of information affirming the voices and perspectives that are already in people’s heads. At the same time, nonpartisan is not non-thinking. We call B.S. when B.S. needs to be called.

The Texas Tribune seeks to ensure that its newsroom and its news coverage reflect Texas by including a wide range of perspectives from people of different backgrounds, ideologies and experiences.

Learn more about The Texas Tribunehere .