Update: Baseball beat reporter, Orange County Register

Update on Sept. 2: We are closing this position to new applications and will begin sorting through the large number of submissions we received. Please note that we have another posting for a UCLA writer here: http://www.sportsjournalists.com/forum/threads/92499/

Todd

Original post follows:

The Orange County Register is looking for an experienced, talented baseball reporter with a passion for breaking news and an ability to tell the story beyond the obvious angle. After years of sharing baseball content, we received authorization from our new owners to hire a Dodgers writer. We want someone who does the in-depth reporting needed to get inside an issue, explain the personnel move and tell the gripping tales that are not found in a box score or a wire recap. The ideal candidate will have at least five years of experience on a major sports beat (not necessarily baseball), a strong history of enterprise reporting and the ability to develop sources in the clubhouse, the front office and in the agent ranks. Fluency in Spanish is a definite plus, though not required. Yes, we want someone adept at 140-character gems and intriguing blog posts, but our focus is on reporting and telling superb stories. And, of course, we understand that we are searching at the end of baseball's regular season, so we plan to be flexible on a start date for the right candidate.

Please send your resume and 10 writing samples (including a mix of enterprise, features, gamers and analysis) by Aug. 31 to tharmonson@ocregister.com, and put "Baseball reporter" in the subject field. Please no phone calls.

FYI: We are expecting to have more positions approved soon, including one or two on the copy desk.

Todd Harmonson
Sports Editor
The Orange County Register

 

Re: Baseball beat reporter, Orange County Register

Last time I was out in LA was 2006 and OC Register still had some heft to it. May not be headed back to the good old days, but at least it looks like OC's trying to get back some of what it lost.

Good for them!

 

Re: Baseball beat reporter, Orange County Register

Sounds like a great job. It's just interesting to me they're hiring an MLB writer this late in the season. Season will be over by the time someone gets hired. San Diego paper is doing the same with the Padres beat.

 

Re: Baseball beat reporter, Orange County Register

It probably has as much to do with next season as winding this season down. Get a new person in there to finish the year and then be able to hit the ground running at the winter meetings.

 

Re: Baseball beat reporter, Orange County Register

The explanation for the timing on this one is simple: Our new owners, who are determined to invest in the newsroom, took over at the end of July and approved some positions this week. I posted the baseball job immediately.

There are 25 positions that have been approved in the newsroom, though not all have been posted somewhere yet (including at least one for a sports copy editor ... details coming soon).

To keep track of openings at the Orange County Register, check out this site: bit.ly/ocregisterjobs

 

Re: Baseball beat reporter, Orange County Register

Have a preference on the format for clippings? My paper clippings have been lost to time but I have digital copies. Most are in .pdf format but a few are in .doc format and one is even a .jpg, if you can believe it (a third-party site picked up a blurb I wrote yet wouldn't let me cut and paste it into a file so I just did a screen grab)

 

Re: Baseball beat reporter, Orange County Register

The format doesn't matter as long as I can read the clips. Thanks for checking.

 

Re: Baseball beat reporter, Orange County Register

Norrin,

That's true of ANY job, newspapers or otherwise. If you want to worry about a year down the road, so be it. Please don't disparage someone who posts a good, legitimate job opening here that others might actually be interested in.

 

Re: Baseball beat reporter, Orange County Register

Here is the official posting on our company site: http://www.freedom.com/jobs/job_info.asp?id=2971. We also have a posting for a senior sports copy editor.