Program Specialist, Reporting Grants

The opportunity
We're hiring a Program Specialist, Reporting Grants because our grantmaking is growing fast and this program needs an owner. Reporting Grants funds original reporting by individual journalists, mostly freelancers, independent writers and small newsroom teams. Today that means awards of $1,000 to $20,000 for specific stories, and we're expanding into larger grants that fund a reporter's time on a beat for six months to a year.

Most funders of AI reporting are either specialists in AI who fund journalism occasionally, or specialists in journalism who fund AI coverage occasionally. We want to be the funder that knows both, and the people making our grants are what make that possible.

In this role, you'll run the reporting program end to end, with a grantmaking budget of $400,000 - $800,000 a year, helping Tarbell distribute more than $10M by the end of 2027 in broader grantmaking. You'll report to the Program Director, Grants, and have real ownership not only over what journalism the program funds, but over the design of the program itself, from how you source funding opportunities to the types of grants you make.

What you'll do

Own and run the reporting grants program . You'll own and run our reporting grants program end to end, reporting to the Program Director, Grants. This means you'll design and run the process for how to source and fund original reporting about AI from freelancers or staff reporters.

Active grantmaking.

You'll identify the most important AI journalism stories that need to exist, and make them happen. You'll decide how to source pitches, likely using a combination of open calls, rounds focused on a single priority area, closed calls to select editors and outlets, and proactive outreach to editors and reporters.

Tarbell's external judging panel.

You will decide what role will play in deciding what stories we fund, and own and manage the relationship with members of the panel.

Complementing our institutional grantmaking.

The reporting grants program you own will be one arm of a larger grantmaking operation, funding stories that fall outside Tarbell's institutional partnerships. Your program will largely provide support to freelancers and independent journalists who aren't attached to a newsroom and newsroom teams in need of additional funding for specific projects, and you will work closely with Tarbell's institutional grantmakers to ensure efforts are joined up and complementary.

Grow the team . Depending on how the portfolio develops, you could build and lead a growing team. This includes hiring, coaching, and developing your team members. "Hire the best, then invest" is a core operating value at Tarbell - you'll help your people develop into increasingly senior roles with greater responsibility.

Track and report on outcomes , including what gets published, where, and what difference it made, and use that to improve how we fund. You'll take part in regular reviews of Tarbell's priority areas, using what you see in the pitch pipeline to propose what we should add, change or drop.

Help build Tarbell.

As a small team, we all step in where we're needed. You'll occasionally take on work outside this description, and we'll make sure it helps you grow.

In your first 6 months, success looks like:

You've run two full application rounds, from call for pitches through to decisions and grant agreements.

You've made at least two grants via proactive outreach. For example, by working with an editor to fund stories that otherwise wouldn't happen.

You've scoped at least one grant that falls outside of Tarbell's usual grant design and either piloted it or brought a proposal to the Program Director for decision. For example, this could be a 6-month grant to a freelancer to report on AI, not tied to a particular story.

Who we're looking for
You'll be a great fit if you:

Have experience working in journalism, ideally including in commissioning or editing. You've killed pitches that sounded good and backed ones that didn't, and you can explain why.

Are energized by redesigning a process rather than administering one, and have evidence of having done it.

Can run rounds to deadline while protecting time for program design work and strategic thinking that has no deadline.

Write clearly: you'll draft funding recommendations, decline notes to good journalists, and public calls for pitches.

Have a keen sense of which journalism is impactful versus pieces that are just nice-to-have.

Care about to support journalism that helps society navigate the development and deployment of advanced AI.

It's a bonus if you:

Have covered AI, or can show you follow the field closely enough to judge whether a pitch is new.

Are comfortable using AI tools to automate the chasing, screenin and prep works that would otherwise eat your week.

Have experience or interest to lu ize ??

Have experience administering grants or managing a budget.

Compensation and benefits

Starting salary per location, with your offer based on your experience:
US remote $110,000-$123,000

Washington DC $115,000-$128,000

New York City $119,000-$133,000

San Francisco $124,000-$139,000

UK remote £66,000-£74,000

London £74,000-£82,000

33 days of annual leave in total

20 weeks of paid parental

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