WaitWhat Media seeks writers/How To Apply

WaitWhat is a Newyork based media invention company that creates and owns premium content — widely recognized among the highest quality, most original, and genre-defining works today.

It was founded by June Cohen and Deron Triff — the former TED execs who launched TED Talks and led the media organization for a combined 17 years.

 

What is WaitWhat Media about

WaitWhat’s approach to content is unique in the industry. In everything the company creates, it aims to elicit the contagious emotions of wonder, curiosity, and mastery — infusing their content with “Wait, what?’ moments that spark curiosity and change our understanding of the world.

The company’s properties — each of which is profitable, and collectively have been downloaded more than 30 million times — include the Webby Award-winning Masters of Scale (hosted by LinkedIn co-founder and Greylock partner Reid Hoffman), the genre-defining hit Meditative Story (in partnership with Arianna Huffington’s Thrive), and the provocative and timelyShould This Exist (hosted by Silicon Valley Internet pioneer Caterina Fake).

Most media companies replicate proven models. They compete for the same audience and market share — with almost identical products — and this is ultimately a zero-sum game. By contrast, WaitWhat creates new categories with their content, and at production values that have become the reference point for quality. All of this positions them to escape the competition, garner attention, win awards, and command premium revenue streams.

Rather than defining a media property by its format (i.e., “a video series,” “a podcast,” “a live event”), WaitWhat creates media properties that can scale “horizontally” beyond their first format.

Here is an example, a property may start as a podcast that evolves into a conference, a book series, a suite of learning products (corporate and university), a destination website, an app, a marketplace that helps community members find products and each other, a Netflix or Amazon video series, etc. — all with the intention of building an ecosystem around the core body of content.

The WaitWhat team designs its media properties with the explicit purpose of shaping them this way into infinite form factors — and they only take on ideas that have the potential for great scale.

In 2020 WaitWhat will add 2 new properties, introduce innovative extensions of their core properties, and expand partnerships — all of which build on the organization’s leadership as one of the most inventive, high quality media companies around.

THE ROLE

• Waitwhat is looking for a writer for Meditative Story, a first-of-its-kind podcast listening experience that combines the emotional pull of immersive storytelling with the immediate, science-backed benefits of mindfulness practice.
• The entire experience is elevated by gorgeous, originally composed music that rides ethereally above the story.
• They are looking for someone who is intellectually curious, creatively courageous, and passionate about sharing big, provocative ideas through the art of longform storytelling.
• This role is primarily focused on writing for audio — and this is the particular skill the company will be searching for — but we’re open to candidates from a range of media.
• You must enjoy working collaboratively, be open to a diverse range of viewpoints, and feel energized and inspired by the lives and experiences of others.
• If you share their passion for exceptional storytelling and ground-breaking media formats, they would love to hear from you!
• Please submit a thoughtful cover letter, resume and writing samples which speak to the style and tone of the show.

 

Responsibilities include:

• Draft interview questions that draw out unique stories, and highlight the personality, vulnerability, and wit of our guests, while identifying the universal themes embedded in the storytellers’ experiences.
• Select quotes from interviews and arrange them into a compelling episode outline.
• Listen to interviews, with a focus on capturing the cadences and linguistic quirks of our guests while adhering to the demands of the format.
• Demonstrate an ability to work with multiple transcripts at once.
• Have experience with dramatic storytelling, and a facility for completing scripts that have clear beginnings, middles and ends, and that resolve emotionally

 

Requirements for applying to WaitWhat Media 

• Deep passion for of the Meditative Story podcast format – including a rich understanding of the signature elements of the show, pacing, tone and story syntax
• Understanding and appreciation of the Meditative Story show catalog
• A passionate storyteller, a creative writer and deep, analytical thinker
• 7+ years experience in long-form writing.
• Highly organized and able to meet deadlines
• Proven critical thinking and problem solving skills
• Superior communication skills, both written and verbal

This is a contract, remote role.

WaitWhat is committed to diversity of all kinds — in their media properties, among their investors and on their team: women, minorities and anyone with an unconventional background are strongly encouraged to apply. And most importantly, they only hire extremely nice people.

Send your Resume and Cover Letter here: hello@meditativestory.com

 

 

 

Good Luck!