Call for applicants: J-Source editor-in-chief
I’ve been J-Source’s editor-in-chief for the past three years, and in that role, I’ve had the pleasure of working with a fabulous team (Steph Wechsler, managing editor and Chris Waddell, publisher) while interacting with a wide range of journalists and journalism students who have pitched stories and reported on critical journalism-related issues.
I’m now stepping down from this role to focus on my research work while continuing to support J-Source as a member of its editorial board and co-lead of the Canada Press Freedom Project.
If you’re a full-time journalism educator who enjoys newsroom leadership work and misses it, this is a role for you. And it can count towards your service obligations.
Being connected with J-Source offers many benefits. It’s a great way to link with the larger journalism community, while also privileging your access to news and relevant insights that you can bring into your classroom and reflect in your assignments and readings.
In the face of current crises — from the crushing financial realities of our industry, a reckoning on inclusion, staffing and historic coverage of critical issues, to an awareness of the impact of disinformation and misinformation and barriers to reporting on critical news events — J-Source’s work is truly necessary.
In the year ahead, J-Source will be continuing work on ambitious, long-term initiatives. We are establishing the first press freedom project in Canada through funding from the Michener Awards Foundation; we will continue building on the COVID-19 Media Impact Map for Canada, a project launched in partnership with the Local News Research Centre and the Canadian Association of Journalists; and in the fall, J-Source will launch Facts & Frictions, a new open-access digital journal published in partnership with J-Schools Canada/Écoles-J Canada, edited by former J-Source EIC Patricia Elliott.
Helping support the managing editor Steph Wechsler run J-Source is a truly rewarding experience, and you’ll be in very capable hands with support from publisher Chris Waddell.
Join J-Source and help steer conversations about journalistic practice in Canada.
Call for applicants: J-Source editor-in-chief
J-Source seeks an editor-in-chief, starting Aug. 1.
The editor-in-chief is responsible for all editorial matters concerning the online news publication and the Canada Press Freedom Project, which will launch in the fall of 2021. Principally, the editor-in-chief supervises and supports the managing editor, who is J-Source’s only full-time paid staff member.
This includes having weekly story meetings, editing and proof-reading the managing editor’s work, as well as the weekly newsletter and being available as needed for consultation. The role also includes participating in occasional online discussion panels, and helping the site maintain a strong social media presence.
The editor-in-chief also leads long-term editorial planning for the publication, recruits and communicates with volunteer faculty contributors from Canadian journalism schools and the industry, negotiates content-sharing agreements and other types of partnerships with other organizations and liaises with the publisher on a regular basis. The editor-in-chief also plays a role in hiring and training all new staff.
This community service posting requires approximately 10 to 12 hours of volunteer work a week, 12 months of the year. Knowledge of the journalism industry in Canada is important, as is an understanding of digital newsgathering and social media. Experience using the WordPress content management system is an asset.
J-Source.ca is the hub for news, research, and commentary about journalism in Canada. Its goal is to promote national discussion about journalism as well as providing a source for news, research, commentary, advice and resources for industry professionals, scholars and students.
Questions about the role may be directed to current editor-in-chief Sonya Fatah. Interested applicants should send a cover letter and CV to J-Source publisher Christopher Waddell.
The deadline has been extended until Oct. 1.
Sonya Fatah is an assistant professor at Toronto Metropolitan University’s School of Journalism and the former editor-in-chief of J-Source. She co-taught the Review of Journalism masthead from 2017-2022.
