Expand your journalism experience by leveraging your breaking news and
digital skills in a dynamic work environment with Louisiana’s largest
news organization. As an LSU beat reporter, you will help us own
coverage of LSU athletics with a focus on football and breaking news
for NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune by joining our award-winning sports
staff.
NOLA Media Group is a digitally focused news organization encompassing
all content, marketing and sales operations for NOLA.com and The
Times-Picayune. By bringing together the quality journalism and
in-depth coverage of The Times-Picayune with the up-to-the-minute
information of NOLA.com, we are ensuring the communities we serve have 24/7 access to what’s happening locally and around the world. The
Times-Picayune has won multiple Pulitzer Prizes, including two for its
coverage of Hurricane Katrina. Most recently NOLA.com | The
Times-Picayune, together with WVUE-TV Fox 8, earned a Peabody Award
for its groundbreaking investigative series on Louisiana campaign
financing and also earned a first-place finish at the Associated Press
Sports Editors awards for a project on Hurricane Katrina’s impact on
sports 10 years later.
THE REQUIREMENTS
To be a good fit for this opportunity, you will have:
—A bachelor’s degree in Journalism, Communications or a related field,
or equivalent experience
–1-2 years of journalism experience with a proven ability in breaking
news of significance
–An understanding of how to access and use public records for breaking
news stories
–Proven experience building, maintaining and engaging an active
audience through various platforms
–Mastery of social media and digital interaction with audience for
reporting and promoting stories
–Eager to work under deadline pressure and prioritize tasks appropriately
–A solid understanding of news writing, journalistic ethics and story structure
–Experience with search engine optimization practices
–Experience taking photos, recording audio and shooting video with the
ability to edit
–An understanding of the methods and tools used to deliver content
across a variety of digital platforms, and an understanding of the
imperatives of multiple platforms, including print, web, mobile,
social media, etc.
–A proven ability to utilize a broad set of tools to tell stories and
engage the audience
–The ability and desire to remain abreast of industry advances and to
proactively consider new methods of reaching audiences, including
engaging, interactive and optimized product offerings
THE ROLE
You will have LSU beat reporting responsibilities as part of a
two-person team, so versatility and the ability to write
authoritatively about multiple sports is key. Your normal work hours
may be on the early shift, nights or weekends, so you’ll need to have
the flexibility to cover what is needed.
In addition to traditional breaking news and feature reporting, your
role will include monitoring coverage and analysis on other sports
news outlets and aggregating relevant reporting onto our site. You
will also monitor reader response through audience data, comment
streams, and social media reaction while engaging with readers on all
platforms.
Ours is a digitally focused, multimedia newsroom; on any given day you
may find yourself writing a long-form narrative or a series of
incremental updates to a breaking sports report; recording and editing
topical video or podcast audio; shooting and editing photos and
building online galleries; interacting with readers in live chats or
social media comment streams; and optimizing your posts for a social-
or search-driven audience in a Content Management System.
Note: This description is intended to give you a general overview of
the position and is not an exhaustive listing of duties and
responsibilities.
KEYS TO SUCCESS
To excel in this role, you will be a driven, dynamic reporter and
writer with the ability to deliver a high volume of content every day.
You should be able to proactively identify stories that are trending
and respond quickly, keeping the quality of content consistent and
engaging. You’ll need to be able to succeed in a collaborative
environment while also possessing the ability to work independently.
You’ll need to have a demonstrated digital background and to feel at
home in the digital world. Because we are an online, daily operation,
you will also need to be comfortable working in a fast-paced
environment. You should be someone who excels and thrives under
pressure and can produce quality work regardless of deadline.
You can apply here: https://tinyurl.com/y89waz8m
Contact Sports Editor Jennifer Armstrong: Jennifer_Evans@nola.com
