Extreme Talent Wanted

Are you a young or aspiring journalist interest in new media? If so, you should definitely consider applying for the new Atlantic Media Fellowship:

Our Atlantic Media Fellowship Program — Selecting 5-10 Fellows

Atlantic Media is now seeking 5-10 exceptional or aspiring writers, editors and other online media talents to serve as Atlantic Media Fellows for the Fall of 2008 through the Spring of 2009. Candidates should be current students in or recent graduates of college or graduate school programs.

Atlantic Media Fellows join the staff of Atlantic Media — helping launch, research, write and edit new websites. Fellows are paid $30,000-$40,000 (depending on experience) for the nine-month appointment.

Fellows are expected to begin their service at Atlantic Media in September 2008 and continue through May 2009. There is some prospect, but no certainty, that Fellows may be offered employment with Atlantic Media following the fellowship.

Fellowship Focus for 2008-2009 — Creating and Launching New Websites

The larger focus for our 2008-2009 Fellows will be creating and launching new websites for Atlantic Media. Fellows will help conceive new web concepts, develop their structure, design and voice, and complete the daily operations, writing and editing once the publications are launched. This is website creation from first to last.

Our offices also feature a popcorn machine, which is pretty neat.

Comments

our offices feature a cappuccino machine and a light hot chocolate dispenser as well as the ubiquitous drip coffee pot. Sometimes, we have (leftover) cake too.

You may need to offer more... maybe a movie-theatre style "hot butter" dispenser.

Posted by mike c | April 2, 2008 12:24 PM

$30-$40K is not enough remuneration to offset the possibility of Andrew Sullivan continually refering to you by a creepy nickname for the rest of your professional life. (See: "Ambers").

Posted by SoCalJustice | April 2, 2008 12:30 PM

$30/40k....come on that's povery level.

Posted by Bradyn | April 2, 2008 12:33 PM

This could be a great opportunity to diversify the Atlantic staff beyond white Ivy League grads. You could hire a fellow from a historically black college, another with a degree from a private Catholic university, another from state university grad from flyover country, another from a southern military college, etc. Something tells me the Atlantic's idea of diversity is adding a Dartmouth grad.

Posted by Fred | April 2, 2008 12:41 PM

Do you recite an oath promising to oppose universal healthcare to start working for The Atlantic, or do you write the oath in blood?

Posted by Petey | April 2, 2008 12:50 PM

Do you recite an oath promising to oppose universal healthcare to start working for The Atlantic, or do you write the oath in blood?

As you know perfectly well, Petey, I don't oppose universal health care. I wish you would stop saying that I did when you know it's not true. I oppose Hillary Clinton's quest for the Democratic nomination.

Posted by Matthew Yglesias | April 2, 2008 12:52 PM

First of all, $30-$40k isn't poverty level, it's what mid-career professional make in a lot of media jobs. Second, this isn't actually a job -- it's a 9-month fellowship for students or recent graduates. It's an internship, basically. $30-$40k is incredibly good pay for that kind of thing.

Posted by too many steves | April 2, 2008 1:08 PM

"This could be a great opportunity to diversify the Atlantic staff beyond white Ivy League grads."

Good idea. But given that most other students are likely to be graduating with $$ in student loans and no rich parents to subsidize the rent, $30k is not going to cut it.

Posted by CParis | April 2, 2008 1:10 PM

$30/40k....I resemble that remark.

Posted by judson | April 2, 2008 1:11 PM

Maybe you can hire someone with good editorial skills. Like, perhaps they could check sentences such as the first one in this entry for you. ;) Irony!

Posted by Slothrop | April 2, 2008 1:17 PM

The bar I go to has a popcorn machine- it is neat, and they have beer there, too.

Posted by chad | April 2, 2008 1:30 PM

"As you know perfectly well, Petey, I don't oppose universal health care. I wish you would stop saying that I did when you know it's not true. I oppose Hillary Clinton's quest for the Democratic nomination."

As you know perfectly well, Matthew, the majority lead in Democratic popular votes that Clinton holds over Obama in the contests to date gets reliably separated out as universal healthcare voters, not the "racists" voters meme you try so sleazily to slime the Clinton campaign with.

As you know perfectly well, Matthew, universal healthcare has been the prime voting issue for Democratic primary voters this year in state after state, and this fact doesn't seem to stand in the way of your lying about it. And hey - it's working - you got mentioned on GE yesterday for your sleazy lies. GE loooooves folks who'll bash universal healthcare and bash candidates espousing UHC.

And being a trust-fund scumbag, the issue obviously isn't one which will ever personally effect you. So you feel free to keep calling Clinton supporters racists, when as you know perfectly well, Matthew, that it's just a bunch of voters who are concerned about their families health and finances.

And since daddy's got your back and these issues won't trouble you personally, and also since you're missing some piece of the moral framework that prevents normal folk from going down these paths, you get to glory and laugh about telling voters seeking healthcare that they're really racists. Such fun. Nothing but a fun, fun game for trust-fund scumbags.

Posted by Petey | April 2, 2008 1:43 PM

Who knew that racism tracks with support for universal health care, at least among Democratic primary voters? See, who says Petey's not contributing to the discussion anymore?

Posted by too many steves | April 2, 2008 1:51 PM

I find it mildly humorous that Petey gets all riled up at being called a racist. I mean, as a conservative, I guess I'm just inured to Matthew calling me a racist - after all, Matthew's got about 73 decks of race cards that he's played over the years (and the Obama team seems to drop another race card about every other hour). But it's kinda funny to see a geniune progressive get all p*ssed off at being called a bigot.

Posted by Al | April 2, 2008 1:59 PM

Paid internships. Fantastic. Congratulations to the Atlantic.

Posted by Ikram | April 2, 2008 2:04 PM

Petey,

What's the problem?

Anyone who doesn't have health care should just get a job at a hedge-fund like John Edwards and Chelsea Clinton did.

Here's John Edwards':

http://www.fortressinv.com/

The Fortress Investment Group, LLC. (Got to love a trail lawyer who works for a Limited Liability company! Now that's funny!)

Maybe they're hiring. I know they did some very exciting stuff with subprime lending. Know anything about that?

Well, if that doesn't work out try Chelsea Clinton's.

They're at:

http://www.avenuecapital.com/

The Avenue Capital Group. They have twelve billion to play with and I'm sure you'll be excited to learn all their children have trust funds beyond your wildest imaginings!

Good luck, dude! Who wouldn't some one as angry and gullible as you?

Well, I'm now to swoon for the one Democratic candidate whose family managed not to work for a giant hedgefund just prior to running as a make-believe progressive. Go Obama!

Posted by Pete Fanclub | April 2, 2008 2:43 PM

Petey -- here's the issue. I favor universal health care. And yet, you keep writing that I oppose universal health care. But I don't oppose universal health care! So I'd appreciate it if you would stop saying that I do oppose universal health get.

Get it? You favor universal health care. I also favor universal health care. So it would be nice of you to stop saying I oppose it.

Posted by Matthew Yglesias | April 2, 2008 2:43 PM

Not sure why it should be necessary for an opponent of universal health care to have to clarify the issue between Petey and Matthew Yglesias, but here it is:

Petey thinks that to have UHC you need mandates. He says Hillary has supported these, and Obama hasn't. Therefore, Petey thinks Obama doesn't support UHC. Further, since Yglesias supports Obama, Petey thinks Yglesias doesn't support UHC.

Posted by Fred | April 2, 2008 2:49 PM

Right, but somehow I doubt Matthew's mere statement that he supports UHC will cause Petey to believe that Matthew actually does support it when Petey thinks that Matthew is supporting the candidate who opposes UHC. When you call someone a racist, they often no longer will give you the benefit of the doubt.

I will say one thing, though. I was way, WAY wrong when I said a month or so ago that I didn't think the continuation of the Obama-Clinton race would ultimately hurt the Democratic Party (I argued that the free media the Democrats would continue to get would be a big positive, outwieghing the negatives). But watching the Matthew-Petey dynamic has really been instructive in showing how bitter the race has become, and how upset the Clinton supporters are at the Obama side's tactics. When Obama eventually gets the nomination, that's going to be hard to mollify.

Posted by Al | April 2, 2008 2:59 PM

Why is "exceptional" talent required for a fellowship at a magazine that employs Megan McArdle?

Posted by Gregory | April 2, 2008 2:59 PM

When you call someone a racist, they often no longer will give you the benefit of the doubt.

Like when someone supports torture. Some issues are just touchy.

Posted by Jeffrey Davis | April 2, 2008 3:04 PM

Since this fellowship pays pretty much what I make now (as a professional writer, no less) I have a few questions:

How "recently" does need to have graduated from college? After all, 12 years may seem like not-very-recent, but in the big scheme of things it's, like, yesterday.

Will signing up for a few community college classes tomorrow count as being a "current student"?

Does one need to move to D.C.? I tried that back in '96-'97 and decided the place sucked (although living in Temple Hills probably contributed to that perception).

Just wonderin' ...

;-)

Posted by Mark D | April 2, 2008 4:06 PM

Like when someone supports torture. Some issues are just touchy.

Are you thinking of anyone in particular?

But, yes, some issues are just touchy, and people may harbor bad feelings toward you when you call them racists.

Posted by Al | April 2, 2008 4:39 PM

But watching the Matthew-Petey dynamic has really been instructive in showing how bitter the race has become, and how upset the Clinton supporters are at the Obama side's tactics.

And the reverse as well.

Posted by AKBY | April 2, 2008 4:46 PM

And the reverse as well.

No doubt. But the Obama side is going to win the nomination, so really only the hurt feelings of the Clinton supporters is going to matter with respect to the general.

Posted by Al | April 2, 2008 4:52 PM

"This could be a great opportunity to diversify the Atlantic staff beyond white Ivy League grads."

No, not really:

"Atlantic Media seeks in its Fellows a high intelligence as manifested, often, in an exceptional academic record at one of the nation's more competitive colleges."

Posted by wolfstar | April 2, 2008 6:38 PM

Petey is a trust fund scumbag?

Posted by Jack | April 2, 2008 7:50 PM

"Atlantic Media seeks in its Fellows a high intelligence as manifested, often, in an exceptional academic record at one of the nation's more competitive colleges."

Really unfortunate to see this deliberate affront to social mobility. I thought the relationship between "extreme" intelligence and fancy-pants schools was debunked long ago by the much more demonstrable relationship between rich families and fancy-pants schools. (Full self-disclosure: I am a recent graduate of one of the nation's less competitive colleges.)

*sigh

Posted by Jocie Fong | April 2, 2008 7:54 PM

Are you thinking of anyone in particular?

Just think of me as someone's Jiminy Cricket.

Someone who needs it.

Posted by Jeffrey Davis | April 2, 2008 8:26 PM

Really unfortunate to see this deliberate affront to social mobility.

Indeed. Though it at very least offers a passable salary, whereas most opinion magazines, even on the left, want people to work for free in DC or NYC. The barriers to entry are really pretty fucking huge if you don't have established contacts, or even just friends with a couch.

Posted by pseudonymous in nc | April 2, 2008 11:28 PM

When you call someone a racist, they often no longer will give you the benefit of the doubt.

Yeah, I think that's exactly it. I don't remember Petey being all that angry at Matt until he ran that posting ascribing Hillary's big Ohio win to "the racist vote". Can't imagine why a liberal Democrat would get ticked off by being called a "racist"...

The other mystery is why Matt would be making that argument, whether or not it has any merit. It's kinda peculiar for an Obama supporter to endlessly claim that half of all Democratic primary voters are just TOO "racist" to vote for a black guy with a funny name, while simultaneously claiming that Obama will win in November because all the non-Democrat primary voters are really, really eager to vote for a black guy with a funny name. Guess nearly all the "racists" these days must be Democrat primary voters.

On the other hand, since it's Matt "tiny slice" Yglesias we're talking about, I suppose we shouldn't expect the political analysis to make any sense...

Posted by RKU | April 2, 2008 11:58 PM

No, not really:

"Atlantic Media seeks in its Fellows a high intelligence as manifested, often, in an exceptional academic record at one of the nation's more competitive colleges."

Ah, oh well.

Posted by Fred | April 3, 2008 1:05 AM

Al, RKU

The only insight worth gleaning here is the degree to which you are willing to posture to score cheap political points. petey, here, is what we call a flame-baiter. To make any assertions about the Clinton-Obama rivalry based on petey's bombast and yglesias's tempered responses is beyond asinine. You, of course, know this. But if the shoe fits...

Funny, also, how you each go out of your way to signify petey as either a "genuine progressive" or a "Liberal Democrat" -- as if these somehow should legitimate his comments as actual political discourse. I presume the association also serves to satisfy whatever blindered prejudice you have about the rabidity of committed progressives. A two-fer!

Posted by TKS | April 3, 2008 3:12 AM

Hello Matthew,

I am definitely applying for this fellowship. No question.

As someone leaning more toward the entertainment side of journalism--mainly music journalism-- would you consider RollingStone.com to be a "news" website worthy of exploration for the application? I'm just asking an opinion here.

Keep up the good fight.

-Dan from William & Mary

Posted by Dan | April 15, 2008 6:28 PM

Hello Matthew,

I am definitely applying for this fellowship. No question.

As someone leaning more toward the entertainment side of journalism--mainly music journalism-- would you consider RollingStone.com to be a "news" website worthy of exploration for the application? I'm just asking an opinion here.

Keep up the good fight.

-Dan from William & Mary

Posted by Dan | April 15, 2008 6:30 PM