General Assignment Reporter - Courts & Crime Focus

Job Description:

We are seeking a driven General Assignment Reporter (Courts & Crime Focus) to join the California Post team.

Reporting to the Deputy News Editor, this reporter will react quickly to major breaking news across the San Francisco Bay Area while focusing closely on courts, crime, and public safety. This role requires flexibility, sharp instincts, and a high-velocity reporting style—whether you’re responding to an urgent spot news event, covering a high-profile trial, or breaking down a rapidly developing regional story. You will be on the front lines of one of the nation’s most dynamic news environments, turning fast-moving events into clear, authoritative reporting.

Responsibilities:

• Cover real-time general assignment and breaking news across the San Francisco Bay Area with speed, accuracy, and urgency for the California Post.
• Anchor coverage on major criminal and civil court cases, law enforcement agency accountability, and public safety issues impacting the region.
• Pivot seamlessly between broad general assignment reporting, spot news, public safety incidents, and regional enterprise assignments as stories unfold.
• Spot local stories with viral potential or national resonance and deliver exclusive angles before the competition.
• Cultivate strong relationships across law enforcement, legal communities, municipal agencies, emergency services, and local neighborhoods.
• File rapid updates across web, mobile, social media, and video platforms, continuously updating developing stories in real time.
• Actively monitor police blotters, court filings, public records, and social feeds to spot scoops and emerging trends.
• Travel regularly across the Bay Area to cover breaking news scenes, courthouses, hearings, trials, and major verdict announcements in person.

Requirements:

• Several years of experience reporting for a fast-paced digital or print newsroom, with a background in general assignment, breaking news, or public safety beats.
• Superior news judgment with a proven ability to write fast, clean, and compelling copy on tight deadlines while managing multiple assignments.
• Solid understanding of legal documents, court filings, and police operations, with the ability to translate complex legal jargon into clear, accessible prose.
• A relentless approach to newsgathering and a track record of building trusted sources across public safety and municipal agencies.
• Proficiency with CMS platforms (e.g., WordPress), SEO best practices, and social media distribution tools.
• Comfort presenting short-form video updates or discussing stories on camera for digital platforms.
• A desire to be first and best on major breaking stories while maintaining the highest standards of journalistic integrity and accuracy.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Spanish or secondary language fluency.
• An established social media presence or professional digital following.

Note: This role is expected to be based remotely in the San Francisco Bay Area. All work arrangements are subject to change based on business needs.

#LI-Remote

Equal Opportunity Employer

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status or any other protected characteristic under applicable law.

Reasonable Accommodation

We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities in our job application and/or interview process. If you need assistance or accommodation in completing your application or participating in an interview due to a disability, email us at [email protected]. Please put "Reasonable Accommodation" in the subject line and provide a brief description of the type of assistance you need. This inbox will not be monitored for application status updates.

Please refer to the privacy notice at the bottom of this page for submitting any data access, deletion, or other data subject rights requests, where permitted under your local laws and regulations.

Base Pay Range: $90,000 - $125,000

We’re committed to offering competitive and flexible compensation to attract top talent. This pay range reflects our good faith estimate for the role and may vary based on a candidate’s experience, skills, location, and other relevant factors.

For bonus-eligible roles, targets are determined based on multiple considerations, including market benchmarks and individual contributions.

For benefits-eligible roles, we offer a comprehensive and competitive benefits package covering health, retirement, wellbeing, and more, along with optional benefits to meet the diverse needs of our employees