Sports Web Producer Wanted -- The Palm Beach Post

Company: The Palm Beach Post
Position: Sports Web Producer Wanted
Location: West Palm Beach, Florida
Job Status: Full-time
Salary: Negotiable
Ad Expires: January 14, 2009
Job ID: 1003206
Website: http://palmbeachpost.com

Description:
PalmBeachPost.com is seeking a Sports Web Producer. The ideal candidate has the knowledge, creativity and skills to help enhance our web site. We're looking for someone with experience in and knowledge of HTML, CSS, Flash, Photoshop and content management systems. Experience with video and audio (Final Cut, i-Movie) also is a plus. Basic knowledge of sports is a plus, but not essential. We want a creative thinker who can bring fresh ideas to the site and help guide the online coverage of major beats such as the Dolphins, Marlins, Heat and high schools, and major college programs at Miami, Florida and Florida Atlantic. The job includes keeping the sports index page updated, writing sharp, engaging headlines, updating pages and features on the site, creating new products and features as well as involvement in regular multimedia packages, such as photo galleries, audio/video features, live chats with site users, and creation of Web-exclusive content. Candidates should send resumes to Sports Editor Nick Moschella at nmoschella@pbpost.com or c/o The Palm Beach Post, P.O. Box 24700, West Palm Beach, Fl., 33416-4700

Best part of the ad: "Basic knowledge of sports is a plus, but not essential." One common problem with these producer jobs is the lack of actual journalism skills as a job requirement. How can somebody effectively produce sports content without knowing sports?

 

The average fanboy has "knowledge of sports." That's not a journalism skill at all. We shouldn't stand on our high horses and act like it's really that tough to gain a knowledge of sports that can help one do this job well. Learning such things quickly, that's a journalism skill.

More and more, knowing content management systems, photoshop, etc. has become a journalism skill for doing a particular job. Like knowing AP style, or how to design a section.

 

That's why you have to hire a journalist with computer skills, not a computer geek and teach him how to write.

 

That may be what they should do. But they don't, unfortunately.

 

I wouldn't write the job posting that way, either. I would say that basic, solid journalism skills and sports knowledge are needed along with producer skills.

On the other hand ...

The top editors in Sports are roll-up-the-sleeve types who are very experienced and knowledgeable. If the Web editor had decent journalism skills, these guys could bring him/her along and it could work.

 

What's the circ?

 

Look up circulations at http://abcas3.accessabc.com/ecirc/newsform.asp

 

Hey, at least they're hiring. That's enough cause for celebration.

 

Believe they also just hired a writer for preps. Don't know if that was advertised, though.

 

Yep, there's a new prep hire. She started last week.

And as far as the Web job ... the desk does the bulk if not all of the editing and headline writing. The Web producer just needs to know how to get the information on the site and make it look good.

Think of this as a 'design' job and not necessarily an 'editing' job, to keep it in dinosaur edition terms.

 

This is a job I'd REALLY want, and I think I'm more than qualified to fill. I've worked as a Web Producer for the Denver Broncos, a sports reporter for various weekly/daily papers in the Denver area, and I've been heavily considered for a similar gig with the Seattle Seahawks.

I'm sick of coming up short in my job search. Can anyone give me some tips to land this gig in particular?