Editorial Intern

IMPORTANT: Internships are unpaid, therefore interns must be eligible to receive academic credit during Summer 2025 for their internship. If you are a student, contact your career counselor for more information. 

We expect all interns to work 2 full days per week, though half days are permissible to accommodate some school schedules.

All applicants should submit a resume and cover letter as well as a portfolio, links to any past clips or writing samples. 

Observer is a premier online editorial platform. For the past two decades, we have captured a loyal readership through witty, irreverent and opinionated coverage of society, technology and innovation, real estate, arts, culture and entertainment. Although the New York Observer has been discontinued as a print publication, its legacy endures through our digital platforms. 

Observer has published many of the nation’s top journalists, critics and essayists over the years, including Joe Conason, John Heilpern, Lee Siegel, Rex Reed, Andrew Sarris, Robert Gottlieb, Ron Rosenbaum, Susan Faludi and Peter Bogdanovich. In the mid-1990s, the New York Observer published “Sex and the City,” Candace Bushnell’s column on Manhattan’s social life that inspired the hit television series and subsequent films.

Observer interns do more than research and fact-check articles as they move from writer to editor to publication. Primarily, editorial interns are tasked with working within one of Observer’s verticals—business, lifestyle or arts—assisting that section’s editor. Interns will be expected to write regular articles while at Observer, developing their own beat and byline. When not on deadline, interns are encouraged to become acquainted with Observer’s editors and writers, support newsroom operations, contribute to longer-term editorial projects and do their own research and reporting. 

Observer is also seeking an operations intern to assist editors and leadership with optimizing content publication and discovery. The intern will gain hands-on experience in a digital newsroom and play a vital role in shaping website organization. Responsibilities include restructuring site categories and tags to enhance SEO and discoverability, crafting photo stories following major events within Observer's coverage scope (galas for cultural institutions, awards after-parties, major philanthropy events) using photo sourcing tools, analyzing site metrics and performance, optimizing and documenting best practices and providing research and administrative support across verticals.

In your cover letter, please indicate which vertical (business, lifestyle or arts) you're interested in and why. If you’re applying for the operations internship role, please make a note of that in your cover letter. 

Observer’s newsroom boasts a unique and tight-knit team culture that benefits from the energy of its reporters and the experience of its editors. Though much of the team is remote, we have daily meetings and frequent check-ins. There are also opportunities to come into the office. Interns are fully integrated into this hybrid environment, where they have the opportunity to gain invaluable reporting, online editorial and in-person newsroom experience. 

Observer runs three internship sessions a year: Spring (early January through May), Summer (June through August) and Fall (early September through December). Interns can work remotely but have the option to come into Observer's office in Manhattan. Former interns have gone on to be hired full-time at Observer, as well as at The New York Times, New York Magazine, The New Republic and many other publications.