Reporters love to play "who had the toughest first job," and there are some pretty good stories among newsroom veterans of low pay, crazy work hours and mind-bending assignments. As in many professions, the rougher you had it, the cooler you are.

And this one tops them all: The Molokai Dispatch is looking for interns to write full-time for the paper for $40 a week. Yes, you read that right.

But to hear Dispatch owner and editor Todd Yamashita describe the job, it is a plum position and only a few very special people are chosen for the honor.

"It's like an extension of their education. I tell them think about how much you paid to go to school. You're not paying nearly as much for this experience and you will get so much out of it."

The ad appeared on Craigslist two weeks ago:

"It will be your job to take in, make sense of and report on the issues and happenings which define this island. At times you will report on issues of weighty circumstance that require research and investigation. At other times you will be required to cover parades, benefits and county council meetings."

Also included in the ad was a fond and honest description of Moloka'i — how there is no McDonald's, not a single traffic light, and very strong feelings about outside influences.

The internship does come with a place to stay and access to a car (stick shift, the ad specifies).

"We rent them a three-bedroom house," Yamashita said. "There's a beautiful lanai where they can watch the whales jumping in the ocean."

As for food, Yamashita jokes that he tells reporters the more community meetings they cover, the better chance they have of getting a free meal because, Moloka'i style, there's food at every meeting.

Plus, he says, "You can buy plenty of saimin on $40 a week."

Yamashita, 33, graduated from Moloka'i High School in 1993. He has a degree in graphic design from UH-Manoa. He came home to work at the Dispatch in 2005 and bought the paper in 2006.

"The business runs by the skin of our teeth. It's pretty much a for-profit that is a nonprofit."

But he keeps finding people who are happy to pay their way to Moloka'i, share a house and live on saimin and meeting food. The Dispatch has had 10 interns in the last two years. One current intern came from Canada, others were from the U.S. Mainland and two from Hawai'i.

The Molokai Dispatch, which has been around for 27 years, is a free weekly paper with an online edition. Currently, the print run is 4,000 a week, mailed to every post office box on the island. The paper has a staff of five, but sometimes Yamashita ends up putting out the entire paper himself.

Yamashita just got married, on 08/08/08. He and his wife are leaving this week on their honeymoon. He put a notice in the paper asking for volunteer help to staff the Dispatch while they're gone. Moloka'i style, people were happy to pitch in.

"Some retirees are coming in to help. One woman with three kids said she'd come in for a couple of hours."

In September, two more interns will start at the paper. Yamashita will then need another intern to start later in the fall.

"It's a stringent interview process," he says. Interns must have previous reporting experience and they must be hardy and up for adventure. And it helps if they have some money in their savings, because they have to pay their way to and from the island.

"They're so excited to come here," Yamashita said. "They say being here changed their lives forever.

"Yeah, it's a manini stipend, but it's a great experience."

Lee Cataluna's column runs Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays. Reach her at 535-8172 or lcataluna@honoluluadvertiser.com.