Media Cloud: Collections Curator

Description

The Media Cloud project is seeking a contract collections curator to help assess the state of our existing media collections and work towards improving the quality and reach of our data to support data-driven research about the role of online media in civic discourse. The curator will collaborate with the research and technology teams to understand the current coverage and health of the different collections and contribute to their improvement. They will assist in the identification of additional web-based news sources and data from different digital platforms, work to improve the presentation and use of existing collections, and collaborate with external partners. The position will be a 6-month part-time contract position based at the Center for Civic Media (at the MIT Media Lab). This is a grant-funded contract position that we hope to extend, or perhaps turn into a staff position.

Media Cloud is a joint project between the Center for Civic Media at MIT and the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University. We are an open source project producing research about the networked public sphere, and helping others do their own research about online media. We make available to the public our existing archive of more than 550 million stories, adding more than 40,000 new stories daily. The project is funded by grants from different foundations. We produce both the open platform and research that helps our funders make decisions about how best to influence online civic conversations about democracy, activism, and health.

We are a diverse project of researchers and technologists who love to wrestle with hard questions about online media by using a combination of social, computer, and data sciences. The ideal candidate will work well with all members of the team, from senior faculty to junior developers, and will thrive in an academic atmosphere that privileges constant questioning and validation at all levels of the platform and of our research products

Minimum Qualifications:

Research experience;

• familiarity with media ecosystems and journalism;
• experience working with databases and digital research tools;
• demonstrated ability to work with technical and research teams;
• good at considering issues from multiple perspectives
• able to work independently and as part of a team
• interest in working on issues related to democracy, gender, race, health, and globalization.

Duties:

• assess the current state of Media Cloud’s media collections and document key findings in a report;
• improve the overall health of our data sources;
• contribute to the ongoing identification of additional sources and collections;
• work with the Media Cloud team to facilitate the presentation of media collections to users;
• work with the technical team to improve data discovery and ingestion tools;
• assist in the identification of additional data from different media platforms;
• collaborate with partners and volunteers to improve the coverage of media collections.

Helpful Skills:

• experience working on big data systems and/or projects investigating online media;
• global outlook;
• passion for solving difficult data problems;
• multilingual.

We strongly encourage women, people of color, people of all ages, and people of any sexual identity to apply.
The job is based in Cambridge, MA, but much of our team is distributed around the world. We are open to alternative working arrangements that include part time residence in Cambridge. We imagine this position as a 3- or 4-day a week engagement over 5 to 6 months, but are open to other approaches.

Apply by sending a cover letter, resume, and portfolio to jobs@mediacloud.org.