Managing Editor

The Roanoke Rambler seeks a smart, kind and innovative Managing Editor to advance our unbiased journalism and to support our growth as a hyper-local and investigative digital media outlet.

This is a crucial role that involves overseeing and reporting journalism that informs the community, exposes wrongdoing, uncovers societal ills and holds the powerful accountable.

The position reports to The Rambler’s Publisher / Founding Editor.

The Managing Editor will lead day-to-day editorial operations of our weekly publication, managing a team of reporters and freelancers and helping grow our audience. The ideal candidate has experience as an editor, a thirst for reporting, and is comfortable working in a small startup journalism environment (i.e., “That’s not my job” is verboten). This means an eagerness to assist the Founding Editor with growing the business side of the enterprise. Experience with development is a plus.

We seek a journalist who values collaboration and fosters a respectful, empowering and ambitious workplace culture. You should serve as a mentor to journalists, champion our team’s successes and check your ego at the door. We’re looking for someone who is committed to Roanoke, The Rambler and its mission and long-term success.

We’d like for you to start before or by April 1, 2025 — no joking! We’ll start reviewing applications ASAP.

You will:

* Help develop and execute our editorial strategies with the Founding Editor to advance The Rambler’s mission.
* Oversee daily operations, editing articles, producing our weekly newsletter and maintaining our social media publication schedule.
* Guide and mentor reporters, including our Report For America Corps member, as well as freelance contributors.
* Report 1 to 2 stories weekly, with a focus on local government accountability.
* Maintain high journalism standards, focusing on accuracy, fairness and impact.
* Experiment and test new content formats and packaging to reach new audiences.
* Assist the Founding Editor and Ad Sales Manager with reaching annual benchmarks for reader and business revenue.

Your experience and qualifications:

* 5+ years of journalism experience, including in an editing/leadership role
* Proven editorial team management and collaborative work style
* Investigative journalism skills and mindset
* A sense of responsibility to Roanoke and The Rambler
* Creativity and a vision for The Rambler’s future
* Strong executive function, organizational skills and digital know-how

We recognize the best candidate may not fit every bullet point of our job requirements, so we encourage you to apply regardless. You understand that helping manage a small digital newsroom startup is dynamic and so responsibilities can adapt to your strengths. If you are passionate about our mission and can advance our journalism, apply.

We also strongly encourage people from backgrounds underrepresented in journalism to apply. The Rambler does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, disability, age, marital/family/parental status, political beliefs, union involvement or any other condition or status protected under the law.

Location: Roanoke, VA. Must be willing to relocate to the Roanoke area. Hybrid work from home in the Roanoke area and co-working space.

Salary and Benefits: $70,000, with healthcare subsidy, PTO, sick leave and paid holidays.

About The Rambler: The Roanoke Rambler is an independent, hyper-local and investigative news site. The weekly online publication’s mission is to inform the public of important issues affecting their lives, uncover societal ills, expose wrongdoing and hold the powerful accountable. Founded in 2021 and journalist-owned, The Rambler is the go-to source for local news in the Roanoke Valley about city government and politics, business, racial and social justice issues and the environment. When you come on board, you’ll work alongside two journalists, with a third arriving this summer. Your colleagues will be Henri Gendreau, publisher and founding editor, and Jeff Sturgeon, reporter and ad sales manager. In July, we will host a Report For America reporter whose beat is focused on residential segregation and its lasting impacts.

About Roanoke: Nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains, Roanoke boasts 100,000 residents with a metro area population of a quarter million. Big-city amenities combined with small-town charm, Roanoke has a cost of living 8% below national average and housing prices 16% lower. In close proximity to major universities including Virginia Tech and outdoor amenities, including the Appalachian Trail. Roanoke also has plenty of challenges and injustices that are ripe for journalistic exploration, which includes high rates of poverty and de facto racially segregated neighborhoods.