Rampart is hiring a Reporter to find stories nobody else has on Australian money, markets and power, research them properly, and tell them well.

About Rampart

Rampart publishes investigative commentary on Australian business and finance. We are a growing, independent, subscriber-funded newsroom in Sydney. Our subscribers pay for stories they can’t read anywhere else.

Our journalism is sharp, insightful and sets the agenda. However, we don’t chase the daily cycle. We take the time to research stories properly and publish the ones that are uniquely Rampart.

Our founder is Joe Aston, former Rear Window columnist at The Australian Financial Review and author of The Chairman’s Lounge: The inside story of how Qantas sold us out. Our editor-in-chief is James Chessell, former editor-in-chief of the AFR, the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.

The role

You will write analysis, commentary and investigative pieces about companies, markets and economics. We are looking for applicants with a demonstrated ability to write clearly about complicated concepts and explain them in an engaging way for sophisticated readers. A background in journalism is helpful but not necessary. Applicants with qualified experience in finance, economics or corporate regulation will have an advantage.

You will report to Chessell and work alongside senior writers, with the chance to develop as a writer in a small but dynamic newsroom. You will be expected to work in a team but also generate your own ideas and write in a variety of modes. Rampart aspires to publish work of the highest standard with a focus on quality and accuracy.

What you’ll do

- Generate original ideas about companies, deals, financial and economic trends, executives, regulators and the advisers around them
- Build and maintain a network of sources




- Dig through financial statements, ASX announcements, court documents and regulator filings to find stories others miss
- Use FOI requests, public datasets and spreadsheets to test claims and back stories with numbers
- Write sharply and accurately
- Work with editors and legal as part of the production process

What we’re looking for

- 2–5 years in a role where you wrote, researched and analysed for a living. A background in financial analysis, economics, commerce or law is not obligatory but highly desirable
- Clear, sharp writing that makes complicated concepts easy to follow
- A degree of comfort reading a balance sheet, a contract or a court judgment
- Strong data skills and a curiosity about what the numbers hide
- Persistence with sources and the discretion and judgement to protect them
- A determination to stick with a story that is worth publishing

You don’t need a journalism degree

Some of the best business reporters started as financial analysts, economists or lawyers. If you want to write, we want to hear from you. You already know how deals are structured and how companies report. We will teach you the craft of reporting.

What we offer

- A competitive salary
- Equity in Rampart, so you share in what you help build
- Direct mentoring from James Chessell, Joe Aston and Rampart’s senior writers
- Time and backing to do deeply researched work
- A great working environment from our Sydney office

Applicants must have the right to live and work in Australia.

How to apply In your application include the following:

1. Your resume
2. Three writing samples: published stories, or reports, research notes or memos if you’re coming from outside journalism. If you have little published work, one or more can be unpublished articles of up to 800 words written for Rampart

📌 Reporter (Sydney)
🏢 Rampart
📍 Sydney