Job Title: Contract Daily News Editor (Digital / Remote)
Location: 100% Remote, Preference for Mendocino County Resident
Job Type: 6-Month Independent Contractor Agreement, with extension by mutual agreement (10-20 hours/week)
Compensation: $25 - $35 per hour (commensurate with experience)
About Us:
The Mendocino Voiceis a fast-growing independent, nonprofit online news site dedicated to delivering high-quality, community-focused journalism. We prioritize speed, accuracy, and deep-dive reporting across local politics, the economy, the environment and community arts and culture. Our mission is to provide timely news that matters to residents of Mendocino County so they have free access to trustworthy, reliable information. Find us at mendovoice.com.
Company Description:
The Voice is part of Bay City News Foundation, a mission-driven nonprofit that serves the greater Bay Area and Northern California. It started in 2016 and became part of our nonprofit in 2024.
Role Description:
The Daily News Editor is a part-time remote role responsible for overseeing daily news coverage and ensuring accurate, timely distribution of stories across Bay City News platforms. This role includes assigning and editing news stories, monitoring breaking news, and coordinating coverage of key topics and public events relevant to Bay Area communities. The Daily News Editor will work closely with reporters to maintain editorial standards, refine story angles, and uphold accuracy, fairness, and clarity in all content. Additional responsibilities include managing workflow and deadlines, supporting new media initiatives, and collaborating with the team to improve processes and audience engagement.
Key Responsibilities:
- Copyediting & Fact-Checking: Write or edit 3-5 breaking news and feature articles daily, ensuring clarity, accuracy, and adherence to AP Style.
- Collaboration: Assign stories, provide constructive feedback, and guide a team of 4-6 freelance and/or staff reporters on news of the day; collaborate with other editors at The Mendocino Voice and the affiliated Bay City News Service, a regional news wire that is staffed 24/7; work with our web producers, newsletter editors and social media managers to get news posted quickly and in a well-paced cadence; maintain collegial relationships with our media partners such as AP, KZYX and KMUD on cross-posting content. Work collaboratively with other team members on tracking impact, editorial focus and our public-facing messaging for audience, partners and donors.
- Content Curation: Monitor the daily news cycle, manage the inbox, and keep an eye on news and social feeds in the county, including information coming from fire/police/sheriff agencies; help manage the daily budget and schedule articles and social media posts from our own content, our affiliated BCN news service and partners such as CalMatters. The job might involve writing up some press releases or news items yourself if not assigned to others. Format and publish WordPress articles in conjunction with our web producers. Seek out photos from our own archives or public sources and optimize headlines for SEO and social media sharing.
- Meeting Deadlines: Consistently execute editorial workflows and hit strict daily publication deadlines.
Qualifications:
- Experience: 3+ years of experience in digital journalism, reporting, or breaking news editing.
- Style: Mastery of AP Style.
- Independence: Proven ability to manage your own time, work autonomously, and make sound editorial decisions without direct supervision.
- Tech-Savvy: Comfort with remote work software (Google Drive, Microsoft Word, Teams, WordPress).
To Apply:
Please submit your resume, three (3) links to edited articles or your own reporting samples, and a brief cover letter explaining your editorial background and philosophy to Publisher Katherine Rowlands at kat@mendovoice.com.
More about us:
We are affiliated with Bay City News, the greater Bay Area’s only general-interest wire service, delivering timely, local news to residents, businesses, media outlets, and government agencies across a broad multi-county region. The organization provides breaking news, disaster updates, public event coverage, and reports on local criminal and appellate court cases that affect more than 9 million people. Its independent newsroom offers real-time reports on key issues such as housing, transportation, immigration, and the environment. Bay City News also publishes the Datebook calendar twice daily, serving as a vital resource for public affairs, politics, and government-related events. Through its nonprofit arm, Bay City News Foundation, the organization supports public service journalism, expands coverage, partners with other newsrooms, trains emerging journalists, and creates multimedia tools to reach diverse audiences.
