Investigative Journalist (Part-Time)

Cigarrklubben CK Sverige AB · Contract

Fleminggatan 15, Stockholm, Sweden

In our previous job posting last summer, we were looking for students. We had no idea then that we would receive applications from working journalists who have been affected by the decrease in press subsidies here and there. Of course, it's great for the Cigar Club that skilled, experienced journalists want to work with us on an hourly basis. But perhaps not particularly good from a democracy perspective. And in order to continue to undermine democracy, we thought we'd see if we can capitalize on layoffs from SvD and Aftonbladet. We can't offer you a full-time position, but certainly some hours here and there until you find something else. We don't call ourselves alternative media, because that requires an already existing narrative where you yourself are the alternative. Investigations into the cigar industry were absent before we came along, so we call ourselves by our self-composed term complementary media. Which we hope will make this year's list of new words. So we run the blog Cigar World, which can be found on our website, and which is operated with a publishing license. You are interested in investigative journalism; the format is of lesser importance (podcast, articles, etc.). You have a solid inner moral compass and believe that truth is more important than spin. You have a sense of justice and fair play. Beyond that, you're sharp-tongued, or sharp-penned rather. You're also okay with writing anonymously. It's very controversial (professional pride, honor, and so forth), but we have faced threats against us that are escalating. The fewer employees who are known, the fewer to protect. We have a fairly large security apparatus behind us for a baroque small operation. But we are very careful about security, both for staff and members—that comes first. You need to be able to live with that type of restrictions. It should be noted that we are in the process of moving away from anonymity now, as we have grown and gained international recognition through one of our investigations, so that sort of thing diminishes. Of course, that could change, but ultimately you need to be comfortable with the fact that you don't decide whether to be anonymous or not. We have no particular opinions about your political affiliation; we're happy to mix things up wildly. You can be bluer than the train or redder than Mao. However, we are completely apolitical. We basically only look at how tobacco legislation is structured and how it's being followed. We have no opinions about its design. Because that's politics. If you're the type who can discuss politics without coming across as unpleasant and sometimes feel alone in the view that your party is behaving foolishly on a specific issue, then you're a good fit for us. If you always toe the party line regardless of the issue, and regardless of party affiliation, then you don't belong with us. By the way, it's partly thanks to people like those who always toe the party line that people like Hitler come to power. As if that weren't enough, always holding firmly to an ideology is about as smart as claiming that paracetamol is the only medicine needed because it cures all diseases. We want thinking individuals who can stand behind uncomfortable opinions and don't mind being misunderstood for long periods of time. Smoking cigars is not a merit at all. Rather the opposite. You don't even need to particularly like the tobacco industry; this isn't that type of question. You will be paid hourly. The work is mostly remote. Recruiters don't need to contact us. We are by no means a gentleman's club and are not particularly fond of macho behavior. Your personality as a candidate is decisive. Your gender is not. We do not accept visitors. Physically submitted applications will be discarded. Applications that do not meet requirements, formalities, etc. are discarded immediately without response or follow-up. Keep that in mind; we receive a lot of submissions. You don't need to be showy to stand out. It's enough that you follow the formal requirements—then you've already broken through 90%. They won't even bother reading this far to pick up on it. You should be able to figure out the formal requirements on your own. To any young people applying: you're welcome. But responding with something like "I'm having a coffee with a friend, can you call back later?" when you get a follow-up call about your application is relatively unimpressive.