The award-winning The Public Eye magazine and PRA Online at politicalresearch.org each publish original, long-form features, research-based analysis, and commentary on the U.S. and Global Right. We believe that understanding the Right enhances our ability to challenge it and build a more inclusive and just world.

Our publisher, Political Research Associates, is a research and strategy center that provides actionable insights to social justice changemakers and movements.

What We Publish

PRA and The Public Eye seek to commission well-investigated articles and commentary that provide research and analysis in language that is accessible to a broad readership and our audience of organizers, advocates, journalists, and scholars.

Our articles unpack the Right as a movement, including its varied institutions, sectors, and ideologies. We invite you to browse back issues and search PRA Online to familiarize yourself with what we do.

We commonly publish a range of article formats:

  • Long-form features: 3,000 to 5,000 words
  • Commentaries and short articles: 1,000 to 2,000 words
  • Interviews: 1000 to 1,500 words
  • Reviews: 750 to 1,500 words (depending on the number of books, art forms, or films reviewed)

We also commission cover art for The Public Eye.

How to Pitch Us

We welcome brief, informative pitches of varying length. Aim for two to three paragraphs that tell us about the article or other format you plan to write, why it matters, and why you’re the person to write it.

For more guidance about pitching PRA and The Public Eye, consult this Anatomy of a Pitch document. To craft a strong pitch for a timely response, use the following checklist:

  • Provide a brief summary of your proposed article’s main idea, angle, or key argument.
  • Tell us why this story matters.
  • Specify
    • what type of article you’re pitching (i.e., long-form, commentary, book review or author Q&A, etc.),
    • which sources you’ll be using,
    • who would write the piece and why you/they should,
    • how long the piece will be (an estimate of word count), and
    • when you’d be able to submit a first draft.

Send pitches for The Public Eye and PRA Online to pitches@politicalresearch.org. Expect up to two weeks for an editor to review and respond to your pitch.

Note: We rarely accept unsolicited articles. To increase your chances of acceptance, we encourage submitting a pitch before you write. If you decide to submit a completed article, however, it should be sent exclusively to us with a one-page summary of the piece. Do not send to multiple outlets at once. Submit your article as a Word document, .rtf, or plain .txt file and include a short two-line bio with your email and phone contact information.

Editorial Review

While review or author Q&A submissions receive a quick turnaround, other articles undergo a substantial process of editorial review, including at least 2–3 rounds of editing and revision, and a rigorous fact check. Be prepared to work with our editors over a period of 6–10 weeks, depending on the length of the piece. Let us know if there is a critical time element to your submission.

Rates

We pay for commissioned articles. Upon commission, contributors will receive additional information about payment and the editorial process, along with a contract.

PRA’s rates are somewhat variable, depending on the length of the piece and the amount of reporting and research involved. Payment is agreed upon at time of commission and paid upon publication.

We typically pay the following (for work commissioned as of October 1, 2023):

  • Long-form Features: (3,000 to 5,000 words): $1,500*
  • Review Essays: $500–$1,000 (depending on the research involved, including the number of texts reviewed)
  • Commentaries or Short Articles: (1,000 to 2,000 words): $500
  • Book Reviews or Q&As: (750 to 1,500 words): $350

* Note: We have limited additional funds available to support special features requiring travel and significant investigative research. This can be discussed with an editor during commissioning and will be determined on a case-by-case basis.

Style

Because our articles are research-based, we use endnotes (based on the Chicago Manual of Style) in our web and print versions. Authors should cite evidentiary sources for all claims. Contributors will be asked to document and share all sources ahead of fact checking.

A complete style sheet is available. Contributors should note that PRA does not link back to supremacist websites or rhetoric to avoid amplifying them.

Multimedia Submissions

PRA commissions cover art for The Public Eye up to four times a year. This can be original work created for the magazine or republished art that has appeared elsewhere. Send artwork for consideration to pitches@politicalresearch.org, and include “Artwork Submission” in the subject line.

Beyond cover art, we also welcome online video content, photographs, and images that examine the U.S. Right for politicalresearch.org, along with text that speaks to the import of the multimedia. This work may have appeared elsewhere. You must be the sole copyright holder of your submissions, including any images that appear in your videos.

Submit your text write-up and multimedia content using a private link to the platform or server hosting your content. Photographs may be sent as attachments.

  • Videos should not be longer than ten minutes, and should be non-compressed and in .MOV or .FLV format.
  • Photos and images should be suitable for print or web and can be in .JPEG, .GIF, .PNG, or .TIFF format with at least 300 dpi.
  • Audio files should be in .MOV, .FLV, .MPEG-4, or MP3 format.

Send your text write-up and multimedia (video, photo, and other image) submissions to pitches@politicalresearch.org, and include “Multimedia Submission” in the subject line of your email, followed by the title of your work. Please include the link and password information to your work, as well as your name, contact information, a brief bio and proper credits and captions for photos.