Staff Writer, Congressional Leadership

About the Position

CQ Roll Call seeks an experienced, versatile and motivated journalist to join a team of reporters covering the elected leadership of the House factions, caucuses and group dynamics. This is a role for someone who can generate distinctive coverage for a sophisticated audience. The ideal candidate has excellent news judgment, superior writing and reporting skills, and a strong record of breaking news and developing sources. You can connect the dots and can balance spot news and unique enterprise. Experience covering Congress strongly preferred.

About the CQ Roll Call Team

Washington’s CQ Roll Call brings up-to-date news, analysis and insights to senior decision-makers on Capitol Hill. This trusted source of unbiased, impartial information provides authoritative, nonpartisan and accurate congressional news and legislative tracking tools to its subscribers. Through more than 40 print and online products, CQ Roll Call offers insight on the people and institutions that influence public policy and legislation, keeping readers updated on a weekly, daily and real-time basis with coverage of every legislative action in Congress via breaking news, bill tracking and member profiles.

About You

You report and write for a sophisticated audience interested in politics and policy, pursuing the truth from a variety of sources and reflecting their positions with impartiality. Collaborative yet independent, you know when to work with colleagues and when to break out stories on your own. You uphold the highest professional and ethical standards, probing beneath the surface of official statements to uncover the deeper story. Committed to continuous professional growth and engagement within a broader community of journalists, you contribute meaningfully to the shared goals and success of the newsroom team.

Application Requirements:

All applicants must submit four (4) published writing samples from newspapers, news websites or news magazines that demonstrate reporting and writing ability. When submitting stories, please include a note about your work: What sets it apart from other coverage? What does it illustrate about your approach to journalism? The work samples can be uploaded as documents or provided as direct links that are not password-protected.

The position is based in Washington, DC and requires daily reporting from the Capitol. The base salary range for this position is $75,000 - 80,000 per year.

What to Expect in This Role

• Producing a daily story of the day about congressional leaders and their strategies and messaging, as well as contributing to other teams’ stories and medium- and long-term enterprise reports
• Thriving in a newsroom where journalism is produced for two websites, one subscriber-focused on policy, and the other a broader political audience; a newspaper that publishes when Congress is in session; and dozens of newsletters in front of and behind a paywall
• Contributing to both CQ and Roll Call newsletters as well as prominent space in Roll Call print, contributing to legislative tracking as needed (markups and vote entry) as well as major legislation and nominations
• Writing and analysis of annual CQ Vote Studies reports
• Working with the White House correspondent on the relationship between the executive and legislative leaders
• Collaborating on photo/visuals, graphics, podcasts and other storytelling forms to enhance your reporting
• Writing profile stories about members of the House and Senate, particularly leaders and prominent caucus and faction leaders and other lawmakers and congressional candidates that feed CQ’s Guide to the New Congress and other products about members
• Participating in webinars and other corporate activities to amplify your journalism

What Sets You Apart

• 3+ years of experience as a reporter at newspapers, news websites, magazines, wire services and other news outlets.
• Experience in Washington, D.C., for a subscription news outlet, wire service or news bureau covering Congress is strongly recommended
• An ability to find new, creative ways to scrutinize the relationships among Congress, the White House, judicial branch and lobbying efforts to influence them
• A college degree is helpful but not essential. Equivalent, relevant work experience is what matters
• Strong written and verbal communication skills and mastery of AP style
• Strong understanding of congressional procedure and history and culture and the ability to convey your passion for the subject to readers
• A commitment to the journalistic values of accuracy, objectivity, fairness and editorial independence