Managing Editor, Legal Coverage

The Bulwark

$130,000 - $155,000 / year

Washington, DCFull-timeOn-siteIntermediate

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Description

In just a few years, The Bulwark has grown into a profitable, audience-supported business with more than one million subscribers across newsletters, podcasts, video, live events, and memberships. We’ve done it by trusting our audience with sharp, honest coverage of the forces shaping American democracy, and they’ve rewarded us by showing up every day.

Now we’re expanding that coverage where it matters most. The fights over the rule of law, the independence of the courts, and accountability for those in power are some of the defining stories of this era, and we’re investing in a dedicated team to cover them across writing, newsletters, and video. That’s where you come in.

Key Responsibilities

The Bulwark is hiring a Managing Editor, Legal Coverage, to manage our written and video coverage of the U.S. federal law, courts, and justice system. Reporting to the Managing Editor, you will guide the editorial direction for our legal coverage and run it day to day, working with our editorial team and our video production team.

In this role, you will commission and edit articles and newsletters with help and guidance from The Bulwark editors, oversee our law-related video programming, and manage a team that includes producers, reporters, and contributors. You will work closely with Bulwark leadership on strategy and with our growth, audience, and operations teams on reach and revenue.

This role is for an editor who wants to lead and expand something ambitious, not maintain the status quo.

What You'll Do:
Editorial leadership

Oversee The Bulwark’s coverage of the most important legal issues facing our democracy, including issues related to the rule of law and accountability.
Help translate legal developments for a smart, engaged, and curious lay audience.
Apply The Bulwark's established style to legal coverage, building on legal analyses and commentary we already publish.
Decide where coverage should go deeper, and make daily coverage calls.
Own the publishing calendar for legal coverage across newsletters, articles, and video.

Articles and newsletters

Edit drafts from the staff writing team and contributors, from fast-turn analyses of breaking news to deeper reporting.
Assign stories, identify and work with outside contributors, and hold copy to high standards for accuracy, clarity, fairness, and liveliness.
Follow and help refine The Bulwark’s editing, legal review, and fact-checking process.

Shows

Guide the editorial direction of our legal shows by offering ideas for topics, guests, and segment ideas, ensuring each program has a distinct voice, and coordinating across shows.
Partner with the Head of Shows and Head of Video, who lead production, scheduling, and standards.
Work with show producers and hosts to coordinate shows with the legal writing team’s written coverage.
Help identify moments that can travel as short-form clips on YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and other platforms.

Skills, Knowledge and Expertise

8+ years in journalism, with significant experience editing coverage of law, the courts, or the justice system.
A strong, hands-on line/copy editor who can sharpen an argument, tighten copy, and turn around clean edits on deadline.
Experience managing people, ideally a mixed team of writers and producers.
Fluent in how video and podcasts work today: you know what makes a show grow on YouTube and how clips travel on social media.
A collaborator who can share ownership of shows with network-wide video and production leads.
Sharp news judgement and the ability to explain complex legal developments to a general audience without dumbing them down.
A track record of growing an audience for a newsletter, show, or section.
Comfortable with ambiguity and building process as the team grows.
Aligned with The Bulwark’s commitment to democracy and the rule of law.

Benefits

We want people at The Bulwark to thrive. We provide:

Competitive pay
Full employer-sponsored health plans
401(k) plan with employer match
Generous vacation and paid time off
Commuter benefits and Employee Assistance Program

Our team works together in person five days a week at our DC office. We’re mission-driven, collaborative, and direct — and we value people who bring ideas and energy to the table.

Interested? We’d love to hear from you. Please submit your resume and a short cover note about your interest in The Bulwark and what you’d be excited to contribute.

Benefits

We want people at The Bulwark to thrive. We provide: Competitive pay Full employer-sponsored health plans 401(k) plan with employer match Generous vacation and paid time off Commuter benefits and Employee Assistance Program Our team works together in person five days a week at our DC office. We’re mission-driven, collaborative, and direct — and we value people who bring ideas and energy to the table. Interested? We’d love to hear from you. Please submit your resume and a short cover note about your interest in The Bulwark and what you’d be excited to contribute.

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About this role

The Bulwark is building out a dedicated legal coverage operation and seeking an editor to lead it. You'd manage written and video content on federal law, courts, and the justice system—commissioning and editing articles and newsletters, guiding the editorial direction of legal shows, and overseeing a team of reporters, producers, and contributors. This is a leadership role with real scope: you'll own the publishing calendar, make daily coverage calls, work with Bulwark leadership on strategy, and coordinate across the organization's editorial, video, and growth teams. The job requires translating complex legal developments for a general audience without oversimplifying, and finding moments that work as both long-form pieces and short-form clips for social platforms.

You should have at least eight years of journalism experience with substantial work editing law, courts, or justice coverage. Strong line-editing skills are essential—you need to sharpen arguments and turn clean copy on deadline. You'll need to have managed people before, ideally a mixed team, and you should understand how video and podcasts drive audience growth today. Sharp news judgment, comfort with ambiguity, and a track record of growing audience for a newsletter or section matter. The role is full-time, in-office five days a week in Washington, DC, with a salary range of $130,000 to $155,000 and standard benefits including health plans, 401(k) match, and generous time off.

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Pay for this role

$130,000 to $155,000 per year

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