Program Description:
Legal Services NYC (LSNYC) fights poverty and seeks racial, social, and economic justice for lowincome New Yorkers. For more than 50 years, we have challenged systemic injustices that keep people in poverty and provided legal services that help our clients meet basic needs for housing, income, economic security, family and immigration stability, education, and health care. Our work fights discrimination and helps to achieve equity for low-income New Yorkers. With a workforce of nearly 700 people, we are the country’s largest civil legal services organization serving nearly 110,000 individuals yearly. LSNYC partners with scores of community-based and member-run organizations, elected officials, law schools, public agencies, pro bono lawyers, and the courts to maximize our effectiveness and regularly uses media as an advocacy tool to help clients and spotlight injustices.
Responsibilities:
- Serving as media point person for the organization, fielding incoming press calls and collaboratively crafting thoughtful and timely responses;
- Drafting and disseminating timely and compelling press materials, including media advisories, press releases, media availabilities, op-eds, statements, talking points, letters to the editor, etc.;
- Drafting proactive media pitches to reporters about the organization’s work, including new cases, settlements, client and staff voices, policy trends and patterns, and a host of other issues impacting low-income New Yorkers;
- Positioning staff members as issue area experts, tracking headlines and news cycles to promote LSNYC spokespeople, cultivating and maintaining relationships with key reporters;
- Media prepping staff and clients, drafting talking points, and attending press conferences as available to connect press to staff members for comment;
- Adopting LSNYC’s client-centered approach to legal services work, including empowering, supporting, and respecting client participation in media relations work;
- Participating in coalition and campaign communications work, joining coalition calls and contributing media ideas, and work as a spokesperson for LSNYC;
- Helping shape and build LSNYC’s press lists, including creating unit-specific distribution lists;
- Tracking media coverage, researching media, generating reports, and regularly updating/maintaining our database of media contacts;
- Collaborating on and implementing LSNYC strategic communications plans;
- Collaborating with other departments to provide communications support as needed, including central and borough offices, fundraising and development, HR, etc.; and
- Performing other duties and projects as assigned by the Communications Director.
Qualifications:
- At least 5+ years of press and communications experience, including pitching and responding to reporters, drafting compelling press materials, and successfully securing media placements;
- Working knowledge of New York City media market, reporters, and media outlets;
- Excellent writing and verbal communications skills, including the ability to distill and translate complex legal and policy issues into relatable themes for media;
- Strong interpersonal, diplomacy, and communication skills and the ability to work collaboratively, effectively, and sensitively with people of diverse professional and cultural backgrounds;
- Strong organizational, planning, project management skills and attention to detail, with consistent follow-through and ability to juggle multiple priorities under deadline;
- Entrepreneurial spirit and self-starter a must, including persistence and consistent follow-up on requests and projects to achieve goals;
- Passion for supporting and promoting racial, economic, or social justice movements/campaigns and working with diverse NYC communities;
- Flexibility, creativity, initiative, and a good sense of humor.
How to Apply:
Interested individuals should email a resume and cover letter to
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.
Please write “Communications Officer - Press Secretary” in the subject line.
Only candidates selected for interviews will be contacted. No telephone calls.
Legal Services NYC offers an excellent benefits package and a highly competitive public interest salary. Benefits include health, dental, and vision plans; contributions to a 403(b) plan; and generous leave time. Salary is commensurate with experience.
All employees are strongly encouraged to continue to receive and maintain up-to-date COVID vaccinations unless they are unable to for medical or religious reasons.
Legal Services NYC is an equal opportunity employer: people of color; women; people with disabilities; gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people; and people over the age of 40 are welcome and encouraged to apply. We are committed to race, gender, and economic justice in our work and within our workplace. Staff members who are not managers are members of the LSSA/NOLSW UAW Local 2320.
LSNYC acknowledges that applicants from groups that have been historically marginalized are less likely to apply for positions unless they feel that they meet 100% of a job description’s qualifications. We understand that the ideal candidate might not completely meet the criteria listed above or be equally proficient in each area; we especially encourage applicants who are impacted by LSNYC’s work to submit their application anyway.
Salary Range (Based on years’ experience):
- 1-10 years: $62,805 - $85,108
- 11-20 years: $87,256 - $104,721
- 21+ years: $109,961 - $120,073