48 Publications Paying for Politics & Current Affairs Writing

Earn as much as $2/word from your next feature.

Today I’m sharing a new roundup of publications that pay for politics and current‑affairs writing. That includes everything from sharp op‑eds and big‑swing essays to deeply reported investigations and movement‑driven stories.

Politics here is broad. It’s about power, policy, and institutions, but also the people, places, and struggles that make those forces visible on the ground.

Each listing includes pay details, links to guidelines, and an idea of what editors are actually commissioning right now.

Whether you’re looking to delve into new investigations, explore the policies affecting real people, or write argument‑led essays, you’ll find outlets here that value rigorous, original work on how the world is being governed, and how it might change.

Inclusion here is not an endorsement of any outlet’s politics or coverage. This is a neutral roundup, though I’ve left out explicitly extremist publications.

If you have insights into specific pay rates, or if you’ve been offered different terms than those listed here, please let me know by replying to this email or by messaging me on Substack.

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48 Publications Paying for Politics & Current Affairs Writing

Hammer & Hope is a magazine of Black politics and culture, rooted in Black radical traditions and contemporary movements. It takes commentary, reported features, and cultural criticism that treat Black life as central to questions of democracy, policy, and liberation. Politics and current‑affairs pitches might cover elections, abolitionist campaigns, organising, or international solidarity. They pay $1/word for commentary and $1.33/word for reported features. Guidelines here.

In These Times is a progressive magazine focused on stories that expose corporate influence over government and advance movements for social, environmental, gender, economic, and racial justice. Politics pieces work best when they show how power operates and how organisers respond, not just what a bill says. Major investigations are paid $5,000 plus expenses, with legal and editorial support. Guidelines here.

Prism is an independent, nonprofit newsroom led by journalists of colour, covering voting rights, criminal justice, racial and economic justice, immigration, the environment, and LGBTQIA+ issues across the U.S. It especially encourages pitches from BIPOC, women, LGBTQIA+ people, and those from historically oppressed communities. They pay $0.50/word. Pitch guidelines here.

DAME Magazine runs reported features and essays on politics, policy, science, and culture through an explicitly feminist and intersectional lens. Politics pieces often centre reproductive justice, extremism, disinformation, climate, and economic justice with a focus on individual stories. Rates are $350–$750 per story. Pitch here.