Do You Have What It Takes to Write for The Root?

The Root is looking for freelance writers to cover nights and weekends. Do you fit the description?

About the Role:

We are looking for sharp writers with strong voices and keen eyes for great stories that speak to the intersection of blackness and culture, politics, entertainment, and sports, among other pertinent issues. We need you to be able to quickly write clean, accurate news stories, find unique angles on the big narratives of the day, and craft original critiques on African American news and opinion that will speak to The Root’s dedicated audience. If you have a passion for “the culture” and want to write meaningful stories that move the needle on issues surrounding race, we want to hear from you.

We are seeking to fill two freelance positions to cover nights and weekends. Weekend writers should expect to produce 3-to-4 stories per day on Saturdays and Sundays, and a weekly writer will produce 3-to-4 stories nightly Mondays through Fridays. Because writers will often work alone, you’ll need to be a self-starter, be well organized, and have strong self-editing skills.

You should have:

3+ years of online writing and reporting experience, preferably in politics, culture, entertainment, or breaking news, preferably for an African American audience

A clear, authoritative writing voice and strong copy-editing skills

Strong headline-writing abilities and an eye for unique angles on the news

The ability to work independently

Please apply with a resume, cover letter to Editor-in-Chief Danielle Belton here.

This is a remote contract position in all U.S. time zones and it reports to the Managing Editor (that’s me).