Senior Counsel, Media Law

Chicago Sun-Times•Chicago, IL

11h•Hybrid

About The Position

Chicago Public Media is one of the nation’s largest local nonprofit news organizations, home to WBEZ 91.5FM, the Chicago Sun-Times, and Vocalo, reaching more than 3.3 million people weekly across broadcast, print, and digital platforms. As a mission-driven organization, it aspires to be the most trusted news source for Chicagoans, powered by nearly 97,000 community members. In 2025, the organization received 29 awards from esteemed organizations. Chicago Public Media believes independent journalism is essential to a healthy democracy and serves the public interest by creating diverse content, supported by approximately 250 professionals. The Senior Counsel, Media Law, will join Chicago Public Media, Inc. (“CPM”) to support its award-winning journalists, editorial operations, marketing, events, membership, and product teams at WBEZ and the Chicago Sun-Times. This role also encompasses company-wide contract review, drafting, negotiation, and compliance-related legal work. The Senior Counsel will report to the Chief Legal Officer of CPM and collaborate closely with the law department, the organization’s Editor-in-Chief, and executive and senior leadership teams.

Requirements

Deep interest, knowledge and proficiency in media law
3+ years of media law experience, with experience working in-house in a media, internet, news or publishing company preferred
The highest level of professionalism and sound judgment
Problem-solving skills and excellent business judgment, comfortable providing advice to internal and external clients
Resourceful and proactive, with a strong ability to balance legal risks with practical business needs
Strong writing and communication skills
Strong attention to detail, passion for establishing clarity in the face of complexity and ambiguity, and bias to action
Ability to collaborate and form relationships, gain credibility, and partner up and down a matrixed organization
Ability to work well under pressure and manage multiple high priority projects and deadlines
Demonstrated success of establishing client rapport and participating in an environment of continuous improvement
An entrepreneurial spirit with high energy, enthusiasm and a strong work ethic
Graduation from an American Bar Association accredited law school with a Juris Doctor degree
Admitted to practice in at least one jurisdiction in the United States, preferably Illinois

Responsibilities

Review news articles, investigations, scripts, podcasts and footage prior to publication to identify and mitigate legal risks before publication.
Advise on requests for records under the federal Freedom of Information Act and state public records laws; work with journalists to respond to and prepare appeals from denials.
Manage First Amendment claims, defamation, invasion of privacy, copyright and trademark infringement matters, FOIA litigation, cases relating to court access. Manage litigation counsel, assist with fact gathering and witness interviews, review pleadings. Respond to subpoenas for documents.
Handle copyright and trademark issues and rights clearance and advise on and draft intellectual property, licensing, partnership, production and talent agreements.
Review, draft and negotiate contracts for clients across the company, including marketing, membership and event contracts, vendor and operational contracts and consulting agreements; create template agreements for future use.
Advise on FCC regulations for broadcasters and FTC rules for advertising; ensure privacy compliance by drafting strong privacy policies and terms of use for digital platforms; provide counseling on privacy matters.
Manage legal risks associated with new technologies, including artificial intelligence (“AI”), and assist with rollout of internal AI policies and use of AI in the newsroom.
Offer support and advice on the legal rights and protections afforded to journalists in connection with newsgathering activities; assess and respond to threats lodged at journalists.
Review communications, contests and giveaways, event contracts and rights clearances.
Develop and provide training to staff on best practices.
Advise on day to day legal matters and provide substantive support for the rest of the legal team on an as-needed basis.