About The Organization
The Sentinel by Yuvoice is a global media nonprofit (501(c)(3)) and the beating heart of citizen journalism. We publish award-winning stories from real people worldwide, breaking news, community stories, mental health journeys, career truths, and fiction and poetry that reflect the world we live in. Our mission is clear: to surface truth with care, center lived experience, and mobilize communities toward practical change, so readers don't just know more, they can do more. We believe that journalism isn't the exclusive domain of large newsrooms. Stories live in every neighborhood, in every language, in every community. We exist to surface them.
Toward this mission, we are building a global network of 1,000+ volunteer citizen journalists who report from communities around the world, and we are looking for passionate, ethical, and curious individuals to join us.
Position Summary
The Director of Regional Journalism is a senior volunteer editorial leadership role responsible for the quality, accuracy, consistency, and publication of journalism produced within one of The Sentinel’s 10 geographic regions. This is the primary editorial authority for the region — the person accountable for what gets published, how it is edited, and whether it meets the standards of public-interest journalism.
This role leads a regional editorial team comprising volunteer citizen journalists (CJs) and staff editors/writers, working in close collaboration with the Regional Press Corps Director who manages the volunteer community. The Director of Regional Journalism reports to The Sentinel’s Deputy Chief Journalist and holds accountability for editorial output across a region comprising 50–200 active contributors.
This is an editorial role first: The Director of Regional Journalism is a hands-on journalism leader who reads, edits, develops, and champions stories. If you are energised by great writing, rigorous reporting, and the act of publication — this role is for you.
Key Responsibilities
Editorial Leadership & Story Development
• Uphold the editorial standards, tone, and voice of The Sentinel’s regional journalism, ensuring all published content meets the organisation’s accuracy, fairness, and ethics policies.
• Commission, assign, and develop stories in collaboration with regional citizen journalists and community editors, maintaining an active regional editorial calendar aligned with The Sentinel’s thematic priorities.
• Edit and line-edit submitted work to a publishable standard, providing constructive, developmental feedback that strengthens both the individual story and the contributor’s journalistic skills.
• Make final publication decisions for all content originating from the region, ensuring every story published under The Sentinel’s banner is accurate, well-sourced, appropriately contextualised, and editorially independent.
• Identify and develop the highest-potential investigative and enterprise story ideas emerging from the region, working with contributors to turn strong pitches into compelling, well-reported journalism.
• Oversee all fact-checking and verification processes for regional content, maintaining a zero-tolerance standard for factual error and a swift, transparent corrections process when errors occur.
Team Editorial Management
• Lead and develop a distributed team of volunteer editors/writers and citizen journalists across the region, providing regular editorial guidance, feedback sessions, and skills coaching.
• Conduct regular editorial meetings with regional community editors and senior contributors to review the pipeline, discuss story development, and align on coverage priorities.
• Identify contributors with strong journalistic potential and create structured development pathways, including mentorship, editorial coaching, and increasing editorial responsibility over time.
• Collaborate with the Regional Press Corps Director to ensure the volunteer community is well-matched to editorial needs, and that contributors at risk of disengagement receive appropriate support and motivation.
• Model the editorial values of The Sentinel in all team interactions: curiosity, rigour, independence, accuracy, and genuine respect for every contributor’s voice and community.
Breaking News & Coverage Coordination
• Serve as the primary editorial decision-maker during breaking news events within the region, rapidly assessing coverage priorities and directing the deployment of available contributors.
• Escalate breaking situations to The Sentinel’s Chief Journalist and Deputy Chief Journalist as needed, coordinating with the Regional Press Corps Director to mobilise contributors across affected areas.
• Coordinate shared bylines and cross-regional editorial collaborations with other Directors of Regional Journalism when stories span multiple territories.
• Maintain an up-to-date understanding of the press freedom landscape, legal environment, and safety risks facing journalists within each sub-region, and ensure contributors are adequately briefed and protected.
Editorial Standards & Ethics
• Champion the editorial independence, journalistic ethics, and mission integrity of The Sentinel within the region; model these standards publicly and in all editorial interactions.
• Ensure all regional contributors are familiar with and adhere to The Sentinel’s editorial guidelines, corrections policy, source protection practices, and conflict-of-interest standards.
• Address editorial complaints, factual disputes, and ethics concerns promptly, transparently, and in accordance with The Sentinel’s editorial standards framework.
• Proactively identify editorial risks — including misinformation, legal exposure, source reliability concerns, and conflicts of interest — and escalate where appropriate.
Editorial Reporting & Performance
• Monitor and report on regional editorial KPIs to The Sentinel’s Journalism leadership team, including: volume of published stories, publication rate from submissions, editorial revision cycles, story accuracy metrics, and coverage gap analysis.
• Provide periodic written editorial assessments to SPC Leadership covering regional story quality, coverage priorities, emerging editorial risks, and contributor development.
• Contribute to organisation-wide editorial planning, editorial standards reviews, and special journalism initiatives as requested by The Sentinel’s senior editorial team.
Time Commitment
The Director of Regional Journalism is a significant volunteer commitment requiring genuine editorial investment. We estimate an average of 10–12 hours per week, with higher demand during active news cycles, editorial campaign periods, and contributor onboarding. Directors are expected to be responsive within 24 hours during active news cycles and available for weekly calls with The Sentinel’s Journalism Leadership Team.
Required Qualifications
• Minimum 5 years of professional experience as a journalist, editor, or newsroom manager at a credible news organisation — nonprofit, digital, print, or broadcast.
• Demonstrated editorial leadership: proven ability to commission, edit, develop, and publish journalism to a consistently high standard.
• Hands-on line-editing experience and the ability to provide detailed, constructive developmental feedback to writers at varying skill levels.
• Strong personal commitment to journalistic ethics, press freedom, editorial independence, and the right of every community to access credible information.
• Ability to make sound, timely editorial judgments under pressure, including during breaking news situations where speed and accuracy must be held in balance.
• Experience managing or mentoring distributed teams of journalists, editors, or contributors — preferably across multiple countries or time zones.
• Reliable access to high-speed internet, video conferencing, and digital communication platforms (Slack, Signal, or equivalent).
• Fluency in at least one primary language of the assigned region; bilingual or multilingual capability strongly preferred (all final published content is in English).
Preferred Qualifications
• Prior editorial leadership experience at a nonprofit news organisation, digital-native publication, or international journalism network.
• Experience leading editorial teams in regions with significant press freedom challenges, including contributor safety protocols and legal risk management.
• Deep professional network within the journalism, media, or civil society ecosystem of the assigned region.
• Familiarity with content management systems (CMS), editorial workflow tools, and collaborative editing platforms.
• Formal training or education in journalism, communications, or a related field.
• Experience in fact-checking, verification methodology, and misinformation detection, particularly in multilingual or low-resource media environments.
• Track record of developing early-career or citizen journalists into skilled, independent reporters.
Career Path & Professional Value
The Director of Regional Journalism is the most senior regional editorial role on the Journalism Team. Exceptional Directors may be considered for advisory, program leadership, or editorial consultant roles as The Sentinel scales. This position also offers significant professional and reputational value, providing nationally and internationally recognised credentials as a leader in independent, public-interest journalism.