Real Estate Reporter

Columbus Business First; Columbus (OH); Hybrid; USD 55,000 - 65,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health, dental & vision plans

401K with employer match

Flexible spending & commuter programs

Parental leave

Job summary

Columbus Business First is seeking a hybrid, full‑time Reporter to cover local markets and deliver scoop‑driven business journalism. The role emphasizes building sources, breaking stories, and producing multimedia content for digital and weekly print formats.

You will own the beat, develop industry contacts, and craft compelling narratives that help readers grow their businesses and advance their careers.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent work experience.
• Desire and ability to break news and to identify newsworthy events and sources.
• Strong analytical and investigative‑interviewing skills.
• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively.
• Ability to relate comfortably to a wide range of people, in person, on the phone and online.
• A clear drive to develop sources and build audience.
• Solid understanding of news writing, journalistic ethics and story structure.
• Ability to leverage relationships with sources to deliver content that differentiates the organization from competitors.
• Multimedia skills, including video, photos, broadcast, on‑camera, helpful.
• Proficient with MS Office Products.
• Proficient with Web‑Based Communication Platforms (Teams, Zoom, Webex, etc.)

Responsibilities

• Define a clear and compelling vision for the look, feel and voice of our products, including a thriving digital news operation, a printed weekly edition, and daily emails.
• Report and write short‑form and long‑form stories for the website and weekly print edition.
• Own the beat, dictating day‑to‑day coverage and thriving on digging out source‑driven exclusives.
• Relentlessly develop sources and manage relationships with high‑level executives and other community leaders.
• Scoop competitors on every story of any significance, not only telling them what happened, but why and how.

Skills

Scoop‑driven reporting

Source development

Digital & multimedia storytelling

Deadline‑driven

Interviewing skills

Education

Bachelor’s degree or equivalent work experience

Tools

MS Office

Teams/Zoom/Webex

Job description

This position will be Hybrid in the office/market 3 days per week, and those days can be flexible in consultation with your manager.

The Reporters for ACBJ will join our newsroom and cover markets for one of the hottest economies in the country. Our reporters must be competitive, nimble and driven to break news about the most important industries, companies and people in the region. They are expected to provide forward-looking business intelligence to savvy readers who will use it to grow their businesses and/or advance their careers. Our content gives them a leg up on their competitors, connects them with decision-makers and delineates growth strategies that work from those that don’t. This usually entails working our source networks and digging up news before it’s announced or readily available. The ideal candidate will blend traditional journalism skills - source building, sharp news judgment, interviewing prowess and scoop‑driven reporting - with online and social media know‑how. Reporters in our newsroom don’t just turn in copy. They include videos, slideshows and other multimedia components that advance the story and further engage our audience. They break hard news that sometimes sources don’t want brought to light, but they don’t burn bridges.

• Define a clear and compelling vision for the look, feel and voice of our products, including a thriving digital news operation, a printed weekly edition, and daily emails.
• Report and write short‑form and long‑form stories for the website and weekly print edition.
• Own the beat, dictating day‑to‑day coverage and thriving on digging out source‑driven exclusives.
• Relentlessly develop sources and manage relationships with high‑level executives and other community leaders.
• Scoop competitors on every story of any significance, not only telling them what happened, but why and how.

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent work experience
• Desire and ability to break news and to identify newsworthy events and sources
• Strong analytical and investigative‑interviewing skills
• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively
• Ability to relate comfortably to a wide range of people, in person, on the phone and online
• A clear drive to develop sources and build audience
• Solid understanding of news writing, journalistic ethics and story structure.
• Ability to leverage relationships with sources to deliver content that differentiates the organization from competitors.
• Multimedia skills, including video, photos, broadcast, on‑camera, helpful.
• Proficient with MS Office Products
• Proficient with Web‑Based Communication Platforms (Teams, Zoom, Webex, etc.)

The well‑being of our employees is paramount. For that reason, ACBJ offers a variety of rich and competitive benefits including bundled health, dental and vision plans designed to meet our employees’ needs. We also provide programs to support mental health and wellness and a generous time‑off policy in support of taking the time needed to recharge. Here are just a few of our programs:

• Paid Parental Leave
• 401K Plan with Employer Match
• Flexible Spending Accounts
• Employee Assistance Program
• Multiple Employee Dependent Scholarship Programs
• Commuter Flexible Spending
• Lifestyle Programs (Including incentives for healthy habits)
• Medical Infertility Services
• Corporate discount programs
• Employee Recognition/Service Awards
• And so much more! (Benefits coverage indicated above may be based on employee participation in benefit programs and eligibility)

This Company is an Equal Opportunity Employer. The Company considers applicants for all positions without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, gender, age, marital status, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, genetic information or any other characteristic protected by applicable city, state or federal law.

COMPENSATION: 55,000-65,000