Overview
Duration: 6 months with possible extension
Hours: 40 hours/week
Reports to: Communications Manager
Summary
We are seeking a detail-oriented, entry-level Communications Fellow to support a global media team telling the story of free, open, and equitable knowledge.
The Communications Fellow will join our team and play a critical role supporting the growing media unit responsible for connecting the story of Wikimedia’s mission, Wikipedia, and the future of free knowledge with the world.
This person will work collaboratively with Wikimedia colleagues to shape and support the development of creative, results-oriented media relations and communications strategies and join the Communications team leading an exciting initiative — to make Wikipedia meaningful to one billion women.
The Communications Fellow will be joining a group of dedicated and passionate people responsible for communicating important news and information for one of the world’s top websites. This is a collaborative role for a detail-oriented self-starter with regular opportunities to work closely to support media campaigns among peers and colleagues in Communications, across the Wikimedia Foundation, volunteer community members, organizational partners, movement leaders, and other figures working in partnership toward Wikimedia’s mission of free knowledge for all.
The ideal candidate is:
- An organized self-starter who is motivated to take on and lead critical operational responsibilities for the media team and excited to manage multiple projects and deadlines across the organization. The Communications Fellow will build important project reporting and media monitoring systems necessary to amplify the work of the Wikimedia Foundation, the brands of Wikimedia, and the work of Wikimedians around the world.
- A detail-oriented storyteller who can clearly and proactively identify, support and leverage opportunities to spread the mission of free and open knowledge. The Communications Fellow will gain hands-on experience in media relations and public relations, including outreach, media monitoring, messaging development, interview and speaking preparation, and more.
- A collaborative and adaptive communicator interested in helping us better understand through research how we can effectively tell stories in emerging media markets and develop informative media coverage reports.
The Communications Fellow will support the operations and growth of the core media and public relations team in several ways including:
The Communications Fellow will be responsible for:
- Informing how we engage with media globally through regularly conducting and sharing research for reactive and proactive media opportunities
- Building detailed briefing documents for Foundation executives and staff to prepare for interviews and public speaking engagements and shape process for keeping briefing materials current
- Developing and maintaining foundational media outreach materials, such as important Frequently Asked Questions for campaigns, press kits, talking points and other materials
- Conduct research into industry trends, emerging markets, and other global trends impacting Wikipedia, the Wikimedia movement, and the one billion women program
- Developing media lists and identifying key targets for proactive PR outreach
- Creating communications reports to evaluate outcomes and objectives of media, public speaking, and other communications campaigns and create recommendations to inform future work
- Monitoring daily news for breaking stories and trends impacting the Wikimedia movement — including the production of a daily media report for Foundation staff, executives, Board, and the global community of Wikimedia volunteers and affiliates
- Collaboratively supporting communications projects and capacity development with volunteer communities and Wikimedia affiliates around the world. This may include supporting the development of a global communications advisory committee, communications and social media campaign coordination, media trainings, and other skills-building workshops.
- Attend meetings alongside the communications team and record necessary action points for tracking purposes
- Draft blog posts, press releases, media responses, talking points, and social media content for announcements and other messaging opportunities
Desired Skills and Experience
Requirements
- An adaptive and detail-oriented leader with an interest in understanding, supporting, and expanding the voice of the Wikimedia movement and the Wikimedia Foundation, a high energy for and commitment to the Wikimedia Foundation’s free knowledge mission
- Strong organizational skills and experience managing multiple projects at once, an interest in both independent and collaborative work
- Experience in developing and maintaining systems and documentation for projects with multiple moving parts and stakeholders
- A strong interest in writing, communications and desire to learn about the media relations field in a fast-paced environment
- Understanding of and interest in monitoring trends on current social media platforms
- Exceptional verbal and written communication, editing, and interpersonal skills
- Strong research skills
- The ability to meet deadlines and excel in a fast-paced, multitasking environment that often requires fast turn‐around
- Intellectual curiosity, flexibility, and a desire to tackle challenging problems
- The ability to flourish in a highly transparent and collaborative environment and work on a team with diverse demographic and cultural characteristics
Pluses
- Involvement or experience within Wikimedia communities and/or editing the Wikimedia projects
- Other languages – especially German, French, or Spanish
- Knowledge of online community interaction and dynamics
- Previous experience in PR or media relations
- BA/BS or MA/MS
The Wikimedia Foundation is…
…the nonprofit organization that supports Wikipedia and the other Wikimedia free knowledge projects. Our vision is a world in which every single human can freely share in the sum of all knowledge. We believe that everyone has the potential to contribute something to our shared knowledge, and that everyone should be able to access that knowledge, free of interference. We host the Wikimedia projects, build software experiences for reading, contributing, and sharing Wikimedia content, support the volunteer communities and partners who make Wikimedia possible, and advocate for policies that enable Wikimedia and free knowledge to thrive. The Wikimedia Foundation is a charitable, not-for-profit organization that relies on donations. We receive financial support from millions of individuals around the world, with an average donation of about $15. We also receive donations through institutional grants and gifts. The Wikimedia Foundation is a United States 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization with offices in San Francisco, California, USA.
The Wikimedia Foundation is an equal opportunity employer, and we encourage people with a diverse range of backgrounds to apply
More information