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Contributing reporter vs staff reporter

The differences between contributing reporters and staff reporters can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a contributing reporter and a staff reporter. Additionally, a contributing reporter has an average salary of $53,032, which is higher than the $44,906 average annual salary of a staff reporter.

The top three skills for a contributing reporter include feature stories, news stories and local events. The most important skills for a staff reporter are news stories, event coverage, and feature stories.

Contributing reporter vs staff reporter overview

Contributing ReporterStaff Reporter
Yearly salary$53,032$44,906
Hourly rate$25.50$21.59
Growth rate-10%-10%
Number of jobs1,78370,415
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 86%Bachelor's Degree, 81%
Average age4040
Years of experience22

Contributing reporter vs staff reporter salary

Contributing reporters and staff reporters have different pay scales, as shown below.

Contributing ReporterStaff Reporter
Average salary$53,032$44,906
Salary rangeBetween $34,000 And $81,000Between $26,000 And $76,000
Highest paying City-Washington, DC
Highest paying state-New York
Best paying company-VanEck
Best paying industry-Media

Differences between contributing reporter and staff reporter education

There are a few differences between a contributing reporter and a staff reporter in terms of educational background:

Contributing ReporterStaff Reporter
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 86%Bachelor's Degree, 81%
Most common majorJournalismJournalism
Most common collegeMassachusetts Institute of TechnologyMassachusetts Institute of Technology

Contributing reporter vs staff reporter demographics

Here are the differences between contributing reporters' and staff reporters' demographics:

Contributing ReporterStaff Reporter
Average age4040
Gender ratioMale, 51.6% Female, 48.4%Male, 44.4% Female, 55.6%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 6.4% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.7% Asian, 9.7% White, 66.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%Black or African American, 6.4% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.8% Asian, 9.7% White, 66.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage10%10%

Differences between contributing reporter and staff reporter duties and responsibilities

Contributing reporter example responsibilities.

  • Help manage the Wordpress and Facebook site.
  • Interview persons of interest, organize event calendars, write regular articles, provide consistent photography, and help paraphrase stock compilations
  • Pitch ideas to editorial team.
  • Pitch and develop editorial ideas and create content for entertainment channel.
  • Interview up and coming Latino artists which generate significant increase in readership.

Staff reporter example responsibilities.

  • Report to managing editor as member of editorial staff, contribute to newspaper editorials.
  • Utilize photography skills and assist editor with operations.
  • Perform copy editing, publicity and photography as needed.
  • Create multiple PL/SQL store procedures for generating daily and monthly reports for different medical requirements.
  • Report from red-carpet events, including: MTV

Contributing reporter vs staff reporter skills

Common contributing reporter skills
  • Feature Stories, 30%
  • News Stories, 22%
  • Local Events, 16%
  • News Articles, 15%
  • Conduct Interviews, 9%
  • Adobe Premiere, 8%
Common staff reporter skills
  • News Stories, 14%
  • Event Coverage, 12%
  • Feature Stories, 12%
  • News Articles, 6%
  • Conduct Interviews, 3%
  • Local Government, 3%

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