Economics Writer, American Economics Association (Pittsburgh, PA)

The American Economic Association has an opening for an entry-level economics writer. We are looking for a candidate with demonstrated writing ability, an academic background in economics, and an interest in academic research appearing in top journals like the American Economic Review to serve as an Economics Writer beginning in the summer of 2018.

You will be working as a web content writer and digital journalist to interpret the latest economics studies for a broad online audience, writing pieces for the AEA’s website in the style of an explainer article that might appear on FiveThirtyEight, Vox, or The Upshot.

Your job is to take highly technical academic research articles and summarize them for non-economists, drawing connections to both current events and trends in the economics profession. You will use relevant data to create static and interactive visualizations that will help build audience interest. You will also help promote recent studies on the AEA’s Facebook and Twitter feeds and conduct social media analyses.

If you are passionate about understanding and communicating economics concepts in terms that real people can understand, this is the job for you. It is a great opportunity to build a portfolio of published work and deepen your knowledge of economics across a variety of fields.

Duties

• Plan, research, and write highlights of articles appearing in AEA journals similar to our current series: https://www.aeaweb.org/research/ and https://www.aeaweb.org/research/charts
• Host and produce audio interviews with authors 
• Create data visualizations using software like Excel, Stata, R, JavaScript, Highcharts, and Python 
• Conduct regular analyses of social media platforms and create quarterly reports on growth 
• Track news coverage and help promote upcoming research on Twitter and Facebook 
• Propose ideas for expanding our content offerings 
• Assist with other writing, editorial, and video projects as they arise 

Requirements

• BA or MA in economics with broad understanding of the discipline and subfields 
• Ability to understand, analyze, and interpret top-flight economic research such as studies appearing in the American Economic Review is a must (you can see the latest issue here). 
• Excellent writing and editing skills 
• Background or experience in journalism is a plus 
• Experience working with data using tools like Excel, Stata, R, JavaScript, Highcharts, and Python 

Application deadline: May 14

This is a full-time position with competitive salary and excellent benefits with an approximate start date of June 2018. The position is located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, although the option to work remotely is a possibility based on candidate’s skills and background. Interested candidates should submit the following through the AEA’s JOE Network, OR to Chris Fleisher at c.fleisher@aeapubs.org under the subject line “AEA Economics Writer”:

• Brief cover letter explaining your interest in the job
• Resume or CV
• Writing sample from past work (please limit to 5 pages, the more topical the better)
• Portfolio of data visualizations you have created (optional)