Program Officer, Institutional Grants

We’re hiring a Program Officer for Institutional Grants, the program that funds outlets directly to build lasting AI reporting capacity. We launched it in 2026, and it is on track to become Tarbell’s largest program. Our vision is that it enables every major newsroom globally to have an expert AI team.

Most funders of AI reporting are either specialists in AI who fund journalism occasionally, or specialists in journalism who fund AI coverage occasionally. We want to be the funder that knows both, and the people making our grants are what make that possible.

We take a portfolio approach. Our grants range from $50,000 seed grants for founders developing a new outlet to multi‑year grants of $1M+ to establish a whole AI desk, and cover investigative units, new verticals and formats, limited series, and grants that help existing journalism reach further. We fund both established newsrooms and independent media: newsletters, podcasts and video shows run by individual journalists or small teams.

We expect some grants to have far more impact than others, and we want to learn quickly which ones.

You’ll help Tarbell distribute more than $10M by the end of 2027. You’ll report to the Program Director, Grants, and be one of the first grantmakers on the team, with real ownership over which opportunities we pursue, what we recommend funding, and how the program is built.

• Evaluate funding opportunities. For each prospective grant you’ll assess the team’s track record and capacity to deliver, interrogate the budget and staffing plan, and form a view on the counterfactual: would this journalism happen anyway, and at this quality? You’ll recommend a funding level and grant type, not just a yes or no, and make the strongest case against your own recommendation.
• Active grantmaking. You’ll identify the most important AI journalism projects that need to exist, and make them happen. That means mapping where coverage falls short against our priority areas, scoping projects, and sourcing them through a mix of open calls, targeted calls on a single priority area, invited proposals from select outlets, and direct outreach to editors and founders.
• Manage live grants. You’ll own relationships with grantees after a grant is made: check‑ins, problem‑solving when a project slips, and an honest assessment at renewal.
• Shape the program. You’ll help design how we evaluate grants of very different sizes, including a faster process for small and time‑sensitive grants, and contribute to regular reviews of our priority areas, proposing what we should add, change or drop. You’ll work closely with the Program Manager, Reporting Grants who will lead on awarding funding for specific stories so the two programs complement each other.
• Grow the team. As the team grows, you’ll begin managing a Program Associate. “Hire the best, then invest” is a core operating value at Tarbell, and there is a route from this role to lead the entire Institutional Grants program for strong performers.
• Help build Tarbell. As a small team, we all step in where we’re needed. You’ll occasionally take on work outside this description, and we’ll make sure it helps you grow.

• You’ve written funding recommendations on at least four opportunities, and at least two grants have been made on the strength of your work.
• You’ve sourced at least one opportunity proactively, by identifying a gap in coverage and finding the outlet or journalists to fill it.
• You’ve helped the Program Director identify the specializations the team may need as it grows, for example institutional versus independent media, or particular geographies.

We’re most interested in people with a journalism…