About the job
Job Description

Do you want to help save democracy through cutting-edge reporting designed to help ensure an open marketplace of ideas, commerce, small business, a healthy and fair global economy, and individual liberties?

The Open Markets Institute and its associated program, the Center for Journalism & Liberty, seeks a versatile reporter-researcher interested in driving forward our anti-monopoly agenda and learning about and reporting on antitrust and competition policy in our focus areas that span technology, journalism, agriculture, health, airlines and more. This position is an opportunity for an independent and collaborative individual to help shape and illuminate strategies and instruments to protect democracy in the face of the marketplace dominance of corporate giants.

Ideal candidate: A versatile journalist with a real interest in covering business, law, and media. Open Markets will also consider candidates with legal, academic, and business backgrounds that directly relate to writing about political economics of various business areas, including journalism and media. The candidate must be a published author able to demonstrate the ability to write clearly and succinctly about complex issues. Example of the magazine-style policy articles OMI and CJL produce:

• The Real Reason Middle America Should Be Angry
• The Desperate Last Days of Local News
• Terminal Sickness
• Big Beef

Position

objective: The work will examine the business models and actions of giant corporations, including Google and Amazon, and how these affect the competitive marketplace. In the past, our research and articles and opinions have been published in the New York Times, Harper’s, Vox, The New Republic, The Atlantic, the Washington Monthly, and numerous other outlets. Open Markets works closely with high-level policymakers around the world and has pioneered the understanding of the dangers posed by concentrated economic power. Open Markets is based in Washington, D.C., and intends to maintain an office there. But the right candidate will be able to work remotely, at least through summer. And at least until they publish so extensively and with such impact that, someday, they advance perhaps to a mainstream news site, a niche publication, academe, or even to a policy position within government – all ways to advance your career, and Americans’ understandings of the importance of fair competition in our democracy.

Basic Responsibilities

• Conduct research central to the missions of OMI & CJL, including identifying and interviewing sources, drafting background research, and executing research projects.
• Produce medium- and long-form reporting on corporate power and/or media evolution in various sectors.
• Support writing projects and policy development work by performing qualitative research into the legal and commercial underpinnings of corporations and market structures.
• Draft op-eds, blog posts, social media content, and other materials to react to opportunities presented by the news cycle.
• Engage in supervised legal and historical research.
• Organizational and administrative support, including website maintenance, media monitoring, helping with the planning and execution of conferences and events, social media outreach, and related tasks.

Preferred Qualifications

• 2-3 years in journalism, preferring a BA in journalism or related field (i.e., political science, economics, public policy, business.
• Creative in research techniques as a way to develop fresh insights into corporate dominance.
• Strong and/or demonstrable interest in competition law and policy.
• Strong writing skills, highly organized, and detail-oriented, including editing and web skills. Comfortable in writing advocacy journalism, including op-eds.
• Exceptional news judgment, willingness to learn, comfort in asking for clarity and offering contrasting viewpoints, and experience in being edited, sometimes significantly.
• Comfortable working in a fast-paced environment.
• Experience with social media and website production.
• Strong communication skills and familiarity with working virtually.
• Track record in quickly learning new skills and digital tools; experience with data visualization, databases, and spreadsheets is a plus.
• Strong preference for a resident of the Greater Washington, D.C., area.

How To Apply

Please submit your cover letter and resume in a single PDF to jobs(at)openmarketsinstitute.org

Generous benefits package, including medical, dental, vision, and a 401(k) plan. Salary will be determined according to a salary scale which takes into account a variety of factors but is expected to be about $52,000 annually.

About The Open Markets Institute

The Open Markets Institute is a Washington, D.C.-based non-profit think tank that uses research and journalism to expose the dangers of monopolization, identifies changes in policy and law to address them, and educates policymakers, academics, movement groups, and other influential stakeholders to establish open, competitive markets that support a strong, just, and inclusive democracy. By combining policy, legal, and market structure expertise with sophisticated communications and outreach efforts, Open Markets seeks not only to hold today’s monopolies accountable for abuse of power but to rebuild an economic system where progress is easier to achieve because power is far more widely and equitably distributed.

About The Center For Journalism And Liberty

The core mission of the Center for Journalism and Liberty, a reporting-based program, is to ensure that the news media of the United States and our democratic allies are fully independent and robustly funded in the 21st century’s digital economy. The Center’s work is guided by the belief that government plays a fundamental role in structuring news media markets and business models to ensure that neither the state nor anyone or few private actors control the words or actions of reporters, editors, and publishers. The center focuses on policy solutions with regard to privacy, platforms, business models, and content integrity. The CJL operates within the Open Markets Institute.

Posting revised May 2021