Opinion Writer

The Kansas City Star, winner of nine Pulitzer Prizes, is seeking an experienced journalist with a reporter’s eye for detail and a writer’s grace to develop a unique and memorable style as the newest member of our editorial board.

We’re looking for an exceptional writer who is equally at home reporting project-level enterprise and writing quickly off the news with both accuracy and flair. Our writers have an ear for storytelling and eye for the big and small things our community is buzzing about.

We believe opinion journalism – especially the sustained local community-oriented commentary uniquely offered by a fully staffed editorial board such as ours – is essential to the readers it serves. It also is a powerful advantage in the fight for readers’ attention and subscriptions in the always evolving frontier of digital-first journalism. 

You’ll join a team of three editorial writers and three editors who together routinely break news and juggle deeply-reported projects with fast-breaking reactions to important news.  We believe our advocacy matters – a lot – to the quality of life in our region, which is centered in Kansas City and extends throughout Kansas and Missouri. 

Our next opinion writer will: 

• Report and write columns and editorials with a local and state lens, regularly breaking news and hold officials to account.
• Visualize and execute strong opinion journalism, including multi-day projects.
• Respond to events with opinion at the speed of news.
• Pursue innovative approaches to reach underserved audiences.

The successful candidate will be a sharp thinker with a fresh voice and a love for community-based reporting. She or he will be someone who embraces a digital-first focus that rewards quick, thoughtful writing and an eagerness to try new things. Spanish-language skills are highly valued. Female candidates and candidates of color are encouraged to apply. 

We’d love to hear ideas about what those innovations ought to be, and how we can better use video, audio and other formats to expand our reach and grow our audience. Ideas for how you’d help lead the way on these efforts are welcome. 

Our new board member will engage in respectful community building both online and by hosting community conversations with a goal of growing support for our work. She or he will also grow readership of our editorials by acting on available audience data. 

Kansas City is a vibrant, large city with a high quality of life – replete with iconic professional sports teams and a world-class arts scene – and a low cost of living. It’s a fantastic place to put down roots and this job offers the chance to contribute meaningfully to its future. 

The Kansas City-based position will report to Michael Lindenberger, a 2022 Pulitzer Prize winning writer who joined the Kansas City Star in August as its vice president and editorial page editor. 

Key requirements

• At least 3-5 years of reporting experience, preferably on local issues and/or government.
• Strong editing skills and excellent news judgment.
• A zeal for understanding and using readership data.
• An interest in telling stories using a variety of media, and an enthusiasm for learning new skills and technologies.
• Comfort with a job that will be fast-paced and constantly evolving.