Press Freedom Program Coordinator

We’re on a mission to deliver riveting storytelling for all of America. At The Washington Post, you’ll help reinvent news. Our work is driven by a deep investigative spirit and enhanced by innovation to bring audiences closer to the stories that matter most.

The Washington Post is powered by the passion and talent of our people. It takes all of us to reinvent news. Beyond our award-winning Newsroom and Opinions teams, we work across many departments, including Brand & Events, Communications, Customer Care, Engineering & Product, Finance, Human Resources, Legal, Marketing & Advertising, Print Operations, and Sales.

Why This Role Matters

The Press Freedom Program Coordinator plays a critical role in helping build and scale The Press Freedom Desk at The Washington Post, an emerging initiative dedicated to advancing press freedom and supporting journalists worldwide. As the initiative grows, this role will serve as an operational backbone—keeping projects moving forward, anticipating challenges before they arise, identifying opportunities for greater impact, and ensuring that ideas translate into action. The ideal candidate is a highly adaptable self-starter who thrives in a fast-paced environment, learns quickly, takes initiative without waiting for direction, and can think several steps ahead to help shape and support a growing program.

What Motivates You

• You believe a free and independent press is essential to a healthy democracy and are inspired by efforts to support journalists and defend press freedom around the world.
• You are energized by helping build new programs and initiatives from the ground up, creating systems and processes that enable long-term impact.
• You enjoy turning ideas into action and take pride in keeping complex projects organized, moving forward, and delivering results.
• You are naturally curious, love learning new subjects quickly, and enjoy researching issues, identifying trends, and uncovering opportunities for growth.
• You are proactive by nature and often find yourself anticipating challenges, thinking several steps ahead, and solving problems before they arise.
• You thrive in dynamic environments where priorities evolve, and you can adapt quickly while maintaining a high level of organization and attention to detail.
• You enjoy collaborating with diverse stakeholders and building strong relationships across cultures, organizations, and perspectives.
• You find purpose in supporting meaningful work behind the scenes, knowing that strong coordination and execution can amplify impact and help advance important causes.

What You'll Do

• Coordinate and track multiple projects, ensuring milestones, deadlines, and deliverables are met.
• Develop and maintain project plans, timelines, and reporting systems.
• Conduct research to inform program strategy, partnerships, and future initiatives.
• Monitor emerging developments in the global press freedom landscape and identify opportunities, risks, and trends.
• Draft reports, briefing materials, presentations, and other communications for internal leadership and external stakeholders.
• Support the planning and execution of events, convenings, campaigns, and special initiatives.
• Maintain strong relationships with partners, grantees, program participants, and other stakeholders across diverse cultural and geographic contexts.
• Track program metrics and evaluate impact to support decision-making and continuous improvement.
• Anticipate operational needs, identify potential challenges, and proactively recommend solutions.
• Manage administrative functions, including scheduling, meeting coordination, documentation, and follow-up actions.
• Design and execute multimedia campaigns that raise awareness for urgent press freedom cases and drive public action.
• Contribute to growth and experimentation efforts by taking on ad hoc assignments that test new formats or storytelling channels.

The Skills and Experience You Bring

• 2+ years of experience in content strategy, marketing, program management or strategic communications—ideally in an advocacy, nonprofit, or mission-driven setting.
• Demonstrated ability to thrive in fast-paced, evolving environments with shifting priorities.
• Exceptional organizational and project management skills with strong attention to detail.
• Proven ability to work independently, take initiative, and manage projects with minimal supervision.
• Strong critical thinking and problem-solving skills, including the ability to anticipate needs and think strategically about future opportunities and challenges.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Experience conducting research, synthesizing information, and producing actionable insights.
• Proficiency with project management, collaboration, and data-tracking tools.
• Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to work effectively across cultures and with diverse stakeholders.
• Passion for journalism, press freedom, democracy, human rights, or related public-interest issues.

Learn more about The Post at careers.washingtonpost.com.