Agricultural Policy Editor Job at ILLINOIS PRESS ASSOCIATION in Springfield

At Illinois Farm Bureau, the Agricultural Policy Editor develops and writes news and feature stories for FarmWeek, FarmWeekNow.com, and other Illinois Farm Bureau communication platforms regarding federal policy and its impact on Illinois agriculture and rural communities, policy-related agricultural economic/financial issues, and Farm Bureau policy development and implementation.

Coverage subjects include but are not limited to federal agriculture regulations, energy policies, trade issues, and transportation/infrastructure issues.

Responsibilities:

• Researches and writes ag-related stories which provide analysis and interpretation of federal legislative action and its impact on Illinois agriculture.
• Serves as the primary Content & Publications contact on federal policy with federal legislators, federal government department and agency officials, farm industry officials, and Illinois Farm Bureau Governmental Affairs & Commodities Division specialists.
• Regularly contributes social media posts, images, and feature stories and Partners magazine story ideas on policy-related issues.
• Collaborates with other division members and supports RFD Radio Network and FarmWeekNow.com by providing written, audio, video, and image content on a regular and consistent basis.
• Assists weekly with graphic layout of FarmWeek pages.
• Performs other related work as required or requested.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Familiar with InDesign and Photoshop and working knowledge of social media posting style.
• Self-starter able to juggle multiple assignments.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in communication-related field.
• Three or more years of journalism or agriculture writing experience.
• Basic understanding of production agriculture.
• Knowledge of federal agriculture policy.
• Strong knowledge of AP Style.
• Able to generate news and feature stories.
• Basic photography and computer word processing skills.
• Able to function effectively under deadline pressure.
• Cultivating credible sources of information.
• Comfortable working in a team atmosphere.

Illinois Farm Bureau does not generally sponsor individuals for employment-based visas for this position.