Submission guidelines

THE MAINLINE SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

The Mainline news section welcomes pitches for stories about local politics and issues, policing, abolition, the incarceration system, racial justice and equity, activism, and mutual aid in Atlanta and Georgia. These stories may include critical essays, interviews or profiles, research-based editorials, and investigative features. We encourage those considering making a submission to explore our website to gain a sense of the subjects we cover and how we cover them.

The Mainline is recognized as the only antiracist and antifascist labor press in the city of Atlanta. It also seeks to embody the tenets held by abolitionist papers throughout history by intentionally engaging audiences through education and messages that cumulatively act to disrupt the public consciousness and status quo that more policing and jails in our communities makes us safe. This is inspired both by guidance from author and organizer Mariame Kaba and the vision of media reparations as presented by Media 2070.

The Mainline’s news stories engage and center working class, low-income, marginalized (BIPOC, women, LGBTQ, differently-abled, houseless) people in Georgia; we do this by elevating and publishing voices of these intersections and class. We publish evidence-based reporting to serve our communities while acting as a formidable force to corporatized media sources in Georgia. We deeply understand and reckon with the notion that how we report the issues has a vital and crucial impact in how the public considers the issues that affect them. We willingly confront and grapple with difficult subjects and strive to unpack them in a conversation and digestible way for our audiences to understand.

Whether you are considering submitting a feature about a local mutual aid effort or a feature that re-examines and challenges the legitimacy of policing, your pitches should relate to local communities in a cohesive way and explain how readers are affected by the issue you wish to elevate.

HOW TO PITCH TO THE MAINLINE

All pitches to The Mainline’s news section should include:

The basics. What’s the story or the argument? Write a brief and clear nut graf (a paragraph that explains the context of the story). If you’re unsure of where to start, begin by answering the basic questions of any news story: who, what, when, where, and how?

Justification. Why is this story important and why should it be told now? How does your story engage working and marginalized people in Atlanta and Georgia?

Your plan. Tell us how you plan to tackle this issue and cover the story. Do you plan to do interviews? What shape or format will this story take? If you are pitching a video project or feature, please explain that in this section of the pitch. If you are pitching an article, how many words do you think you will need to tell your story well and effectively? What type of research do you plan on incorporating into your coverage? Is the story time-sensitive? If so, explain why.

A short bio. Tell us a little bit about you and why you want to be the one to write this story.

Timing. If green-lighted, how long would you need to complete the story? Let us know when you think you’d be able to submit your first draft.

Pitches should be sent to [email protected]; emails should include the word “Pitch” in the subject line. Our editors will make every effort to respond to each pitch The Mainline receives.

Music pitches and submissions should all be sent to our senior music editor, Autumn James, at [email protected].

Note: Pitches sent via direct messages to our Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook accounts will not be considered, as our editors do not monitor those inboxes in addition to their other tasks. Following these guidelines helps our editors and team to continue our work and most effectively serve our communities as a small, independent press.