Contract news designer and illustrator (apply by September 5)

Applications for this contract role have now closed. Please visit our jobs page for any available opportunities.

Role details

Scope of work

The 19th is seeking a part-time, experienced news designer/illustrator to join our brand creative team on a 3-month contract basis. This role is pivotal in supporting our daily editorial creative needs for social media and illustration work during election season. This 3-month contract position is for 20 hours a week, from September through November 2024.

Ideal candidates will have 3-4 years of experience working in a fast-paced newsroom environment, particularly within the realm of nonprofit journalism. This includes navigating tight deadlines, collaborating closely with editors and producers, managing projects from start to finish and ensuring alignment with the organization’s brand vision with the chief creative officer. 

As a news designer, you’ll collaborate regularly with an audience engagement producer and photo editor. This involves creating and designing visuals with editorial content to engage readers effectively. Working closely with the audience engagement team ensures alignment with reader preferences while collaborating with the photo editor enhances the visual storytelling aspect. 

This contract news designer/illustrator reports to the chief creative officer and receives daily guidance and management from the audience engagement team and photo editor.

Deliverables include

• Collaborating closely with editors and producers to create compelling visual content for daily editorial needs, with a focus on daily social media platforms and editorial illustration work for our elections coverage.
• Consulting with the CCO on visual elements, such as color schemes, typography, and imagery, to ensure they resonate with the target audience and reinforce the brand’s messaging. The goal is to foster seamless alignment between the design work and the organization’s brand vision and objectives.
• Implementing design changes or adjustments, including providing edits/design feedback to the audience team, to maintain brand cohesiveness across all visual assets.
• Managing projects from conception to completion, ensuring adherence to tight deadlines and high-quality standards.
• Adapting quickly to changing priorities and project requirements in a dynamic newsroom environment.
• Maintaining clear communication and coordination with team members to facilitate smooth workflow and project execution.

Skills required

• Graduate of a design and/or visual communication school, or a related field
• 3-4 years of experience in a fast-paced newsroom environment, preferably within nonprofit journalism
• Must be a team player, collaborative and able to work within tight deadlines on multiple projects in a fast-paced environment; experience working in a fast-paced, startup/non-profit news environment preferred
• Expert in Figma, proficient in design tools including Creative Suite and open to learning new software, as needed; familiarity with WordPress and/or Airtable a plus
• Strong visual and written communication style; ability to convey conceptual ideas and design rationale and engage in constructive design critiques
• Ability to work independently, prioritize accordingly and iterate quickly
• Ability to think strategically around solving problems that at times might not yet be fully defined
• Optimistic, energetic and collaborative
• You share our values, and work in accordance with those values

How to apply

Interested candidates should apply here by 12 p.m. CT on Thursday, September 5, 2024. Have questions about this position? Email Clarice Bajkowski at [email protected] (Note: We are not accepting résumés or applications via email; apply here.)