Director of Audience & Research

Radio Free Asia•Washington, DC

1d•$118,200 - $160,150•Hybrid

About The Position

Radio Free Asia (RFA) is rebuilding its language desks and newsgathering teams. The Director of Audience & Research provides research and data to help editors plan coverage and reach audiences in each market. This editorial position leads RFA’s audience research and evaluation function, oversees the Audience Engagement Editor and research staff, turns findings into clear newsroom guidance, and works with language desks to reach existing audiences and build new ones. The Director designs credible research for heavily censored and surveilled environments, protecting participants who may face reprisal. The role is also responsible for independent evaluation of RFA’s desks and programs and for the accuracy of audience and performance data reported to USAGM and Congress. Reporting to the Executive Editor, the Director will build RFA’s research and evaluation function almost from the ground up. The position is full-time, exempt, and based in Washington, DC, on a hybrid schedule of three days in the office and two days remote. Some flexibility in work hours is required to accommodate international time zones. Salary is $118,200–$160,150, commensurate with experience and skills. Applicants must already possess work authorization; the company does not sponsor work authorization for this position.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in journalism, communications, social science, political science, international relations, statistics, data science, or a related field.
At least 10 years of experience in audience research, media research, audience development, or program evaluation.
At least 3 years managing staff or research teams.
Knowledge of the media landscape in at least one RFA market: China, North Korea, Southeast Asia, Tibet, or the Uyghur region.
Strong professional experience researching audiences in authoritarian, conflict, or restricted media environments.
Proven experience with quantitative methods, including survey design, sampling, and statistical analysis, and qualitative methods, including interviews and focus groups.
Experience designing and running program evaluations, including work with outside evaluators.
Extensive experience working with newsroom editors and using research to inform editorial decisions and make recommendations that produce real impact.
Experience managing research vendors, contracts, and budgets.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including producing impact reports and assessments for internal and external audiences.
Ability to work across editorial, technical, communications, and executive teams and navigate competing priorities.
Ability to accommodate international time zones with some flexibility in work hours.
Existing work authorization; the company will not sponsor work authorization.

Nice To Haves

Advanced degree in social science, data science, communications, statistics, or a related field.
Professional experience with digital analytics tools and creating and managing audience dashboards.
Experience at an international news organization, a USAGM network, or other public-interest media.
Understanding of how VPNs, circumvention tools, and blocking distort audience data and how to adjust for them.
Experience with adapted research methods where fieldwork is impossible, including diaspora and traveler surveys, remote or encrypted interviews, proxy indicators, and digital trace data.
Working knowledge of one or more RFA languages: Mandarin, Cantonese, Tibetan, Uyghur, Burmese, Khmer, Vietnamese, Lao, or Korean.
Knowledge of more than one RFA market.
Experience training journalists or editors to use audience data.
Familiarity with federal grant reporting and performance frameworks.

Responsibilities

Lead the audience team, including the Audience Engagement Editor, and set priorities for audience development and distribution across language desks.
Set audience goals with each desk Editor in Charge, including goals for reaching new audiences in each market.
Set annual research priorities with the Executive Editor and desk Editors in Charge; the Executive Editor settles disagreements over priorities.
Work with Innovation, TechOps, and language desks on platforms, analytics tools, and circumvention channels.
Build and run a continuous evaluation framework for language desks and newsgathering teams; set criteria with the Executive Editor and share them with the President before evaluations begin.
Convene and manage the Evaluation Panel, which reviews candidates, selects outside evaluators based on relevant expertise, and checks for conflicts of interest.
Evaluate desks and teams at regular intervals, as well as new programs, formats, and rebuilt language desks, and recommend specific improvements and goals.
Measure outcomes including reach, engagement, pickup by other outlets, and citations in policy and official documents; document cases where RFA reporting shaped public debate, accountability, or policy.
Send evaluation reports to the President and Executive Editor simultaneously, track desk responses to findings, and report progress quarterly to both.
Design and conduct qualitative and quantitative audience research in closed and restricted media environments.
Plan studies with the relevant language desk Editor in Charge to reflect the desk’s needs and market conditions.
Map media habits, platform use, and information needs by country and language service, and identify groups RFA is not reaching.
When standard fieldwork is impossible or unsafe, use adapted methods such as diaspora and traveler surveys, remote and encrypted interviews, proxy indicators, and digital trace data, clearly stating each method’s limits.
Produce media-environment and censorship assessments for RFA target countries.
Manage research vendors and partners, including studies commissioned by USAGM.
Own RFA’s core performance indicators and dashboards, combining digital analytics, social media data, and distribution data into a consistent view of reach.
Account for VPN use, circumvention tools, and blocking when interpreting audience data.
Translate research and evaluation findings into actionable recommendations for editors on audiences, topics, formats, and platforms.
Report findings candidly, brief desk editors regularly, and train staff to read and use audience data.
Advise editorial leadership on adjustments as conditions change in target countries and inform recommendations for newsroom training in consultation with editorial leadership.
Lead production of monthly impact reports for internal and external circulation, with input from Editorial leadership and Communications/Public Affairs.
Sign off on all audience and performance data released outside RFA.
Collect, verify, and reconcile data for external reports and data requests, and deliver it on time.
Work with the Communications Department to provide verified data for reports to USAGM and Congress and for RFA public reporting.
Respond to research and data requests from USAGM, auditors, and other stakeholders in coordination with External Affairs and RFA leadership.
Represent RFA in USAGM discussions on research methods, performance indicators, and research standards.
Protect sources and research participants through informed consent, data security, and methods suited to high-risk environments.