Data Journalist, AI & Automation

Summary

ConsumerAffairs is seeking a Data Journalist specializing in AI and automation to create original, data-driven content for consumers. The role involves developing story ideas, researching and analyzing datasets, managing editorial production, and building AI-assisted workflows that improve the speed, accuracy, and scalability of data-driven content.

Responsibilities

• Help develop original, data-driven story ideas that are timely, relevant, and useful to consumers
• Research credible data sources and evaluate whether potential story ideas can be supported by reliable data
• Help develop clear, defensible methodologies for analyzing data and measuring the topics we cover
• Interpret datasets to identify meaningful trends, comparisons, outliers, and other findings that can shape the story
• Think critically about what the data does — and does not — support, including limitations that should be considered when presenting findings
• Identify opportunities to bring findings to life through charts, maps, tables, rankings, and other data visualizations
• Turn research and data findings into clear editorial direction, including story angles, outlines, key findings, and guidance for freelance writers
• Coordinate with data analysts and freelance writers throughout the production process, communicating expectations, answering questions, and keeping projects on track
• Review and QA analysts’ work for accuracy, including source data, calculations, formulas, methodologies, and final results
• Review writer drafts to ensure they follow the intended story structure and research direction and highlight the most important findings
• Manage multiple projects at different stages of production while meeting deadlines and keeping stakeholders informed
• Collaborate with editors, designers, Digital PR teammates, and other stakeholders to move projects from initial concept through publication
• Identify opportunities to use AI and automation to make research, data analysis, QA, and production workflows faster and more scalable
• Build, test, and improve AI-assisted or automated workflows for repetitive production tasks while maintaining human review and editorial standards
• Experiment with new tools and approaches that can improve the efficiency, accuracy, and consistency of data-driven projects
• Document successful workflows and help integrate them into the team’s production process
• Evaluate AI-generated outputs critically and independently validate data, calculations, sources, and findings before they are used in published work
• Stay curious about consumer trends, news, emerging datasets, and new approaches to data storytelling
• Consider how research findings can be framed and presented to resonate with both consumers and journalists
• Contribute ideas for improving our research, production processes, storytelling, and visual presentation
• Use performance results and team feedback to understand what makes data-driven content successful and apply those lessons to future projects

Skills

• Bachelor's degree in journalism, communications, data analytics, statistics, computer science, or a related field, or equivalent relevant experience
• 1-3 years of experience in journalism, content, research, data storytelling, data visualization, digital PR, or a related area. Internships, academic projects, freelance work, and relevant coursework are welcome
• Strong quantitative and statistical reasoning, including the ability to work confidently with percentages, rates, averages, distributions, rankings, changes over time, and other common forms of analysis
• Strong writing and communication skills, with the ability to explain data and complex ideas clearly and accurately
• Interest in researching and evaluating credible data sources, including government and other publicly available datasets; prior experience is a plus
• Detail-oriented and committed to accuracy, with the ability to question results that seem unusual or inconsistent
• Strong organizational skills and the ability to manage multiple projects, priorities, and deadlines
• Strong proficiency in Excel or Google Sheets, including formulas, filtering, sorting, lookups, conditional logic, pivot tables, and working with larger datasets
• Working knowledge of basic statistical analysis and an understanding of how to choose appropriate ways to analyze and compare data
• Ability to inspect, clean, transform, and validate datasets from multiple sources
• Comfortable using APIs
• Ability to use AI tools thoughtfully for research, coding, analysis, ideation, and production while independently validating outputs and maintaining editorial standards
• Experience with tools such as ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Zapier, n8n, or similar platforms
• Experience with Datawrapper, Flourish, Tableau, Infogram, or similar platforms
• Familiarity with AP Style and digital publishing

Qualifications

Must Haves

• Bachelor's degree in journalism, communications, data analytics, statistics, computer science, or a related field, or equivalent relevant experience
• 1-3 years of experience in journalism, content, research, data storytelling, data visualization, digital PR, or a related area. Internships, academic projects, freelance work, and relevant coursework are welcome
• Strong quantitative and statistical reasoning, including the ability to work confidently with percentages, rates, averages, distributions, rankings, changes over time, and other common forms of analysis
• Strong writing and communication skills, with the ability to explain data and complex ideas clearly and accurately
• Interest in researching and evaluating credible data sources, including government and other publicly available datasets; prior experience is a plus
• Detail-oriented and committed to accuracy, with the ability to question results that seem unusual or inconsistent
• Strong organizational skills and the ability to manage multiple projects, priorities, and deadlines
• Strong proficiency in Excel or Google Sheets, including formulas, filtering, sorting, lookups, conditional logic, pivot tables, and working with larger datasets
• Working knowledge of basic statistical analysis and an understanding of how to choose appropriate ways to analyze and compare data
• Ability to inspect, clean, transform, and validate datasets from multiple sources
• Comfortable using APIs
• Ability to use AI tools thoughtfully for research, coding, analysis, ideation, and production while independently validating outputs and maintaining editorial standards

Nice to Haves

• Experience with tools such as ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Zapier, n8n, or similar platforms
• experience with Datawrapper, Flourish, Tableau, Infogram, or similar platforms
• Familiarity with AP Style and digital publishing

Benefits

• Remote work arrangement
• Work-life harmony
• Career development
• Health Care Plan (Medical, Dental & Vision)
• Retirement Plan (401k)
• Life Insurance (Basic, Voluntary & AD&D)
• Paid Time Off (Vacation, Sick & Public Holidays)
• Family Leave (Maternity, Paternity)
• Short Term & Long Term Disability
• Training & Development