News Director, WCPO

The E.W. Scripps Company; Cincinnati (OH); On-site; USD 70,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

An established industry player is seeking a dynamic News Director to lead a talented team in delivering quality local journalism. This role offers the chance to shape the content strategy for a vibrant community while leveraging cutting-edge technology and resources. As a leader, you will foster relationships, drive continuous improvement, and ensure the delivery of impactful news across multiple platforms. If you are passionate about local journalism and have a proven track record of managing multi-platform projects, this is an exciting opportunity to make a significant impact in a thriving market.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of experience in journalism or related field preferred.
• Proven track record in leading content creation teams.

Responsibilities

• Lead the execution of the Scripps content strategy across platforms.
• Develop and maintain annual content budget and optimize newsroom operations.

Skills

Leadership

Journalistic Ethics

Customer Focus

Effective Communication

Multi-Platform Project Management

Education

BS/BA in related discipline

Tools

Content Management Systems

Social Media Platforms

Video Production Tools

Job description

WCPO, the E.W. Scripps ABC station in Cincinnati, Ohio, is looking for an experienced and aggressive News Director to lead our team. Cincinnati is a vibrant, diverse, and growing city that offers an exceptional quality of life. From the beautiful riverfront and iconic landmarks to the thriving arts and culture scene, Cincinnati has something for everyone. As the News Director, you'll have the opportunity to live and work in this dynamic city, which is consistently ranked as one of the most affordable and livable metropolitan areas in the country.

The News Director will lead a team in executing the Scripps content strategy of delivering quality local journalism and meeting local consumer expectations on current and emerging platforms, including apps, OTT audio/video, social, television, and the station's website. This includes developing a local content vision and strategy to address consumer needs, setting content standards, overseeing delivery, ensuring quality control, and driving continuous improvement. The primary focus of this role is on the local community and delivering the right content on the right platforms at the right time.

As part of the E.W. Scripps family, you'll have the opportunity to work for a leading, innovative media company with a strong commitment to local journalism and community service. Scripps provides industry-leading resources, cutting-edge technology, and a collaborative, supportive culture that empowers its employees to do their best work. You'll be part of a dynamic team dedicated to delivering trusted news and valuable content to audiences across multiple platforms. The Scripps legacy of excellence, combined with the energy and growth of the Cincinnati market, makes this an exciting and rewarding opportunity for an experienced news leader.

WHAT YOU'LL DO:

1. Ensure the news operations build and maintain key relationships to foster a positive news image in the community.
2. Apply knowledge of the consumer and local community to know consumer expectations on all platforms, set brand and strategy and align organization to deliver against expectations.
3. Use the Scripps content strategy as the foundation and set the specific local content strategy, tone, and expectation in the newsroom.
4. Collaborate with team to develop and implement strategic plans for market growth on all platforms.
5. Lead a highly collaborative team in the daily and long-term execution of the content strategy.
6. Ensure centralized, shared editorial process and resources to enable seamless delivery to all platforms.
7. Work closely with direct reports and extended team to evaluate product trends on all platforms and to set goals that drive continuous improvement.
8. Work closely with direct reports and extended team to continuously evaluate and adjust workflow so that operations are fully optimized across the entire newsroom.
9. Develop and maintain annual content budget to comply with station guidelines.
10. Delegate and empower team to provide effective coaching and support to foster continuous improvement.
11. Develop a high-performing, highly interdependent team by aligning team purpose vision and goals, building trust, establishing clear roles, facilitating effective planning, execution and recognition; Addresses teaming issues in a timely manner.
12. Work with team to continually assess staff training needs and provides guidance to ensure training and information needs are met.
13. Take ownership of all platforms so that tradeoffs are managed without detriment to our consumers.

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

1. BS/BA in related discipline or equivalent years of experience preferred
2. Generally, 10+ years of experience in related field preferred
3. Prior managerial experience preferred
4. Familiarity with the local market, including current or prior residence in market strongly desired
5. Experience conceiving and executing multi-platform projects required
6. Experience leading content creation teams on a minimum of two platforms desired
7. Experience acquiring audience with a demonstrated pattern or track record of success desired
8. Experience managing brand desired

WHAT YOU'LL BRING:

1. Must be able to lead large multi-level teams, with a preference for those who have direct experience managing teams with 40+ employees and directing the work of people managers
2. Strong understanding of journalistic ethics and libel
3. Local connections and community knowledge / community causes
4. Customer focus: understands customer needs, raises the bar on customer service, develops unified approach to exceed customer expectations
5. Broad knowledge of all media platforms
6. Effective communicator