Join The Newsroom
The Beacon is consistently heralded as one of the top student news organizations in the country, with our focus on editorial excellence and newsroom innovation. Through daily publication of content online, a weekly print newspaper, a semesterly magazine, and other forms of multimedia distribution, The Beacon is the leading source for Emerson-centric news.
We reach more readers in print and online than any other media organization on campus. Our website reach alone averages 30,000 views every month with over 200,000 yearly visitors. Our stories have been picked up by The Washington Post, CNN, The New York Times, ESPN, BBC, and other prominent titles. Our live blog for Emerson’s pro-Palestinian encampment during the Spring 2024 semester generated more than 10,400 page views and was the most cited story about the event on Google.
Working at The Beacon will give you access to a real-world journalism laboratory that will translate to the lessons and ideas exposed in the classroom. On any given day, hundreds or thousands of people could read a story published by a Beacon reporter. Given our position in the heart of Boston, our reporters, editors, photographers, and broader storytellers have a front-row seat to some of the region’s biggest events.
In our inclusive, collaborative newsroom environment you will learn to write, edit, and produce content for varying forms of media. You’ll have access to cutting-edge products and technologies designed for the newsroom of tomorrow. You will also be a part of a passionate team of dedicated individuals who will help you grow as a journalist.
Get involved
How can you contribute?
The Beacon holds general meetings every Monday at 7 p.m. where we send out story assignments and review our weekly paper. The meeting room is subject to change every semester. Members can pick up story or photo assignments from section editors at these meetings. Contributors are welcome to pitch ideas to section editors and the editor-in-chief.
The Beacon uses Slack and email as its main means of communication. Section editors also send story/photo assignments and review pitches via Slack and email.
No applications are necessary to contribute.
Production night
In addition to our general meetings on Mondays, which typically last for at least an hour, The Beacon has production night on Wednesdays at 6 p.m. onward (until The Beacon’s physical edition is sent to the print).
Assistant and section editors are expected to attend every general meeting on Mondays and production nights on Wednesdays. Members who contribute to the weekly paper—reporters, photographers, print designers, copyeditors—may attend production night.
Positions offered at The Beacon:
Correspondents
(No application necessary—all new writers start with this position)
Staff Writer
(Application necessary; Correspondents can be promoted to this position after writing five articles for The Beacon)
Photographer
(No application necessary)
Editor
(Assistant, Section, Managing, Social Media, Copyediting, Photo, Reels, Illustration/Graphics, Layout, Website/Audience Development; Application necessary)
Business Operations
(Application necessary)
Editor-in-Chief
(Letter nominations from staff necessary)
Non-tuition credit
Students who contribute at least 5 stories or articles or are on the masthead can earn one non-tuition credit per semester.
Register for JR-346 (The Berkeley Beacon) to be eligible to receive credit. After registering, you will be added to a Canvas course by The Beacon’s advisor.
APPLY
Staff applications for the Spring 2025 semester are now closed.
If you want to contribute to the paper, undergrad and graduate students can join anytime as a Beacon Coresspondent and work up to a staff position. Read more about this under the Get Involved section of this page.
For any questions about positions at The Beacon, email [email protected].