The Seattle Times, a Pulitzer Prize-winning media company and one of the few remaining family-owned news organizations in the country, is seeking a visionary leader for our award-winning team of business journalists.
The Business Editor sets the editorial direction for our coverage of aerospace, technology, real estate and the local economy; inspires, coaches and empowers staff journalists; ensures we serve existing audiences and reach new ones; uses web analytics and other metrics to make informed coverage decisions; innovates in print and online; and brings an equity lens to everything from hiring and staff development to story framing and line editing.
The Editor will be responsible for coverage of regional economic trends as well as major Northwest players such as Boeing, Amazon, Microsoft, Costco, Starbucks and Nordstrom. The successful candidate will know how to balance breaking news, deep-dive enterprise and watchdog stories, and they will understand how to tailor high-concept and complex stories to a general readership, showing how business news affects workers, small-business owners, consumers, homebuyers/renters and other community members.
We are committed to diversity and creating an inclusive newsroom, and encourage members of traditionally underrepresented communities to apply. If your profile does not match this job description exactly, you may still be a candidate for this position. Please let us know how your skills and experience relate to the role and its objectives.
Responsibilities
- Leads a team to produce daily news and longer-term business enterprise stories for multiple platforms including the website, the print newspaper, email newsletters and social media.
- Represents the business desk at daily meetings to communicate coverage plans and coordinate with other departments.
- Works across newsroom departments to lead ambitious projects that cut broadly across disciplines and topical areas. Collaborates with visual and digital journalists to create rich print and digital experiences for readers.
- Rallies staff to respond quickly and accurately to breaking news, establishing The Seattle Times as the leading source of information in a competitive marketplace.
- Utilizes digital analytics to inform coverage that reaches audiences, wins subscribers and builds reader loyalty.
- Masters digital tools to reach users when and where they are.
- Embraces diversity in the workplace and in our coverage, thinking inclusively about everything from story framing and sourcing to word choice and presentation.
- Recruits, hires and trains with the long-term sustainability of the entire newsroom in mind. Contributes to a healthy, positive and welcoming workplace culture.
- Helps journalists prioritize and focus in a busy, high-pressure environment.
- Works occasional nights or weekends when news requires it.
- Actively uses social media and other tools to reach and engage readers.
- Represents the business section and the Seattle Times to the community and other groups as needed.
- Understands the importance of inclusive coverage, helping the team build trust among diverse communities in our region.
- Evaluates wire stories for use in the business report online and in print.
- Understands and upholds the standards, ethics and mission of journalism at The Seattle Times.
Qualifications
- 8+ years’ experience at a metropolitan daily media organization, including supervisory experience.
- Excellent team-leadership skills, with proven success recruiting, hiring, developing and retaining top talent. Passion for coaching and mentoring early-career journalists.
- Demonstrated record of successfully reporting and editing business coverage, including complex enterprise story packages as well as breaking news.
- Strong news judgment, with impeccable standards of accuracy, honesty and fairness, and knowledge of libel laws.
- Cultural competence and familiarity with inclusive journalism practices.
- Sophisticated communication skills; ability to negotiate, collaborate and engage in sometimes challenging conversations with staff, leadership and readers.
- Demonstrated skill at coaching reporters to find, shape and report stories, utilizing tools such as datasets, earnings reports and public records requests. Familiarity with laws governing bankruptcy, employment, debt and other business matters.
- Adaptability to new routines, policies and technology in an ever-changing work environment.
- Experience with WordPress and other online publishing systems and spreadsheet software such as Excel.
- Excellent grammar and language skills; reliable math skills.
- Reader engagement skills, including participation in chats, comments, social media and live events.
To apply, go here.
