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Times West Virginian of Fairmont looking for reporter, page designer

WV Press News Sharing

FAIRMONT, W.Va. — The Times West Virginian of Fairmont has announced two job openings.

No. 1 – GENERAL ASSIGNMENT REPORTER

POSITION IDENTIFICATION

Position Title:                        General Assignment Reporter

Department:                          Editorial

FLSA Status:                         Non-Exempt

Full/Part Time:                       Full Time

PRIMARY PURPOSE

Researching possible story topics and interviewing people to gather related information and analysis. Writing news and sports stories for print and online publication. Taking photos or videos to accompany stories as assigned. May be assigned multiple areas of responsibility (beats). Stories may be breaking news, sports or feature articles.

REPORTING RELATIONSHIPS

Reports To:                            Editor

Directly Supervises:             (None)

Indirectly Supervises:          (None)

Extent of Supervision:         (None)

ESSENTIAL DUTIES

  • Report and write news and sports stories for publication, describing the background and details of events.
  • Arrange interviews with people who can provide information about a particular story.
  • Research and analyze background information related to stories in order to be able to provide complete and accurate information.
  • Gather information for stories through research, interviews, experience, and attendance at meetings, events, sports, and other functions.
  • Determine a story’s emphasis, length, and format, and organize material accordingly.
  • Review copy and correct errors in content, grammar, and punctuation, following prescribed editorial style and formatting guidelines.
  • Cover breaking news developments, crimes, sports and human interest stories as assigned.
  • Meet deadlines for all pages for each publication with a consistent workflow.
  • Formulate story ideas and projects for newspaper, websites and magazines.
  • Ensure that news coverage follows the company News Focus(Franchise Focus, Core Focus & High Engagement Focus)
  • Cultivate and maintain excellent communications with local contacts and sources.
  • Check reference materials, such as books, news files, and public records in order to obtain relevant facts.
  • Discuss issues with editors in order to establish priorities and positions.
  • Edit work in order to meet editorial approval or to fit time or space requirements.
  • Take photos or video as assigned to provide such coverage.
  • Adhere to all company policies as outlines in employee handbooks.

The essential duties many change as required by company needs and conditions and do not include all duties that may be assigned with this position.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS & ABILITIES

  • Possess excellent verbal and written communications skills.
  • Strong writing skills, and ability to convey information in a clear, concise and conversational manner.
  • Able to work a flexible schedule, including nights and weekends.
  • Ability to interact professionally and build relationships and sources
  • Ability to shoot photos and digital video.
  • Strong research skills, including the ability to navigate online search engines.
  • Able to work effectively and efficiently under deadlines.
  • Excellent understanding of Associated Press style.

MINIMUM POSITION QUALIFICATIONS

Education:                             BA/BS in journalism/communications or related degree

Experience:                           1-2 years news or sports reporting

Certifications/Licenses:       Unrestricted Driver’s Licenses

PHYSICAL DEMANDS & WORKING CONDITIONS

The physical demands and working conditions are within normal expectations for this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. (For positions involving more physical demands, refer to the Job Description Physical Addendum).

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by most people assigned to this job. They are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, and requirements. Scheduling flexibility is required to accommodate changing business needs.

Nothing contained in this job description creates an employment contract or in any way alters the employee status as an Employee At-Will. All employees of the company are employed for no specific duration of time and can resign their employment or be terminated at any time with or without notice.

2 – PAGE DESIGNER:

Position Title: Page Designer

Department: Editorial

Reports To: Editor

Position Type: Full-Time

Date: 12/9/2021

Position Overview (Job Summary)

The Page Designer performs various functions associated with the layout of the print edition of the paper and other special publications that run over the course of the year, and uploads content to the newspaper website. This position requires skills in the areas of page design, headline and caption writing, page proofing, story editing, web content publishing and social media. Night and weekend work is required

Job Duties and Responsibilities

Handles page layout of news and sports pages and recurring pages such as Advice, Comics, Classifieds, Ticket, Faith Journeys, Food, Stocks, Real Estate.

Paginates Marion Times Shopper, and other special publications as scheduled.

Conducts second read on local stories, checking for grammar, spelling, punctuation, AP style, accuracy

posting breaking news to the website and overall management of website and social media.

Selects and downloads editorial content to run on the Opinion Page, Food Page and other pages.

Proofreads pages with editor prior to sending to the Press Room.

Other duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications

Successful candidates should have a degree in journalism or related field. Two years of experience using a Content Management System or desktop publishing program, such as Adobe InDesign. preferred. Must be able to meet necessary deadlines. Must be willing to adapt to changing schedules and be dependable. Must be able to react to change productively and handle other essential duties as assigned.

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