Panama City FL

from jj.com:
Company: The News Herald
Position: Sports Reporter
Location: Panama City, Florida
Job Status: Full-time
Salary: Not Specified
Ad Expires: July 13, 2006
Job ID: 646837
Website: http://www.newsherald.com


Description:
The Panama City News Herald has an opening on its six-person sports staff. One to three years experience preferred. This beat is weighted with preps, but also includes staffing of all University of Florida home football games and related feature work as well as a junior college basketball program that has produced a national championship in recent years. No copydesk work is involved. The News Herald is an equal opportunity employer and offers competitive pay and excellent benefits. Send resumes and clips to Sports Editor Pat McCann at P.O. Box 1940, Panama City, FL 32402; or e-mail re-sumes to pmccann@pcnh.com. EOE - Drug-Free Workplace

They staff UF games, but not FSU?

 

This job staffs UF. I imagine somebody else at this paper staffs FSU.

 

Don't know about the paper, but you'll get see 2 Live Crew or Salt N Pepa during spring break. What more would you want?

 

I'd hold out for P.M. Dawn and Onyx.

 

SLAM!!!!

 

I have never seen anyone at the FSU games. I think they do alot of AP stories. The paper is ok, but needs alot of design work.

 

A couple of years ago, they'd cover big FSU football games, drop by basketball if Duke or UNC was in town at a convenient time, and show up at baseball regionals and super-regionals.

Anyone who applies for this job, be advised: DO NOT think you're going to be a UF beat writer. I'm sure this is a fine job at an OK paper, but the UF stuff seems like a red herring in what is more likely to be a local juco / GA job.

Also, of course, P.C.-to-Gainesville isn't exactly a dream of a commute.

And am I the only one surprised that a six-man staff has a position that doesn't feature ANY desk?

 

I was a little surprised by that, but it should make the job a lot more appealing for a lot of people.

 

Does anyone know about the staff and the editor, Pat McCann, and if its a good environment to work in?

 

Another question: Why would this paper staff all of the UF home games and only the big FSU games when Tallahassee is much closer than Gainesville? Is this still how they do it?

 

If they're staffing UF, they've grown a lot more ambitious than when I was in the Panhandle (at a different paper) in 2000-01. I don't remember them even making it to Tallahassee then, much less Gainesville. Mostly they cover preps in town and in neighboring Gulf County, along with Gulf Coast Community College. The paper circulates in the northern counties closer to the Alabama line, but they really didn't cover those schools much, even when they were playing for state titles. You'll also get occasional triathlons, golf tournaments, etc., that might give you something different for the clips file.

Also, they have had very little deadline flexibility in the past (not sure now). I remember them having to blow off NBA Finals coverage in recent years, which is pretty poor for a Central Time Zone paper.

 

If you want to know more about this position, it's probably in your better interests to inquire about it rather than rely on the misinformation posted above.

The News Herald covers Florida State and Florida home games and bowl games, but doesn't cover games on the road except in Jacksonville (Fla vs. Ga./ACC Championship). The News Herald has been covering FSU games for years and was represented at every FSU home game, the ACC Championship and the Orange Bowl this past season. The only AP stories used are road games. The coverage of Florida mirrors the coverage of FSU. News Herald reporters are expected to provide advances, gamers, sidebars and notebooks and put in more work than you'd find from many reporters at bigger publications.

The reporter hired WILL cover Florida home games (including the Florida/Georgia contest), the SEC Championship if the Gators qualify and any bowl games. The reporter will spend a lot of time covering prep events, as well as junior college athletics at Gulf Coast C.C. and Chipola College. Panama City also hosts PGA Tour qualifying events, Ironman triathlons, million-dollar billfish tournaments, professional boxing and much more --- all of which may be covered by the new hire. The News Herald is far more legit than being let on by earlier posts.