News & Observer seeks a business and real estate reporter

The (Raleigh) News & Observer and The (Durham) Herald-Sun in North Carolina are looking for a smart, energetic reporter who has an abiding interest in business and real estate news.

The reporter will research and write daily stories along with deeper projects that examine the impact of business and real estate growth and expansion in our fast-growing region. The reporter will cover people, companies, key issues and trends in the business and real estate communities. Because we’re in the capital city of North Carolina, the reporter also will have an eye on the intersection of business, real estate and politics.

This is a great opportunity for a newer reporter, but is not an entry-level position. Candidates must have at least a year’s experience covering business and/or real estate. Candidates must have a college degree, preferably in business, journalism or communications. A previous newsroom internship covering business and/or real estate is a plus.

The ideal candidate’s key attributes include:

• Strict ethics and dedication to high-quality journalism
• Ability to organize and prioritize work
• Fast, but accurate
• Excellent self-editing skills
• Keen instincts in pursuing stories that will resonate with readers
• Solid understanding of audience engagement, metrics and SEO
• Experience using social media both as a reporting and an engagement tool
• A collaborative personality and a track record of working well with editors as well as working independently
• True curiosity about the topics covered in this position
• Experience building sources
• An aptitude to learn technical skills inside the newsroom such as content management systems and other tools

Key duties include:

• Finding, prioritizing and writing the most significant and the most interesting business and real estate stories of the day
• Obtaining public records and, when needed, filing public records requests expertly and efficiently
• Shooting photos and videos when needed
• Distributing work through social media platforms
• Supplying SEO keywords, headlines and other strategies to boost distribution of each story
• Meeting audience and reporting goals.

We’re moving quickly to fill this important position. Deadline for applications (resume and cover letter required) is July 15, 2019.

To apply, go here.