Political Correspondent, Wisconsin - UpNorthNews

Courier Newsroom•Madison, WI

3d•$65,000 - $80,000•Remote

About The Position

The Political Correspondent will lead political coverage for Courier Newsroom in Wisconsin, producing sharp, accessible journalism in multiple formats, including on-camera videos, skimmable web graphics, and email-optimized stories. The role breaks and explains local and state political news, develops and distributes ongoing media content for a specific audience, builds a trusted presence across social platforms and inboxes, and uses audience insights, data, and experimentation to improve reporting and content. This entrepreneurial role focuses on reaching audiences underserved by legacy media and strengthening civic engagement in Wisconsin. The correspondent must be Wisconsin-based and have reliable transportation, either a personal vehicle or reliable public transportation. The correspondent reports and writes community-rooted political journalism; covers developments, legislation, elections, and policy impacts on quick deadlines; and builds a network of local sources. The role also creates presenter-led short-form video and social-ready content, collaborates across editorial, social, newsletter, and marketing teams, and contributes to growth and monetization strategies for state-level media products.

Requirements

At least 5 years of political reporting or political content creation experience.
Deep understanding of Wisconsin’s political landscape and community dynamics.
Demonstrated ability to build an audience through content or a product.
Strong writing and reporting skills, including the ability to translate complex politics into accessible, values-rooted storytelling with minimal editing oversight.
Experience creating content for Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and YouTube.
Comfort on camera and willingness to appear in videos or host short-form segments.
Comfort experimenting with tone, formats, and approaches to meet audience needs.
Ability to work independently in a startup-like, fast-paced environment.
Reliable transportation, via personal vehicle or reliable public transportation.
Wisconsin-based.

Nice To Haves

Familiarity with Canva, Emplifi, and Descript.
Willingness to learn new tools.

Responsibilities

Report, write, and produce clear, compelling political journalism rooted in local communities.
Break news and provide fast-turnaround coverage of political developments, legislation, elections, and policy impacts.
Build and maintain a network of sources, including lawmakers, organizers, community leaders, campaign staff, and advocates.
Provide additional state-level political coverage for the newsroom as needed.
Create short-form video content, including on-camera explainers, TikTok and Instagram videos, and voice-overs; produce presenter-led videos.
Collaborate with the social media team to turn reporting into social-ready carousels, graphics, and videos that capture attention quickly.
Build and grow a personal social presence as a trusted, relatable political communicator in Wisconsin.
Work with social, political editorial, newsletter, and marketing teams to ensure consistent messaging and high-quality content.
Share learnings and collaborate with correspondents and editors across the Courier network.
Contribute to growth and monetization strategies for state-level media products.
Use audience insights, data, and experimentation to refine content and reporting approaches.