Senior Assignment Editor, Digital (PBS News)

WETA•Arlington, VA

5d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Senior Assignment Editor, Digital leads daily news production on PBS.org/Newshour and its associated platforms. This position is grounded in trending news and audience, working closely with the deputy managing editor and senior coordinating producer of video to create a new approach to multiplatform daily news. This person will drive daily news coverage, recognizing news opportunities and search potential, guiding reporters and producers to create relevant, original content. They will be responsible for writing headlines, editing copy, identifying sound bites, and prioritizing the audience. The role involves planning for major stories, making assignments that pique curiosity, and managing a small team focused on news, news video, wire, and partner content for the website. Collaboration with other digital team leads is essential for cross-platform distribution. A strong emphasis is placed on headline writing, text editing, and a relentless pursuit of better, faster, and more relevant content. A deep understanding of audience engagement and content resonance is expected to inform daily assignments and the overall strategy. The editor will work with senior digital and broadcast leadership to expand audience reach and develop new products and approaches to news. This is a leadership position on an innovative digital team requiring a creative thinker with strong journalistic skills and editorial integrity.

Requirements

Superior editorial judgement.
Strong news judgment, writing and copy editing skills.
Exceptional judgment crafting and signing off on final headlines and metadata.
Track record of using analytics and other tools to drive decision-making and set team goals.
Experience making daily assignments and high-volume editing in all formats.
As part of a small team, ability to jump into different stages of production to help move content to publish.
Experience reshaping processes and tools to attain more efficiency.
Experience managing production processes.
Demonstrated ability to shape content for different platforms and their audiences.
Project management skills with ability to balance and manage multiple priorities on daily, weekly, and long-term schedules.
Fluency with common CMS publishing systems, social media, basic video editing and website analytics software.
Strong collaborative skills with ability to develop strong relationships across departments.
Effective communication and proven leadership skills.
Experience managing reporters and/or producers, and supervising a team.
Successful execution of day-parting strategy.
Bachelor’s degree in journalism preferred.
7 or more years of experience, ideally three managing online daily news production and guiding movement of stories.
Or equivalent combination of training and experience.

Responsibilities

Assigns, supervises and edits daily news stories in text and other formats.
Uses data to plan daily news coverage on site and across platforms.
Regularly reports to digital staff on news performance and adjusts assignments accordingly.
Works closely with the digital leadership to coordinate publishing news and reporting across platforms.
Coordinate staff schedule for daily news desk coverage and fill shifts on that desk when needed, with an eye toward maximizing effective use of existing resources and the creation of distinctive, brand-consistent content.
Develop coverage plans for major events, in close consultation with senior digital and broadcast colleagues.
Identify future stories of likely interest to existing and potential PBS News audience.
Supervise producers/reporters.
Mentor and coach staff, particularly on how to shape ideas into actionable and reportable stories.
Perform related special projects or other duties as assigned.