Job Description

New America is seeking a talented Editor and Content Manager with a passion for storytelling to join its Central Communications team. Reporting to the Director of Editorial and Publications, they will work closely with New America’s subject-matter experts and fellows to translate their complex insights into crisp, compelling stories that engage our audiences.

As a writer and editor deeply embedded in the organization, this role will identify and shape short-form content opportunities to advance our mission across multiple platforms, including The Thread, New America’s flagship digital magazine and newsletter. The ideal candidate is an avid reader with a keen eye for emerging trends. They are a thoughtful, mission-driven team player, excited by the opportunity to help expand New America’s reach and impact through bold narratives.

This is a pivotal moment for New America and its broader digital storytelling efforts following the relaunch of our brand and website. The Editor and Content Manager role offers a dynamic opportunity to work among New America’s high-performing Central Communications team to help shape this next chapter and engage new audiences across multimedia platforms, including video and audio storytelling.

Responsibilities:

Editorial Strategy and Curation – 75%

• Working closely with the Director of Editorial and Publications, support and execute on New America’s short-form content strategy—including for The Thread—ensuring our published content amplifies our mission, spotlights diverse and emerging voices, and resonates beyond traditional policy circles;
• Review, edit, and produce articles and priority short-form content with an eye toward clarity, consistency, and maximum impact;
• Build and maintain a robust editorial calendar that balances timely content with evergreen narratives;
• Write and develop copy for monthly Thread newsletter issues;
• Serve as a trusted editorial partner to New America’s subject-matter experts and fellows—helping them elevate their work into compelling content;
• Collaborate with the Digital Marketing Manager to analyze newsletter performance metrics to translate insights into content strategy that grows subscribers and deepens reader engagement; and
• Work cross-functionally with email marketing, social media, and design colleagues to amplify reach.

Multimedia Narrative Storytelling Support – 25%

• Provide editorial and production support for select high-priority multimedia projects, including podcasts and social media videos;
• Collaborate with studio, communications, and editorial teams to help shape storytelling approaches for one to two podcasts per year;
• Review scripts, interview questions, and narrative briefs for tone alignment, accuracy, and audience impact; and
• Identify opportunities to repurpose written editorial content into compelling multimedia formats that extend reach across audio and video platforms.

Qualifications:

• 5+ years of editorial or content-focused work, ideally in a newsroom, publication, or mission-driven organization;
• Proven track record of analyzing audience trends and translating data into strategy;
• Superb writing and editing skills, with a sharp eye for clarity, tone, and story structure;
• Strong project management skills—adept at managing project timelines, coordinating with multiple stakeholders, and meeting tight deadlines;
• Collaborative spirit and excellent communication across functions and seniority levels;
• Experience with content management systems, such as WordPress, is a plus;
• Proactive, resourceful, and self-motivated;
• A commitment to ethical, inclusive storytelling and elevating voices on the margins; and
• Genuinely energized by New America’s mission and the opportunity to grow our audiences and impact.

Location: This position will be based in Washington, DC, on a hybrid schedule, with ideally two in-office days per week.

Compensation and Benefits: This position is a full-time role with benefits. The annual salary will be between $80,000 – $90,000, depending on experience.

New America offers a highly competitive benefits package that includes health care, dental, and vision coverage; a generous retirement plan; paid time off; observes all federal holidays; and an office-wide closure between Christmas and New Year’s Day.

How to apply: Submit a cover letter, resume, and two writing or editing samples. Applicants without a cover letter, resume, and work samples will not be considered. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis, so early submissions are recommended. Please, no phone calls or emails. For those invited to proceed, the selection process will include both interviews and a performance task.

No phone calls or emails will be answered.

Physical Requirements:

• This position is hybrid, working from home and in an office environment and sits at a desk for extended periods of time and requires dexterity to operate general office equipment.
• The person in this position will frequently communicate with peers, management, company partners/vendors, and the general public and must be able to exchange accurate and timely information verbally and in writing.
• This position may require walking, bending, kneeling, and standing and will require sitting for extended periods of time.
• Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the role.

Work Environment:

• The work environment is generally an indoor office or a remote work environment. This role routinely uses standard office equipment, including computers, phones, video conferencing tools, and shared digital platforms.

Originality and Transparency: At New America, we value authentic voices and intellectual property rights. All application materials, including cover letters, writing samples, and any other submissions, must be solely your own original work. The use of AI text generation tools like ChatGPT, language models, or other artificial intelligence writing assistants is strictly prohibited for any part of your job application. Submissions found to contain AI-generated content will be immediately disqualified from consideration. Applicants have a responsibility to be fully transparent about authorship and any tools or resources utilized. We celebrate human ingenuity and want to hear your genuine thoughts and experiences.

Equal Opportunity Employer: New America is an equal-opportunity employer committed to hiring a diverse workforce at all levels of the organization thereby creating a culture that allows us to better serve our clientele, our employees, and our communities. We value and encourage the contributions of our employees and strive to create an environment where everyone can reach their full potential and drive outstanding results. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, national origin, age, sex, religion, disability, sexual orientation, marital status, veteran status, gender identity or expression, or any other basis protected by local, state, or federal law. This policy applies with regard to all aspects of one’s employment, including hiring, transfer, promotion, compensation, eligibility for benefits, and termination. This is a bargaining unit position.