Pitches wanted (impact of COVID-19, Oregon) | up to ~58 cents per word

COMPANY/PUBLICATION: UNDERSCORE

Underscore is still looking for pitches about COVID-19’s impact on Oregon’s Indian Country. Send to pitches@underscore.news.

We're generally paying a per-story rate, which often depends on the funding pool. Short-term stories, for example, are usually $700 for what's usually a 1,200 to 1,800-word story. Bigger stories pay more.

CALL FOR PITCHES: SUBMIT YOUR STORY IDEA

Underscore Media Collaboration is looking for stories about Oregon’s Indian Country. Do you have a pitch you’d like to submit? Here’s how:

Who we are: Underscore is a Portland-based nonprofit news organization dedicated to covering important issues and stories traditional newsrooms don’t pursue. We fund stories and place them with partner organizations, including ProPublica, The Oregonian, High Country News, and Indian Country Today. We have a particular interest in covering Oregon’s Native American communities. We’re currently looking for stories about COVID-19 in Indian Country.

What we’re looking for: Short-term and long-term enterprise stories as well as in-depth and investigative pieces about Native American issues in Oregon. For example: Christen McCurdy investigated the federal government’s failure to ensure potable water on the Warm Springs reservation. Brian Bull wrote about how important the Census is to tribal governments, and how COVID-19 is hurting efforts to ensure a full count. David G. Lewis wrote about the history of pandemics in Native communities. While Indian Country remains our primary areas of focus, we fund stories on a range of topics. We’re particularly interested in stories that expose inequity, like this recent collaboration with ProPublica. If you’re a writer with a pitch, or a photographer with a story idea and you’d like to be paired with a reporter, contact us. We pay for all the stories and photos we publish.

How to pitch: First, check out our website underscore.news and make sure we haven’t already written about your subject. We’re interested in original stories not covered by other media outlets. Send your pitch to pitches@underscore.news. Pitches with clearly identified characters, sources and news pegs are given preference. Stories with clear photo opportunities are also preferred. Feel free to suggest a headline and subhead.

CONTACT INFORMATION:

• Questions / submissions: pitches@underscore.news
• Website: https://www.underscore.news

TO HELP YOU CRAFT YOUR PITCH:

• Learn more about the publication: Underscore supports investigative reporting in Oregon and beyond. It encourages and aims to produce impactful, revelatory stories that might otherwise go unreported and unheard, with a special focus on Indian Country and other marginalized areas. More information here.
• Read through a selection of recent coronavirus-related articles/stories here.
• Review the submission guidelines here.
• Check out our collection of pitch excerpts on this page and find more sample pitches at The Open Notebook Database and at SuccessfulPitches.com.