Job Description

Position Summary

The Morning Journal, a subsidiary of MediaNews Group, is seeking a Sports Reporter to join the team! You’ll work remotely in the Lorain County, Ohio with a fantastic team of dedicated journalists committed to quality, community journalism. Come be a part of our success story!

Job Duties

• Attend high school and college sports events in the market. Write reports and feature stories on content within the beat meeting daily deadlines.

• Conduct research and develop stories to the utmost accuracy preserving credibility and trust of The Morning Journal.

• Interview coaches, athletes and fans to ensure stories reported are robust.

• Gather, prepare and post score results for the newspaper and online.

• Construct local round-ups/agate and prepare weekly coverage schedule.

• Proofread and edit stories, contributor submissions and press releases by daily deadline.

• Demonstrate enthusiasm for local sports beat and have a curious nature to find captivating stories of interest to local readers.

• Use social media to engage audience and drive readership digitally and in print. This reporter will regularly take their own photographs, take videos and live tweet sports events.

Work Experience

• Some prior work experience at a daily, weekly, community or college newspaper is required.

• Some prior work experience in news reporting, news writing, shooting video, taking photographs and using social media is required.

Education Requirements

• High school diploma or equivalent required.

• Some college or a degree in journalism, communication or related field is preferred.

Skills & Competencies

• Knowledge of sports and enthusiastic about reporting on a local sports beat.

• Strong command of the English language including excellent grammatical skills necessary for writing and editing.

• Strong proficiency in using technology including PCs, social media platforms and smart phones. Familiarity with Adobe is helpful. Must have an ability and interest in taking their own photos and videos to accompany stories.

• Time management skills are critical. This position will be required to attend events, write stories, capture multi-media, edit content and post stories by daily deadlines.

• Able to work autonomously and collaborate with other journalists.

• Must be able to multitask and organize ideas, thoughts and work throughout the day, week and various sports seasons.

Travel

• 50% local travel by personal vehicle required. Travel will occur in and around Lorain County as required to attend events, meet with contacts, sources and press conferences.

Other Requirements

• This position is remote-based but the person needs to live in or around the Lorain County, Ohio area. This is required in order to regularly attend sports events, press conferences and meetings that occur in the market as part of day-to-day duties. This reporter may be required to periodically come to the office for team meetings or to meet with their Editor.

• The reporter must be flexible to work evenings, weekend or holidays as needed to cover various sports events and breaking news.

Pay & Benefits

• Competitive compensation with a comprehensive benefits package. Benefits program includes: Medical insurance, dental insurance, vision insurance, life insurance, 401(k) plan, Dependent Care FSA, HSA with eligible health plan election, Employee Assistance Program, Pet Insurance and employee discounts.

• Paid time off benefits including vacation, personal, sick and company-recognized holidays.

Company Information

The Morning Journal is a MediaNews Group company. We are the newspaper of record in the communities that we serve, including Lorain County, Ohio. Readers turn to us for all the news and information that matters to them. We provide news and information to communities across the country through our print editions, websites, and apps, as well as our suite of digital marketing solutions.

In addition to our print products, we are a client-centric digital organization that brings scale, precision, and sophistication to digital marketing. Leveraging the belief that people matter as much as technology, our suite of products, including Adtaxi, helps advertisers solves complex marketing challenges with custom, performance-driven solutions.

MediaNews Group offers news reporting and third party advertising and marketing opportunities through its multi-platform products which include: web, mobile, tablet, and print. We are one of the largest media groups in the U.S., serving high-value audiences and connecting advertisers to them. MNG publishes award-winning content (49 Pulitzers) that amasses and engages a nationwide audience via 800 multi-media platforms including web, mobile, social, and print. We are transforming the news industry.