The Progressive accepts a lot of freelance material.

What we want:

Investigative Reporting
We strive to expose corporate malfeasance and governmental wrongdoing. Detail the problem, relying as much as possible on public documents and on interviews. Use plenty of quotations. Be sure to give fair comment to the corporation, government agency, or individual you are covering. Payment: $500-$1,300

Electoral Coverage Report on a current electoral development (e.g., an interesting candidate or ballot initiative) that has national implications. Do not choose the most obvious cases, like the presidential race. Look for something more out of the way. The key is to do reporting, and not just cogitating. Payment: $500

Social Movement Pieces Find a crucial event or trend in the labor movement, the GLBT movement, or in the areas of racial justice, disability rights, the environment, women’s liberation, and report on it. Use plenty of quotations. Payment: $500

Foreign Policy Pieces We tend to favor pieces with an U.S. angle (either corporate or U.S. policy). But if there is a development of huge moral or ethical importance (e.g., the Rwandan civil war, or the global AIDS crisis), where the U.S. role may not be paramount, The Progressive would like to cover it. Remember to get the quotes and provide the color (on-the-ground observations). Payment: $500

Interviews Every month, The Progressive does a long Q&A with a writer, activist, political figure, or musician. We prefer to interview people who are widely known, though we also try to draw attention to individuals who are doing especially worthwhile work. We’ve done more than 200 interviews, so check with us first to make sure we haven’t interviewed your subject yet. Payment: $500

Activism The Progressive publishes an “On the Line” section every month that highlights the work of activists and activist groups. We are looking for good photographs of dynamic or creative actions. We accompany the photos with a caption. Payment: “On the Line” photo: $50-100. Tip that leads to an “On the Line” piece: $50

Poetry The Progressive publishes one original poem a month. We prefer poems that connect—in one fashion or another, however obliquely—with political concerns. Payment: $150

What we don’t want:
Editorials (we write our own)
Satire (we have our own humorists) Historical pieces (articles must deal largely with current events)
Philosophical pieces (we are not The New Left Review or Monthly Review)
Columnists (we have plenty already)

Queries and manuscripts, accompanied by return envelopes with sufficient postage, should be submitted to:
Matthew Rothschild, Editor
The Progressive
409 East Main Street
Madison, WI 53703

or by email editorial [at] progressive [dot] org