Media Relations Director

Compassion & Choices Media Relations Director Job Opening

Compassion & Choices is seeking a Media Relations Director to help advance our advocacy, medical outreach, and education efforts across the country.

This position acts as a national media strategist and media relations director for the organization and provides strategic media planning, oversight, and implementation of C&C’s earned media coverage. The focus includes trend pieces, brand pieces, and end-of-life care issues. This role also serves as the primary writer for the C-suite and leads media efforts for several portfolios, including federal policy advocacy, state legislative advocacy, and the legal and litigation program.

This is a full-time, remote, paid position reporting to the National Director of Marketing/Communications. Compensation will be commensurate with experience. We offer excellent benefits, including employer-shared medical and dental insurance premiums, employer-paid short- and long-term disability, life and accidental death & dismemberment insurance, flexible spending account for medical and child care, commuter pre-tax benefits, eligibility to participate in a 401K with a 5% employer match (100% vested at eligibility), 12 paid holidays, 17 PTO days in the first year, and personal days.

Primary Responsibilities

• Develop, set, and implement the organization’s comprehensive earned media strategy, identifying and capitalizing on opportunities to enhance visibility and influence. Collaborate with staff across departments to align strategies and maximize media coverage. Evaluate and report on the effectiveness of media strategies.
• Serve as the primary liaison between the organization and key media contacts. Cultivate and maintain strong relationships with journalists, editors, and media outlets to shape the narrative around the organization’s key issues proactively.
• Directly supervise at least two direct reports.
• Write and oversee the production of media materials, including media messages, op-eds, letters to the editor, news releases, talking points, FAQs, and media event coordination. Collaborate with staff to identify and leverage communications opportunities and visibility events.
• Act as the lead communications strategist for the organization’s federal policy advocacy efforts, including drafting and editing letters to policymakers and elected officials and coordinating coalition communications activities to advance the organization’s legislative and regulatory agenda.
• Lead the media strategy for the organization’s legal program. Work closely with the legal team to identify media opportunities, conduct litigant media training, and develop visibility events that highlight the organization’s legal efforts.
• Develop and implement a comprehensive strategy to shift media terminology from “assisted suicide” to “medical aid in dying” or another neutral term, ensuring consistency across all communications.
• Develop and implement paid media advertising campaigns when necessary.
• Develop and manage crisis communication strategies and protocols to protect and enhance the organization’s reputation during critical events.
• Design and deliver training programs for staff and volunteers to enhance their media communication skills and ensure the use of appropriate language in all external communications.
• Write long-term and rapid-response media outreach plans to position C&C and promote its campaigns.
• Ensure all communications products are respectful, culturally competent, and inclusive.
• Demonstrate commitment to and active support of C&C’s Diversity & Inclusion program.
• Perform other duties as required.

Required Qualifications

Education and Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in a related field or equivalent work experience, with a minimum of 8 years of experience — at least half in a political campaign or at a well-known and effective issue advocacy organization.
• Previous experience working in a newsroom and/or pitching and placing stories in a wide variety of outlets (mainstream media, blogs, podcasts, alternative media) is highly desirable.

Skills:

• Ability to write news documents, talking points, speeches, articles, ads, fliers, and other materials that conform to prescribed style and format, motivating new and existing supporters to engage in the end-of-life choice movement.
• Proficiency with Google Docs, media monitoring, and contact management software. Video editing software experience is a bonus.

Other Qualifications:

• Travel: Minimal travel (5%). Occasional overnight travel may include trips to another C&C office, conference, retreat, or other meetings.

Values of Compassion & Choices

We seek individuals energized by working at an organization with the following values:

• Compassionate: We believe dying patients should be free of unwanted treatment, suffering, or outside interference.
• Respectful: We honor individuals’ autonomy to decide what end-of-life options are best for them and their families.
• Courageous: We are willing to confront tough end-of-life health challenges, disrupt the broken status quo, and protect an individual’s right to self-determination.
• Credible: We base all education, advocacy, and partnerships on objective research and demonstrable facts.
• Resilient: We respond to opportunities and threats in the movement to achieve our vision as quickly as possible.

About Compassion & Choices

Compassion & Choices works nationwide to create a society that affirms life, accepts the inevitability of death, and empowers everyone to choose end-of-life care that reflects their values, priorities, and beliefs. To make this vision a reality, we improve care, expand options, and empower individuals to chart their end-of-life journey.

Compassion & Choices is committed to building a staff that reflects the diverse communities that make up our country. We are an Equal Opportunity Employer and recruit, hire, train, promote, and administer personnel actions without regard to age, color, creed, disability, economic status, ethnic identity, gender identity, national origin, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, veteran status, or any other basis prohibited by applicable law.

Learn more here