Audience Engagement Editor

Radio Free Asia•Washington, DC

5d•$87,500 - $118,500•Hybrid

About The Position

The Audience Engagement Editor is an editorial role in the Editorial department, focused on connecting Radio Free Asia’s journalism with audiences in contested information environments. The role treats reach as a core editorial function and works at the intersection of journalism, analytics, and distribution, applying audience optimization while protecting editorial judgment and accuracy. The editor owns day-to-day distribution across web, social, newsletters, and push notifications, and works with Innovation, Tech Op, and language desks on shortwave and circumvention channels. The role adapts reporting into platform-native formats, leads distribution strategy during breaking news and major coverage events, and partners with desks to identify audience interests and underreported topics. It also uses analytics and structured testing to improve distribution, monitors platform changes and state-directed interference, and trains newsroom colleagues to incorporate audience considerations into editorial workflows. The position is full-time and exempt, based in Washington, DC, with a hybrid schedule of three days in the office and two remote. Some flexibility in work hours is required to accommodate international time zones. The salary range is $87,500–$118,500 per year, with final salary based on relevant experience and skills. The employer does not sponsor work authorization; applicants must already have authorization to work.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Journalism, Communications, Political Science, International Relations, or a related field.
At least 7 years of experience in digital journalism, newsroom audience development, editorial distribution, or a similar newsroom role.
Demonstrated ownership of multi-channel distribution across web, social, newsletters, and push notifications.
Strong news judgment and ability to adapt journalism for platform-native formats.
Working proficiency in SEO and AEO principles, including headline optimization, structured data, and discoverability in AI-assisted search environments.
Fluency with analytics tools and ability to critically interpret audience analytics, including recognizing data that may be missing or misleading in restricted-access markets.
Strong editing and packaging skills across formats and platforms.
High comfort level with web CMS platforms, social scheduling and analytics tools, and newsletter platforms.
Demonstrated experience with A/B testing, push notification strategy, and newsletter optimization.
Excellent writing ability and skill in translating data insights into plain-language editorial recommendations for non-technical colleagues.
Proven ability to work with reporters, editors, technologists, and researchers, and to influence colleagues who do not report to the role.

Nice To Haves

Experience reaching news audiences in censored, throttled, or firewalled information environments, such as China and other authoritarian countries.
Experience with circumvention tools and alternative distribution channels, such as mirror sites, app distribution, and peer-to-peer, in the context of blocked or throttled media.
Working knowledge of one or more RFA languages: Mandarin, Cantonese, Tibetan, Uyghur, Burmese, Khmer, Vietnamese, Lao, or Korean.
Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively across multilingual, multicultural teams.
Experience building and delivering workshops, guides, or onboarding that changes newsroom habits.

Responsibilities

Own day-to-day distribution across web, social, newsletters, and push notifications, coordinating with Innovation, Tech Op, and language desks on shortwave and circumvention channels.
Treat each distribution channel as a distinct audience with its own behavior and limitations.
Optimize headlines, packaging, and formats for search and AI answer engines (SEO and AEO), particularly in markets where conventional analytics and platforms are contested or unreliable.
Adapt and edit desk reporting into platform-native formats, including articles, vertical video, social, and audio, while maintaining accuracy.
Lead audience strategy during breaking news and major coverage events, coordinating distribution timing, formats, and platform sequencing across desks in real time.
Partner with desks to identify audience interests, surface underreported topics, and develop relevant angles, including safe ways for audiences to contribute to and engage with RFA journalism.
Develop, test, and iterate on distribution tactics, including headline variants, push timing, format experiments, and circumvention-channel deployment, using structured testing where conditions allow.
Use daily analytics and findings from the Director of Audience and Research to advise desks on stories, formats, and timing, while communicating the limits of measurement in blocked and surveilled environments.
Monitor platform policies, algorithmic changes, and state-directed interference affecting RFA’s reach, and escalate significant changes to the Managing Editor and TechOps.
Build and deliver training that incorporates audience thinking into desk workflows, including story selection, headline writing, format choices, and source safety.