Storytelling and Watchdog Content Coach

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Job description

Req #16694
Sunday, June 20, 2021
Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI) is a subscription-led and digitally focused media and marketing solutions company committed to empowering communities to thrive. With an unmatched reach at the national and local level, Gannett touches the lives of millions with our Pulitzer-Prize winning content, consumer experiences and benefits, and advertiser products and services.

Our current portfolio of media assets includes USA TODAY, local media organizations in 46 states in the U.S., and Newsquest, a wholly owned subsidiary operating in the United Kingdom with more than 120 local news media brands. Gannett also owns the digital marketing services companies ReachLocal, Inc., UpCurve, Inc., and WordStream, Inc., which are marketed under the LOCALiQ brand, and runs the largest media-owned events business in the U.S., USA TODAY NETWORK Ventures.

To connect with us, visit .

Watchdog & storytelling content coach

Are you someone who leads a content team and wants to gain experience as an enterprise editor and daily writing coach? Or are you a kick-ass writer and reporter who wants to make the move into newsroom leadership?

Our area of the USA TODAY Networkin Virginiais known for producing great investigative and explanatory journalism and for growing greatleaders of journalists.

Youd have an excellentcareer opportunity based inPetersburg, Virginia, as editor of The Progress-Index,helpingour talented team improve as writers,betterconnectingwith digital audience andpolishingsome great reporting projects. And, down the line, advancement in the USA TODAY Network would be something wed support you in. We take our role as a farm team forbiggerGannett sites seriously.

We need a nimblethinker who knows how to write well and can teach. Our reporters learn through working with us closely onwell-craftedenterprise projects theyact asa lab of sorts for skills development. On daily work, we givereporterstraining,toolsand access to us and then let them loose to find and publish their own stories.

Our commitment torecruiting a diverse pool of applicants is deep. And our mission to better reflect the lives ofBlack and brown and LBGTQ andoverlookedcommunity members in our journalism is strong. We also aregladto consider coach candidates who have impressive non-traditional resumes.

While this position workscollaboratively, coaches advise and hold reporters accountable. They offerregularportfolio writing advice (review of a past month's work for instance) to help elevate the quality. We want strong, clean, direct writing and visuals and we want lyrical prose, when a story calls for it. Powerfulwriting, speedilyprepared, will be necessary for other deadline stories.

Coaches ask questions about sourcing and beatdevelopment. They stump for investigative and enterprise journalism. They train the room for audience strategies informed by newsrooms metrics, and they coach journalists in weekly 1x1s after doing specific analysis of a reporter'swork.

They roll up their sleeves on projects, working closely withwriters. And coaches write occasionally themselves.

Coaches are not city editors. They think little about print. They don't often assigndailystoriesbeat reporters are in position to be the experts about what the stories are. Coaches don't sit and line-edit most daily stories for a reporter.

Overall, a storytelling coach focuses heavily on the most important,sensitiveand complex stories. The storytelling coach is the master of the tale in our room. They know how to integrate plot,themesand other storytelling techniques on any platform.

Responsibilities:
Supervises the work of reporters, with an emphasis on independent ideas and content generation.
Works individually with content creators by identifying areas for improvement and coaching them on how to elevate their work.
Edits the top fraction of enterprise, watchdog, or investigative content that needs a high-level line editing touch.
Participates in community-connection discussions to advocate for audiences.
Monitors real-time data to direct changes tied towhat we learn from it.
Identifies and addresses training needs of individuals and groups.
Qualifications
5+ years of professional reporting or editing experience.
Values diverse backgrounds and pushes for social justice reporting. Finds overlooked audiences to report on.
Excellent published writer or visual storyteller.
Enjoys teaching and working with ambitious journalists.
Experience with public records is important. Database or computer-assisted reporting skills will set applicants apart from others.
Understands how to use social media and how to tell multimedia stories.
Thinks innovatively with a passion for keeping on top of evolving trends and technologies in digital media.
Moves quickly to be able to lead a small team well through large changes in our industry.
Demonstrates ability to prioritize, self-start, contribute under pressure, and meet tight deadlines.
Organizes but above all else is a creative and critical thinker. Self-motivated and results-oriented with high regard for details.

#content
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Gannett Co., Inc. is a proud equal opportunity employer. We are a drug free, EEO employer committed to a diverse workforce. We will consider all qualified candidates regardless of race, color, national origin, sex, age, marital status, personal appearance, sexual orientation, gender identity, family responsibilities, disability, education, political affiliation, or veteran status.

Other details

• Job Family Content Strategy & Coaching
• Job Function Consumer
• Pay Type Salary

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