How to hire a news reporter

How to hire a news reporter, step by step

Here's a step-by-step news reporter hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a news reporter job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new news reporter
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a news reporter do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a news reporter, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A news reporter's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, news reporters from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list shows salaries for various types of news reporters.

   Type of News Reporter	Description	Hourly rate
   News Reporter	Reporters, correspondents, and broadcast news analysts inform the public about news and events happening internationally, nationally, and locally. They report the news for newspapers, magazines, websites, television, and radio.	$12-30
   Journalist	A journalist is responsible for creating written correspondence, covering various subjects as the management requires. This task involves a lot of research investigations, conducting interviews, and gathering reliable sources to verify the authenticity of data before releasing the articles on news portals and other social platforms... Show more	$18-45
   Production Editor	A production editor is responsible for checking publication materials before printing and distribution to ensure error-free and accurate content. Production editors must have excellent writing communication skills to perform editing and proofreading of materials efficiently, following strict requirements of publication deadlines... Show more	$19-32

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Digital Marketing
   • Local Community
   • Facebook
   • Twitter
   • Develop Story Ideas
   • Instagram
   • News Coverage
   • SEO
   • Social Media Sites
   • Story Development
   • News Reports
   • Feature Stories
   • News Content
   • Hard News

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Report to managing editor as member of editorial staff, contribute to newspaper editorials.
   • Conduct interviews, edit clips and stories, and announce stories/headlines on air.
   • Work with editors to deliver content in the appropriate style with an eye for SEO.
   • Operate digital recording equipment to film b-roll footage, interviews, and on camera reporting.
   • Drive online traffic through social networking, weaving SEO strategy into story copy, and frequent blogging.
   • Work independently gathering news stories, capturing audio sound clips for air, and writing news stories.

   More news reporter duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your news reporter job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A news reporter salary can be affected by several factors, such as geography, experience, seniority, certifications, and the prestige of the hiring company.

   For example, the average salary for a news reporter in Utah may be lower than in New York, and an entry-level news reporter usually earns less than a senior-level news reporter. Additionally, a news reporter with certifications may command a higher salary, and working for a well-known company or start-up may also impact an employee's pay.

   Average news reporter salary

   $41,481yearly

   $19.94 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level news reporter salary

   $26,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 14, 2025

   Average news reporter salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	New York	$54,390	$26
   2	New Jersey	$53,145	$26
   3	Maryland	$48,777	$23
   4	California	$48,768	$23
   5	District of Columbia	$48,093	$23
   6	Ohio	$44,605	$21
   7	Pennsylvania	$44,600	$21
   8	Washington	$44,392	$21
   9	Massachusetts	$44,267	$21
   10	Virginia	$43,555	$21
   11	Tennessee	$42,573	$20
   12	Arkansas	$40,135	$19
   13	Florida	$39,902	$19
   14	Georgia	$39,139	$19
   15	Illinois	$38,987	$19
   16	Minnesota	$38,941	$19
   17	Texas	$37,985	$18
   18	Iowa	$37,786	$18
   19	Hawaii	$36,813	$18
   20	Colorado	$35,442	$17

   Average news reporter salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	The Monitor Group	$99,817	$47.99
   2	The Washington Post	$88,797	$42.69
   3	Saint Xavier University	$77,430	$37.23
   4	Fox News	$69,856	$33.58
   5	BuzzFeed	$61,053	$29.35	1
   6	Dow Jones	$58,696	$28.22	5
   7	Entravision Communications	$57,388	$27.59	6
   8	Townsquare Media	$56,527	$27.18	3
   9	NBCUniversal	$53,236	$25.59	45
   10	MediaNews Group	$52,242	$25.12	8
   11	Outside In	$52,128	$25.06
   12	VitalChek	$50,156	$24.11
   13	University of Alaska	$49,433	$23.77	3
   14	POLITICO	$48,378	$23.26	4
   15	Sinclair Broadcast Group	$48,248	$23.20	162
   16	iHeartMedia	$47,632	$22.90	26
   17	Asian American Civic Association	$45,094	$21.68
   18	TEGNA	$45,085	$21.68	43
   19	Medical Billing	$43,431	$20.88
   20	South Central Communications	$42,530	$20.45

4. Writing a news reporter job description

   A news reporter job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a news reporter job description:

   News reporter job description example

   Application Instructions
   
   Please list all professional experience and explain any gaps in employment history. All of your application materials, which may include PDF files of work samples and/or links to audio, video, photography or graphics, must be uploaded to the field labeled Resume/Cover Letter/Work Samples to be considered for the position.
   
   Job Description
   
   The Washington Post is seeking a nimble and creative reporter to join its Business Breaking News team to cover the latest developments in the economy, technology and corporate America.
   
   The Business Breaking News team plays a central role in covering the biggest stories of the day, from Wall Street volatility to Main Street trends that reveal deep shifts in consumer behavior and American culture. The team produces a wide mix of stories, including quick-turn news dailies and FAQs, features that explore human and corporate reaction to breaking news events, and more ambitious enterprise that answers deeper questions raised by the news of the day.
   
   The ideal candidate will have a strong interest in financial news and some experience covering breaking stories. This position requires speed, resourcefulness, clear writing and a fanatical devotion to fact-checking and accuracy. A collaborative spirit is a must, as is a desire to experiment with alternative story formats that use graphics, video, audio and other visual elements to make complex topics accessible to a broad audience. This reporter should be willing to work a variable schedule, with shifts that could begin as early as 7 a.m.
   
   Interested candidates should upload a cover letter, résumé and three clips saved as pdfs to our jobs portal. All application materials can be uploaded to the same field. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until the position is filled, but those received by 07/29/2022 will be prioritized. Your cover letter should be addressed to Business Editor Lori Montgomery, Deputy Business Editor Damian Paletta and Breaking News Business Editor Robbie Olivas DiMesio.
   
   The Post strives to provide its readers with high-quality, trustworthy news and information while constantly innovating. That mission is best served by a diverse, multi-generational workforce with varied life experiences and perspectives. All cultures and backgrounds are welcomed.
   
   Ever wondered if what you are doing will Impact Tomorrow? At The Washington Post, every employee shapes the way we deliver the news. Find the career that's right for you
   #washpostlife

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find news reporters for your business:

   • Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your news reporter job on Zippia to find and recruit news reporter candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites such as problogger, media bistro, journalismjobs.com, content writing jobs.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit news reporters, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   Remember to include a few questions that allow candidates to expand on their strengths in their own words. Asking about their unique skills might reveal things you'd miss otherwise. At this point, good candidates can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new news reporter

   Once you've decided on a perfect news reporter candidate, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, it should include benefits and perks available to the employee. Qualified candidates may be considered for other positions, so make sure your offer is competitive. Candidates may wish to negotiate. Once you've settled on the details, formalize your agreement with a contract.

   You should also follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that you've filled the position.

   To prepare for the new news reporter first day, you should share an onboarding schedule with them that covers their first period on the job. You should also quickly complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Finally, Human Resources must ensure a new employee file is created for internal record keeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire a news reporter?