Internships

EDITORIAL INTERNSHIPS

If you have a strong interest in progressive politics, independent publishing and journalism, we encourage you to apply for an editorial internship with In These Times. Former In These Times interns have gone on to work at The Nation, The Huffington Post, The American Prospect, Truthout, Buzzfeed, Salon, Rolling Stone, International Business Times, In These Times and many other publications.

Editorial interns gain insight into all aspects of the production process for an award-winning magazine, from pitching story ideas to brainstorming compelling headlines to fact-checking every word we publish. Each intern is also paired with an editor mentor, who provides guidance in crafting persuasive story pitches and revising interns’ articles. While the internship is not writing-intensive, every intern is expected to have at least one byline by the end of their internship.

Please note that as of Spring 2023 the internship is still remote with the optional opportunity for hybrid in-office work for applicants based in Chicago.

INTERNSHIP DETAILS

Editorial interns at In These Times gain foundational skills that prepare them for a career in journalism, whether in an editorial or reporting capacity. Intern responsibilities include:

Fact-checking: Interns learn our thorough fact-checking process, and help fact-check every article published by the magazine, both in print and online.
Research: Interns research historical articles, forthcoming books/movies/TV shows, current events and other ad-hoc topics to help editors envision how In These Times might enter important political conversations with unique angles. Interns also brainstorm and write copy for short departments in the print magazine, such as “By The Numbers,” “In Those Times” and “This Month In Late Capitalism.”
Pitching articles: Interns pitch articles to their editor mentors, learning how to craft a compelling pitch, pursue a story idea and work with an editor to revise the story. Each intern is expected and encouraged to publish at least one full-length article by the end of their internship.
Web posting: Interns learn basic html formatting to post stories to InTheseTimes.com. They also perform photo research to find engaging images to accompany web stories.
Proofreading: Interns gain experience proofreading articles online and in print.
Headlines meetings: Interns participate in our print magazine meetings, helping editors brainstorm eye-catching headlines.
Pitch meetings: Interns monitor our unsolicited submissions email inbox, identify promising story pitches, and advocate for those pitches at editorial meetings.
Professionalism and outreach: Interns learn how to navigate a professional, collaborative office environment, in which they are in frequent communication with editors, publishing/development staff and fellow interns. They also learn to make phone calls and send emails to sources for fact-checking purposes, in a professional, respectful manner.
Time-management and teamwork: In These Times fosters a highly collaborative work environment, where editors rely on each other to keep the magazine production moving smoothly. Interns learn how to work together as a team to complete time-sensitive assignments, respond to sudden changes in the production plan and communicate with each other and with editors to meet our goals and deadlines.

Since In These Times is a nonprofit magazine, all interns will very occasionally be asked to help with publishing and administrative tasks.

Interns are provided a $1,440/month stipend during their internships. Internships typically run for a 3- or 4-month period. (See below for external scholarship opportunities.) Interns are required to work 4 days per week (working 6 hours per day) during regular office hours.

HOW TO APPLY

Applicants should have a strong interest in progressive politics, independent media and social justice, and should have excellent attention to detail.

Previous editorial and/or web experience is a plus but is not required.

We strongly encourage applications from people of color, people from working-class backgrounds, women, LGBTQ people, and others belonging to marginalized communities, who are still severely underrepresented in the field of journalism and media.

When applying, please indicate when you are able to start and when you would want your internship to end, as well as what days per week you are interested in working. (Note that start and end dates of the internship are flexible, as are the days of the week you’d like to come into the office.)

To apply, please email a cover letter, résumé, and at least one writing sample to internships@inthesetimes.com, with the subject line EDITORIAL INTERNSHIP APPLICATION. Please send all application materials in a single PDF file. See below for application deadlines.

APPLICATION DEADLINES

While we adhere to the deadlines below, applications for internships can be made at any time. Interns are accepted on a rolling basis. Start and end dates are flexible.

Summer Internships:

Application deadline: March 15
Internship typically runs from May/June to September

Fall Internships

Application deadline: July 15
Internship typically runs from late August/early September to December holidays (commensurate with Fall semesters)

Winter/Spring Internships

Application deadline: October 15
Internship typically runs from late December/early January to May (commensurate with Spring semesters)