stringer
n. countablen. a freelance reporter or photographer who is not a full-time employee. They work for a news organization on a part-time basis and get paid for each story they provide.
n. a freelance journalist or photographer who contributes reports or images to a news organization on a part-time or occasional basis. Often used in the context of local correspondents covering specific geographic regions for national outlets.
The newspaper hired a local stringer to cover the small-town festival.
During the conflict, major networks relied on a network of local stringers to provide footage from areas too dangerous for foreign staff.
While the bureau chief manages the primary narrative, it is often the stringer on the ground whose intimate knowledge of local politics provides the necessary depth for a truly comprehensive report.
Commonly used in the journalism industry; can also refer to a cord used by fishers to hold caught fish.