Work With Us

5280 is committed to creating a diverse environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We encourage applicants of diverse abilities, backgrounds, and life experiences to apply. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics disability, age, or veteran status.

5280 Elevated, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer and offers competitive salary and benefits.

5280 is hiring an audience engagement editor to join its award-winning digital team. This entry-level staffer will help develop and lead 5280’s social media and short-form video strategy while contributing to 5280.com’s daily content output through assigning, editing, and writing. The ideal candidate should be a social media whiz kid and a hungry reporter. Digital editing experience is not required, but a basic understanding of search engine optimization and online and social media best practices is essential.

This journalist should have a demonstrated expertise in social media platforms, such as Facebook, Instagram, X, Pinterest, TikTok, Nextdoor, and Bluesky; be highly organized when it comes to workflow; and be a confident and quick thinker. We are looking for a collaborative teammate and cheerleader who is willing to take responsible risks to meet our weekly, monthly, and annual goals.

5280 editors are expected to live in the Denver metro area. Our offices are located in downtown Denver, and we currently have a hybrid working model, requiring editors to be in the office three days a week and work from home or elsewhere when it’s more efficient and effective. Typical business hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday; however, there may be times when reporting and deadlines require an alternative schedule.

Responsibilities:

  • Help develop and execute a social media strategy. Help implement a social media content management system.
  • Help manage all of 5280’s social media accounts, including drafting copy, collaborating with the art team, scheduling posts, answering messages, and interacting with our audience through our platforms.
  • Work with Brand team to brainstorm and execute social media campaigns aimed at growing our audiences.
  • Produce one digital newsletter per week. Collaborate with digital director and Brand team to optimize and modify our newsletters for audience growth.
  • Collaborate with digital director and senior associate editor on the daily, weekly, and monthly editorial calendars to ensure continuity and avoid over-coverage. Attend and contribute to weekly lineup and pitch meetings, using keyword research to inform ideas.
  • Report, write, or edit stories as needed, delivering one—of any medium—to the top editor each week. Work with 5280 editors and reporters, as well as freelance writers.
  • Help develop and execute a short-form video strategy.
  • Stay up to date on SEO best practices and keep tabs on digital trends and winnable keywords.
  • Partner with digital director to optimize story presentations for digital audiences and social media.
  • Along with digital director, be available for late-breaking or critical news content (writing or editing), even outside of typical business hours, and remain nimble to the needs of web production.
  • Collaborate with editors and reporters to generate additional multimedia elements for print stories.
  • Represent 5280.com at broader team meetings with Brand team, Sales, third-party analysts, editors, or web developer as needed and as requested by the digital director.
  • Represent 5280 at events, such as 5280 Brunch, 5280 Top of the Town, and 5280 Dines.

Must-haves:

  • Journalism and editing experience (working for a university publication counts!), preferably in magazine or digital media
  • Strong editing and writing skills
  • Strong understanding of social and multimedia (having a personal brand is nice)
  • Working knowledge of search engine optimization and online and social media best practices

Preferred experience:

  • Strong organization and communication skills
  • Proficiency with editorial and data-tracking tools like Google Analytics, Parse.ly, Adobe Omniture, Tableau, etc.
  • Proficiency with website hosts like WordPress, Squarespace, Shopify, etc.
  • Proficiency with Adobe Creative Suite
  • Proficiency with customer relationship management software like Hubspot
  • Background working with cross-divisional partners like Sales, Marketing, Art, etc.
  • Familiarity with photography, photo editing, and video editing as it applies to digital media
  • Basic understanding of AP Style
  • Knowledge of Denver, the Front Range, and Colorado

Salary: Starting at $55,000

Benefits:

  • Health insurance (FSA, FSA dependent care, HAS options, Teledoc)
  • Dental insurance
  • Vision coverage
  • Paid parental leave
  • Public transportation or parking subsidies
  • 401K program
  • Fitness club membership option
  • Unlimited paid time off

To apply: Candidates should send a brief cover letter, resume, and five fully fleshed-out story pitches tailored to a 5280.com audience to engagementeditorjob@5280.com. Senior leadership will review applications on a rolling basis until the position is filled.

5280 offers editorial internship positions in the summer, fall, and spring. Internships are hands-on and involve a variety of responsibilities as well as the opportunity to regularly interact with the editorial staff.

Primary duties include fact-checking stories, contributing research to larger stories and feature packages, and writing shorter stories for the front-of-the-book sections. Interns also enter descriptions for the calendar listings, and write for 5280.com.

We also offer a dining-specific internship for those interested in food writing. The intern will work closely with our food editors to fact-check and write for the dining section of the magazine, enter descriptions for dining guide listings, and write for 5280.com. Those interested should specify dining internship in the subject line of their application email, and tailor their cover letter accordingly.

As part of the program, interns will take part in training sessions and mentorship. Training sessions are run by editors and provide an overview of how the magazine works, from pitching to editing to art/design. The mentorship program pairs each intern with two editors, offering interns a chance to gain firsthand knowledge about a career in journalism.

Requirements: Although a magazine, journalism, or English degree (or working toward a degree) is preferred, it’s not required. Published clips are required (college newspaper is OK). A commitment of three to four days a week is preferred. The internship is paid. Remote work is OK.

To apply: Please email a cover letter, resumé, and three to five published clips to editinternships@5280.com. Applicants with diverse backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives are encouraged to apply.

Deadlines for applications: Summer (March 1); Fall (July 1); Spring (November 15).

Interested in contributing to 5280? Check out our Writer’s Guidelines below:

5280 is the premiere monthly guide to the arts, entertainment, dining, and lifestyle issues in Denver. First published in 1993, the magazine has a circulation of 55,000 and is consistently among the top-selling magazines on metro newsstands. Many of our stories are written by 5280 staffers and a group of established freelance writers, but we welcome ideas from journalists we haven’t worked with in the past.

Story pitches should convey that the writer understands the editorial thrust of the magazine, be well researched, and concise, and offer a creative and original argument.

We accept pitches for our front-of-the-book sections, Compass, Culture, Adventure, and Eat & Drink; for our departments/columns; and for our feature well. Front-of-the-book stories, which are short, lively takes on life in Denver, run anywhere from 50 to 400 words. Departments are generally 800 to 1,500 words and cover everything from travel to sports to politics. Features can run up to 6,000 words.

Please submit queries, along with two or three published writing samples, via email to edit@5280.com.