Come cover my beat! New fellowship for field reporters for the military-industrial complex
We're thrilled to be able to bring on some new journalists to cover this beat. Plus: a call to photojournalists for nuclear weapons industry pitches.
Hi!
I am really thrilled that we’re in the place to get a little dream project of mine off the ground, a corps of field reporters for the military-industrial complex covering the people and places tied up in weapons spending.
Please share this ad with anyone you think may be interested. And below this I have another call for pitches for photojournalists to pitch us projects on covering the people and places tied up in the nuclear weapons industry.
Field Reporter, Part-Time Fellowship
Join Inkstick Media’s corps of field reporters for the military industry.
At Inkstick, we believe endless war is a fundamental feature of American life. Whether or not you have any experience covering the defense industry, we are looking for reporters who share that vision and aspire to dig into the United States’ deep economic dependence on military and weapons spending.
Inkstick Media is a nonprofit outlet that covers national security and foreign policy while, as a rule, accepting no funds from defense contractors or government entities that could color our views — a rarity on the defense beat. We’re also woman-led and majority-female.
We pioneered a new beat when we hired investigative journalist Taylor Barnes to cover the military industry at the local level in 2022. And now, it’s time to expand that beat.
We’re looking for new freelance reporters in and around defense industry towns across the country. Some locations of particular interest to us include Texas, Missouri, Florida, Connecticut, Mississippi, and Alabama.
This is a contract, part-time fellowship that pays $1,000 a month.
Applicants should have:
Experience in investigative journalism.
An understanding of the US national security landscape.
Killer social media skills.
A good sense of humor.
A deep understanding of Inkstick’s audience.
Please submit your application, with the subject line “Inkstick’s Reporter Corps” to Laicie Heeley (lheeley@inkstickmedia.com) and Taylor Barnes (tbarnes@inkstickmedia.com). The application package should include the following:
Resume;
Writing and/or audio sample;
Contract proposal (scope of work for one year, $1000/month); and
Two references (names, contact information, and relationship to you) that can speak to how awesome you are.
This is a remote, grant-funded independent contractor role for the period of one year with a possibility for renewal.
Wondering what kind of reporting you’ll be doing? To get an idea, peruse our reporter’s archive here and our newsletter, Military-Industrial America, here.
Inkstick Media is committed to fostering diversity. We welcome applications from people of all cultures, backgrounds, and experiences, and we highly encourage applications from people of color, persons with disabilities, bilingual and bicultural individuals, and members of the LGBTQ+ community. Inkstick Media is committed to full inclusion of all qualified individuals. If you require reasonable accommodation in completing this application, interviewing, completing pre-employment testing, or otherwise participating in the employee selection process, please direct your inquiries to Laicie Heeley at lheeley@inkstickmedia.com.
Proposals due by COB Sept. 9, 2024.
Not the right fit for you? We’re also on the lookout for print and audio pitches on the defense industry. See our submissions page here for details on how to get it touch.
Department of Energy, “Pantex History”
Call for Pitches: Nuclear Weapons Industry Imagery
Help us understand what the nuclear weapons industry looks like today.
Head over to Google and search for “nuclear weapons.” What do you see? Radiation symbols, mushroom clouds, and warheads of every shape and size, sprinkled with the occasional likeness of Vladimir Putin or Kim Jong Un? Dig a little deeper, and maybe you see some historical imagery of the bombing of Hiroshima or the southwestern US’ nuclear heydey, complete with atomic tourism and nuclear pageantry? These images feel far away, distant in both time and space. But nuclear weapons are a present reality, one that employs and impacts real people today.
Inkstick seeks a more present and proximate picture (literally) of the people in and around today’s nuclear industry. Protesters outside a nuclear facility, union workers coming together to explore green industry alternatives, communities impacted by the production of nuclear weapons.
We are looking for photojournalists who want to explore this seemingly-surreal weaponry, and help us understand what it looks like today. Images should not focus on the weapons or their resulting damage, but the humans at the center of and impacted by the industry.
Not a nuclear weapons expert? Don’t worry, we’ve got your back! We’re looking for photojournalists in the field, from places like the Pantex warhead storage facility in the Texas panhandle, or the rural corner of South Carolina where construction workers are building a new plutonium pit production plant at the Savannah River Site, or Utah’s West Desert, where the world’s largest nuclear weapons manufacturer, Northrop Grumman, tests its missiles.
This is a grant-funded project with commissions starting at $1,500. Send your pitch including budget requirements with the subject line “Nuclear Weapons Industry Imagery” to Laicie Heeley (lheeley@inkstickmedia.com) and Taylor Barnes (tbarnes@inkstickmedia.com). And see our submissions page here for more details on what we look for at Inkstick.