The Indiana Local News Initiative is seeking an exceptional journalist and leader to join our team as the managing editor of innovation at our new Indianapolis newsroom. The person in this role will run a team of reporters and editors focused on producing ambitious and creative content that resonates deeply with Indianapolis residents, particularly in underserved neighborhoods.
The Managing Editor, Innovation, will launch and shape our service journalism content, arts and culture coverage, visual storytelling and social media strategy. They will have several direct reports, and will work closely with reporters and editors across the newsroom to create content that is accessible and appealing to a wide audience of Indianapolis residents. Additionally, they will collaborate frequently with our editor in chief, managing editor, news, reporters, and community journalism director to ensure community input and priorities are integral to the overall strategy.
The successful candidate will be tasked with thinking outside the box, pushing the boundaries of local news formats, and helping get more journalism out to more people, including those who are not already active news consumers. They will ensure the Indianapolis newsroom is telling the full story of the city’s communities, including content that lifts up community voices, highlights Indianapolis’s vibrant arts and local culture, and including communities that have been historically ignored in mainstream narratives. This is a top leadership role with an opportunity to experiment and innovate at one of the most exciting nonprofit local news start-ups in the country.
Responsibilities & Priorities:
- Lead a team of reporters and editors to produce multiple stories every day of all lengths and formats that make the newsroom a primary source of critical news and information about Indianapolis
- Develop and launch the newsroom’s service journalism, ensuring a regular flow of vital explainers and building a robust library of evergreen guides from the service journalism reporter and other beat reporters across the newsroom
- In communication with the Editor in Chief, Audience Development Director, and others, develop and execute an effective social media strategy that reaches and actively engages a large and growing local audience
- Manage the launch of the arts and entertainment section
- Work with the Editor in Chief and market director to deepen connections to our partner news organizations and identify new opportunities to collaborate, especially on video, audio and other formats
- Ensure the strong and varied visual presentation of all newsroom content, including visual first stories and off-platform content by managing an art director and multimedia producer
- Collaborate with the Editor in Chief and Audience Development Director to ensure the content is reaching a growing audience, especially in communities traditionally underserved by the media
- Work with the Editor in Chief to develop the overall editorial strategy for a built-from-scratch news team that will inform the newsroom’s staffing plan, story formats and publishing cadence
- Recruit and supervise a news team including several reporters and editors
- Coach less experienced reporters and editors and mentor more experienced journalists to help the reporting staff reach its full potential
- Develop a voice for our journalism that is solutions-focused, and inclusive of all formats needed to make information accessible to all residents
Supervision:
- Manage the work of staff and/or independent contractors and interns and others as assigned
- Work with the Editor-in-Chief, Managing Editor of News, and Community Journalism Director to build an inclusive workplace with a culture that values all voices and offers regular training and professional development opportunities
Consider applying if you have some of these skill sets:
- Demonstrated commitment to local, public service journalism with a track record of producing and/or leading impactful work
- Entrepreneurial spirit—you can thrive in a startup environment where you are expected to learn as you go, think outside the box and build things from scratch
- Experience leading a team of reporters and editors to produce their best work
- Strong understanding and knowledge of Indianapolis neighborhoods and communities and respect for the knowledge community members can bring to the newsroom
- 5+ years experience of leadership experience in daily, local newsrooms
- Experience launching new products or developing an action plan for implementing a newsroom strategy
- Familiarity with the tools used to track audiences in newsrooms
- Stellar news judgment, editorial skills, and editing and copy editing skills
- Strong communication and writing skills
- Ability to work under deadline and prioritize work
- Adept at problem solving, detail-oriented with excellent organizational skills
- Experience with and/or strong understanding of building digital audiences
- Ability to work evenings as needed
- Interpersonal/communications skills – willing to negotiate and talk through issues in an honest and clear manner
- Ability to interact effectively with a diverse group of individuals internal and external to the newsroom
- Team player – help others and is supportive
Salary minimum: Starting $100,000, commensurate with experience
For more details click here.