Samba TV

Delivers TV audience measurement and insights

Data Journalist

News Reporting & Digital JournalismUpdated on Nov 13

Full-time$130k - $160k /yr

About the Job

Requirements

At least 5 years of experience in data journalism, data reporting, or on a data desk at a news, media, or research organization; research or communications experience at a data company is also a strong fit.
Strong SQL skills and proficiency in Python or R for data cleaning and analysis, plus fluency with data visualization tools such as Datawrapper, Flourish, or Tableau.
A portfolio of published data stories with clips demonstrating that the candidate found the story, performed the analysis, and wrote it.
Strong news judgment to identify findings that are new, surprising, or relevant to reporters on deadline and to write compelling headlines without overstating the data.
Clear, concise writing and visual communication skills, including the ability to create informative and effective charts.
Ability to work at news speed, turn around timely analysis in hours, manage multiple stakeholders, and deliver on deadlines.
Rigor and integrity with data, including skepticism of results, transparent methodology, and willingness to state when the data does not support a story.

Responsibilities

Mine Samba TV viewership data, Samba web data, and public datasets to find timely, newsworthy stories about viewing, reading, and audience attention.
Report data stories end to end by forming hypotheses, querying and cleaning data, analyzing results, interviewing internal experts, and writing clear, accurate copy for reporters and executives.
Build charts, maps, and interactive graphics that communicate findings clearly and are ready for press, social media, and the web.
Produce fast, news-pegged analysis on cultural and media events, including premieres, live sports, elections, award shows, and streaming launches.
Lead original research, including recurring viewing and attention reports, from study design and data sourcing through analysis, writing, and publication.
Partner with the public relations firm to package data exclusives for reporters, write methodology notes and fact sheets, and serve as a spokesperson for questions about the numbers.
Maintain a story pipeline and data calendar tied to major cultural and media moments, providing content, social, and public relations teams with story ideas, statistics, and angles.
Document sources and methods, account for sample limitations and bias, and fact-check marketing data to uphold Samba’s credibility.
Collaborate with measurement science, product, sales, customer success, and data engineering teams to access data, understand its limitations, and identify stories relevant to press, customers, and prospects.
Help marketing and sales teams understand the data and communicate it accurately, promoting evidence-based storytelling within marketing.
Manage relationships with external research partners, survey vendors, and data visualization tools.

Desired Qualifications

Experience designing and fielding original surveys or research studies.
Familiarity with TV and streaming measurement, audience data, or advertising.
Existing relationships with media, entertainment, technology, or advertising trade reporters.
Experience building interactive graphics or data-driven web features using tools such as D3, Observable, or JavaScript.

Salary Range: 130000 to 160000 (Currency: USD) (Pay period: per-year-salary)

Samba is a media intelligence company. We know what the world is watching, reading, and thinking about — in real time, at scale, across every screen. Our data exists with the consent of over a billion people, organized into the most complete picture of consumer attention ever built. The biggest brands in the world use that picture to make smarter decisions. We think it’s the most interesting data asset on the planet, because it’s the most culturally relevant.

We are looking for a Data Journalist to dig into Samba’s data, find the stories in it, and put them to work for the marketing team. You will write SQL and Python to query our viewership and web data directly, join it with public datasets, and build the analyses that show what audiences are watching, how attention is shifting, and why it matters to brands and advertisers. You will treat that data the way a newsroom data desk treats public records: interrogate it, verify it, and report what is new and surprising with the rigor that earns coverage from top-tier media and trust from our customers. The insights you uncover will shape our campaigns, messaging, thought leadership, and sales stories, and will drive original research reports, news-pegged analysis, and press pitches.

If you have a reporter’s instinct for a story, the coding skills to find it in raw data, and you like seeing your chart in a headline, this role is for you.

WHAT YOU"LL DO

Finding & Reporting Data Stories

Mine Samba TV viewership data, Samba web data, and public datasets to find timely, newsworthy stories about what people are watching, reading, and paying attention to.
Report data stories end to end: form a hypothesis, query and clean the data, analyze it, interview internal experts, and write clear, accurate copy that a reporter or executive can understand in one read.
Build charts, maps, and interactive graphics that make a finding obvious at a glance and are ready for press, social, and the web.
Turn around fast, news-pegged analysis on cultural and media moments (premieres, live sports, elections, award shows, streaming launches) so Samba’s data becomes part of the news cycle.

Original Research & Media Relations

Lead Samba’s flagship original research, such as recurring reports on viewing and attention trends, from study design and data sourcing through analysis, writing, and publication.
Partner with PR firm to package data exclusives for reporters, write methodology notes and fact sheets, and serve as a credible spokesperson when journalists have questions about the numbers.
Maintain a story pipeline and data calendar tied to tentpole cultural and media moments, giving content, social, and PR a steady flow of story ideas, stats, and angles.
Hold every published number to a newsroom standard: document sources and methods, account for sample limits and bias, and fact-check data used across marketing to protect Samba’s credibility.

Cross-Functional Partnership

Collaborate with measurement science, product, sales, customer success, and data engineering teams to access the right data, understand its limits, and find stories that resonate with press, customers, and prospects.
Help marketing and sales teams understand what the data shows and how to talk about it accurately, building a culture of evidence-based storytelling within the marketing org.
Manage relationships with external research partners, survey vendors, and data visualization tools.

WHO YOU ARE

5+ years of experience in data journalism, data reporting, or on a data desk at a news, media, or research organization. Experience in research or communications at a data company is also a strong fit.

Strong SQL skills, Python or R for cleaning and analysis, and fluency with data visualization tools (e.g., Datawrapper, Flourish, Tableau).

A portfolio of published data stories, with clips that show you found the story, ran the analysis, and wrote it.

Strong news judgment: you know what makes a finding new, surprising, or relevant to a reporter on deadline, and how to write a headline that earns attention without overstating the data.

Clear, concise writing and visual communication skills; you know the difference between a chart that informs and a chart that lands.

Comfort working at news speed: you can turn around a timely analysis in hours, juggle multiple stakeholders, and ship on deadline.

Rigor and integrity with data: healthy skepticism of your own numbers, transparency about methodology, and the confidence to say when the data doesn’t support the story.

Nice to Have

Experience designing and fielding original surveys or research studies.

Familiarity with TV and streaming measurement, audience data, or advertising

Existing relationships with media, entertainment, tech, or advertising trade reporters.

Experience building interactive graphics or data-driven web features (e.g., D3, Observable, JavaScript).

Samba is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. We strive to empower connection with one another, reflect the communities we serve, and tackle meaningful projects that make a real impact.

Samba may collect personal information directly from you, as a job applicant, Samba may also receive personal information from third parties, for example, in connection with a background, employment or reference check, in accordance with the applicable law. For further details, please see Samba's Applicant Privacy Policy. For residents of the EU , Samba Inc. is the data controller.

About the Company

Samba TV

Delivers TV audience measurement and insights

Samba TV collects and analyzes TV viewing data to help advertisers, broadcasters, and content creators understand what people watch. It embeds its technology in about 35 million smart TVs across 20 brands, creating a large viewership database and a household identity graph. The system works by using a proprietary multi-source panel from participating TVs to gather viewing activity, then turning that data into insights and analytics that clients can use to plan ads, optimize content, and measure performance. What sets Samba TV apart is the size and scope of its data: it claims the largest end-to-end viewership dataset and identity graph in the industry, with a panel hundreds of times larger than typical measurements and broad brand partnerships, while offering privacy controls for viewers who opt in or out. The company aims to provide data-driven, actionable insights to improve advertising effectiveness and content delivery across the global smart TV market.

Company size: 201-500
Company stage: Debt Financing
Total funding: $75.7M
Headquarters: San Francisco, CA
Founded: 2008

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