Careers and Opportunities
KYUK’s mission is to serve the rural Alaska and Alaska Native population of our region and respond to issues that affect the people of the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. Our mission is to educate, stimulate and inform as well as provide cultural enrichment, entertainment, and opportunity for public access and language maintenance for cultural survival.
KYUK is currently hiring for a News Reporter position. See the job posting below:
KYUK Public Media seeks News Reporter in Bethel, Alaska
About the job:
KYUK is seeking a News Reporter to cover Alaska’s Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. We’re looking for a curious, enterprising individual who’s excited to live in this unique region and dig deep into its stories. Travel in small planes and river boats will be required.
The News Reporter will be responsible for producing multiple audio news stories per week, hosting newscasts and special programs, creating web versions of stories, and uploading content to the station’s website and social media.
Alaska reporting experience and Yup’ik proficiency are preferred but not required. We place more emphasis on hands-on experience than formal education, and encourage people from nontraditional backgrounds to apply.
Even though the News Reporter position is general assignment, the reporter will work with the News Director to develop a beat, or coverage area, that aligns with the reporter’s skills and interests as well as the goals and mission of KYUK.
The job averages 40 hours per week with some evening and weekend work. KYUK recognizes that we are humans and not journalism machines. If you work 45 hours one week, you should expect to work 35 hours the next week.
This position reports to the News Director.
About KYUK:
KYUK is an NPR-member public radio station, broadcasting in English and Yup’ik on KYUK-AM, KYUK-FM and online at KYUK.org. KYUK also operates a public television station.
In 2021, KYUK celebrated 50 years on the air. KYUK is the nation’s oldest Native-owned public radio station, serving approximately 22,000 predominantly Yup’ik listeners across the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. The region is home to 56 Alaska Native tribes and spans an area about the size of Illinois. The region is not connected to North America’s road system and is only accessible by plane or ship.
KYUK airs three daily, local newscasts in English and Yup’ik.
KYUK’s news pillars include subsistence hunting and fishing, climate change, natural resources, education, tribal issues, Yup’ik culture, local politics, criminal justice, health care, and sled dog racing.
KYUK’s newsroom consists of one News Director, two part-time Editors, two to three News Reporters, and one Website Copy Editor. We closely collaborate with colleagues in our Multimedia and Radio Programming departments.
KYUK partners with the Alaska Public Radio Network, sharing news content and collegial support with public radio stations across the state. We also collaborate on reporting with the state’s largest newspaper Anchorage Daily News. We have a history of special collaborations with national outlets such as the Washington Post.
KYUK stories air regularly on the statewide, daily news program Alaska News Nightly and frequently on NPR and National Native News.
KYUK has a decorated history. In the past five years, KYUK has received a National Edward R. Murrow Award, a National Associated Press Award, four Regional Murrow Awards, five Society of Professional Journalists awards and more than thirty Press Club Awards, including Best Comprehensive Coverage of the COVID-19 Pandemic out of all media outlets in Alaska.
To learn more about working at KYUK, read this Transom essay by former KYUK News Director Anna Rose MacArthur. Read this essay by former KYUK News Reporter Greg Kim. And read this article from KYUK about Anchorage Daily News reporter Lisa Demer and her time on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta.
Salary and Benefits:
Salary range: $54,000 to $65,000 annually
The News Reporter position is a salaried position with health care benefits, paid sick leave, and paid vacation leave. KYUK matches 5% of 403(b) retirement contributions.
KYUK observes 17 work holidays throughout the year, including Summer Solstice.
Moving assistance and short-term housing assistance provided.
Temporary Option:
KYUK is willing to entertain temporary options from 3- 12 months.
To Apply:
Send resume, cover letter, three references, and three work samples to KYUK News Director Sage Smiley (she/her) at sage@kyuk.org. Questions about the job posting or application requirements can also be directed to sage@kyuk.org.
The position is open until filled. First review of applications on May 31, 2024.