Capital News Service Bureau Director @ University of Maryland - College Park

Journalism (2)
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Job Description Summary

Organization's Summary Statement:

Physical Demands:

Preferences:

Licenses/ Certifications:

Additional Job Details

The University of Maryland’s Philip Merrill College of Journalism seeks a director for one of its Capital News Service bureaus — either in Annapolis or Washington. Reporters, editors and educators with experience teaching, editing or mentoring student journalists or young reporters are encouraged to apply. This is a nine-month, non-tenure track renewable lecturer position to start no later than January 2026.

Capital News Service is a student-powered news organization run by the Philip Merrill College of Journalism. For more than three decades, it has provided deeply reported, award-winning coverage of issues important to Maryland citizens. The students in Capital News Service come from Merrill’s undergraduate and master’s programs and work in Washington, Annapolis and College Park. The successful candidate must have excellent reporting and writing skills, strong news judgment and a passion for encouraging and developing the confidence and talent of young journalists. Students under the direction of this faculty member, and in collaboration with other faculty members, produce news on a variety of platforms and in real time for a destination website and for several dozen client news organizations throughout Maryland, Washington, Delaware and Virginia. Those clients include The Associated Press and The Washington Post, local broadcast stations and their websites, and several national news outlets. The students’ work often appears in outlets across the country and in other parts of the world, as well.

The students in Annapolis and Washington work as part of a college-run news operation that includes other CNS bureaus (broadcast; data and design; audience and social media), the Local News Network, the Shirley Povich Center for Sports Journalism, the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism and several specialized capstone courses.

The successful candidate must be comfortable participating in, and leading, collaborative journalism teams. They should be eager to teach today’s journalism students with an eye toward the innovations needed to sustain the field in the future.

Students under the direction of this editor, and other editors, will:

Prepare for the journalism jobs available today while experimenting with the reporting and storytelling methods that might be the profession’s future
Report and write stories (daily and enterprise) for the CNS website and CNS clients that help audiences better understand the world and their community.
Interview and develop human sources and use data journalism techniques to tell deeply reported stories.
Use social media to understand audience questions and tell stories that seek to answer them.
Shoot and edit photos, audio and video.
Create basic data visualizations to go with stories (charts, maps, graphics).

Minimum Qualifications: A bachelor’s degree. Experience as a multimedia reporter and/or editor. Experience with basic data journalism techniques.

Organization's Summary Statement:

The Philip Merrill College of Journalism at the University of Maryland, consistently ranked among the world's top journalism schools, develops journalists and media scholars with rigorous reporting, research and analytical skills, a commitment to ethics, and an appreciation for the First Amendment’s key role in a free society. Located a few miles from the United States capital, Washington, D.C., the college employs acclaimed researchers and repeat winners of journalism’s top awards — including the Pulitzer, Peabody and Emmy awards — and prepares students to join a dynamic profession.

Merrill College students — who enjoy small classes but also have access to the resources and opportunities available at one of the nation's top public universities — leave Maryland with strong writing and visual skills, a command of technology, and a nuanced understanding of data analysis and audience engagement.

The college has approximately 500 undergraduate and graduate students and about 50 faculty and staff. The college is housed in Knight Hall, located on the UMD College Park campus. The college also runs news bureaus in Annapolis and Washington, is the home of the award-winning Howard Center for Investigative Journalism and The Shirley Povich Center for Sports Journalism, and hosts the national office of the National Association of Black Journalists.

Several online services rank Merrill College among the top journalism schools in the country, including No. 2 by Course Advisor (2023), No. 3 by College Rank (2024), No. 4 by Universities.com (2024), No. 5 by CollegeVine (2024), No. 5 by Transizion (2024), No. 6 by College Factual (2025), No. 6 by CollegeRanker (2024), No. 6 by Successful Student (2024), No. 7 by AP Guru (2021) and No. 8 by College Transitions (2025). Merrill College is fully accredited by the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications.

Preferences:

At least eight years of experience as a reporter, editor or journalism educator covering local, state or national news. A master’s degree is preferred. Knowledge of the state and/or federal government workings.

Physical Demands: N/A

Licenses/ Certifications: N/A

Required Application Materials:

Resume, cover letter and three references

Best Consideration Date:

September 24, 2025

Posting Close Date: NA

Open Until Filled: NA

Financial Disclosure Required

For more information on Financial Disclosure, please visit Maryland's State Ethics Commission website.

Department

JOUR-Philip Merrill College of Journalism

Worker Sub-Type

Faculty Regular

Salary Range

$99,000 - $125,000

Benefits Summary

For more information on Regular Faculty benefits, select this link.

Background Checks

Offers of employment are contingent on completion of a background check. Information reported by the background check will not automatically disqualify anyone from employment. Before any adverse decision, the finalist will have an opportunity to provide information to the University regardingdisclosablebackground check information. The University reserves the right to rescind the offer of employment or otherwise decline or terminate employment if the information reported by the background check is deemed incompatible with the position, regardless of when the background check is completed.

Employment Eligibility

The successful candidate must complete employment eligibility verification (on Form I-9) by presenting documents that establish identity and work authorization within the timeframe required by federal immigration law, and where applicable, to demonstrate renewed employment authorization. Failure to complete employment eligibility verification or reverification within the timeframe set forth by law may result in suspension or termination of employment.

EEO Statement

The University of Maryland, College Park is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive equal consideration for employment. Please read the University’s Equal Employment Opportunity Statement of Policy.

Title IX Non-Discrimination Notice

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Capital News Service Bureau Director

University of Maryland - College Park

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