Senior Data Journalist, Consumer Research & Insights

Location: Remote / Flexible

Employment type: Contract, per article

Experience: Senior-level

Applicant requirements: Must include your resume and a link (or links) to articles you've written in order to be considered. Regular content writers will not be considered for this job. Must be a legit data journalist.

You're the kind of journalist who sees a spreadsheet and starts asking questions. Why is this number increasing? Why is this city different? Why are younger consumers behaving differently from older generations? What changed in the last five years? And what might these patterns tell us about the larger economic and cultural forces shaping people's lives? Most importantly, you know how to turn those questions into stories people want to read.

About the role

We're looking for an experienced data journalist who can uncover compelling stories hidden in complex datasets and turn them into accessible, authoritative, and newsworthy content.

The ideal candidate combines the curiosity and storytelling instincts of a seasoned reporter with the analytical rigor of a researcher. You're comfortable working with large datasets, identifying meaningful trends, challenging assumptions, and explaining what the numbers reveal about people's lives.

You'll develop original research articles, data-driven rankings, trend analyses, and flagship reports that illuminate changes in consumer behavior, financial health, and the broader economy.

This is not a traditional content marketing role. We're looking for someone who thinks like a journalist, approaches data with healthy skepticism, and knows the difference between an interesting statistic and an important story. Oh, and one who has a solid portfolio of that kind of work.

What you'll do

Find the stories in the data

Examine proprietary and publicly available datasets to identify emerging trends, surprising findings, meaningful correlations, and changes over time.
Develop original research questions and editorial hypotheses based on consumer behavior, economic conditions, and cultural trends.
Identify opportunities to analyze data by geography, generation, demographic group, or historical period.
Distinguish genuinely newsworthy findings from statistical noise, and investigate the factors that may explain them.

Produce original research-driven content

Research, write, and develop authoritative articles, trend reports, rankings, and in-depth research features.
Translate complex statistical findings into clear, engaging narratives for general consumer audiences.
Create recurring editorial franchises such as annual "State of" reports, metro and state rankings, generational comparisons, and year-over-year trend studies.
Incorporate credible external research, expert perspectives, and broader economic context to enrich proprietary findings.
Develop clear headlines, key findings, executive summaries, and compelling narratives that make research accessible and shareable.

Work collaboratively with data and editorial teams

Partner with data analysts, researchers, and subject matter experts to define research questions, request data cuts, and validate findings.
Use spreadsheets and data analysis tools to explore datasets independently, test hypotheses, and uncover additional insights.
Work with designers to identify opportunities for charts, maps, infographics, and other data visualizations.
Document research methodologies, sources, assumptions, and limitations to ensure accuracy and reproducibility.
Collaborate with the agency and client teams to maximize the reach and relevance of the research.

Help shape the editorial research agenda

Propose original research projects informed by current events, consumer interests, search behavior, and emerging trends.
Build a forward-looking editorial calendar balancing timely findings with recurring annual research.
Identify opportunities for research to earn media coverage, attract citations, and establish the organization as a trusted authority.
Maintain high standards for independence, credibility, transparency, and factual accuracy.

What we're looking for

Required qualifications

7+ years of professional experience in journalism, data journalism, research-driven editorial content, or a closely related field.
A strong portfolio of published articles or reports based on original data analysis. If your application doesn’t include a link, it will not be considered.
Demonstrated ability to develop compelling editorial narratives from complex quantitative information.
Excellent reporting, research, interviewing, writing, and fact-checking skills.
Strong proficiency in Excel or Google Sheets, including data manipulation, comparative analysis, and basic statistical calculations.
Solid understanding of statistical concepts, including sampling, distributions, averages, correlations, and the distinction between correlation and causation.
Experience working with researchers, economists, analysts, or other technical subject matter experts.
Ability to contextualize findings using reputable third-party research and public data sources.
Strong editorial judgment and the ability to communicate sophisticated topics to non-specialist audiences.

Preferred qualifications

Background in consumer finance, economics, business, banking, credit, housing, or consumer behavior.
Experience at an established news organization, consumer publication, research publisher, or financial information company.
Experience working with proprietary datasets, public-use microdata, government statistics, and consumer surveys.
Familiarity with SQL, Python, R, Tableau, or other analytical and visualization tools.
Experience producing annual research reports, data rankings, geographic comparisons, or recurring editorial franchises.
Understanding of SEO and how original research earns organic visibility, citations, and media coverage.
Experience collaborating with designers on charts and visual storytelling.

What success looks like

You consistently uncover original, meaningful findings that might otherwise go unnoticed.
Your articles make complicated data understandable, relevant, and interesting.
Your research provides genuinely new information rather than repackaging existing industry statistics.
Your work becomes a trusted resource for consumers, journalists, and industry observers.
Your reports attract attention because of the quality and originality of their findings.
You help establish a recognizable, repeatable research program built around credible data and exceptional storytelling.

Pinwheel Agency

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