Senior Producer (LA Times Studios)

Los Angeles Times•El Segundo, CA

About The Position

The Senior Producer leads the planning, development, and execution of complex or high-priority content and production projects from concept through delivery. This role combines sound content judgment, creative direction, and production expertise to deliver accurate, engaging, high-quality content aligned with company objectives and audience needs. The Senior Producer is accountable for the content quality, production execution, and timely delivery of assigned projects and serves as the primary production decision-maker within established guidelines. This position manages production priorities, coordinates cross-functional resources, and resolves complex content and production issues independently, escalating matters that require leadership approval. The Senior Producer supervises assigned production staff, providing direction, coaching, and performance oversight to strengthen team capabilities and results.

Requirements

9+ years of progressively responsible experience in content production, media production, or a related field.
3+ years experience supervising production staff, including delegating assignments, coaching employees, evaluating performance, and addressing performance concerns.
Demonstrated experience leading complex productions or multiple concurrent projects from concept through delivery, with accountability for quality, timelines, and production outcomes.
Strong content judgment and demonstrated ability to make independent decisions involving sensitive subject matter, production risks, and competing priorities.
Strong writing, storytelling, verbal communication, and creative direction skills.
Experience coordinating talent, production staff, technical resources, and cross-functional partners, including setting priorities and resolving resource or workflow conflicts.
Working knowledge of production workflows and tools relevant to the assigned content format.
Knowledge of applicable content standards, editorial integrity, and quality-control practices.
Ability to manage competing deadlines, resolve production issues, and adapt to changing priorities.
Ability to work flexible schedules based on production requirements.
Demonstrated experience producing professional audio and video podcasts, including weekly, seasonal, or narrative series.
Strong skills in podcast storytelling, interview development, host preparation, and script editing.
Proficiency with Adobe Audition, Premiere Pro, Riverside, or comparable audio, video, and remote recording tools.
Working knowledge of audio editing, mixing, sound design, and podcast delivery standards.
Familiarity with podcast hosting, RSS feeds, and distribution through Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.
Knowledge of journalistic sourcing, fact-checking, and editorial review practices for news and investigative programming.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor’s degree in Communications, Journalism, Media Studies, Film/Television Production, or a related field.
Experience producing content across multiple formats or distribution platforms.
Experience developing new content formats or programming initiatives.
Experience managing production budgets and allocating resources.
Experience using audience insights and performance metrics to improve content.
Experience improving production workflows and developing production teams.
Experience developing and launching original podcast series.
Experience producing investigative, documentary, or serialized narrative podcasts.
Experience integrating sponsorships or branded segments while maintaining editorial standards and applicable disclosures.
Familiarity with music and archival content permissions and podcast accessibility practices, including transcripts and captions.

Responsibilities

Lead complex or high-priority productions from concept through delivery, with accountability for content quality, execution, timelines, and effective use of approved resources and budgets.
Develop and evaluate story ideas, formats, and creative approaches that align with company priorities and engage intended audiences; translate programming or business objectives into actionable production plans.
Oversee research, scripts, outlines, and other production materials, providing final production-level review within delegated authority to ensure content is accurate, clear, compelling, and consistent with company standards.
Direct production workflows and coordinate staff, talent, technical resources, and cross-functional partners; establish priorities, allocate approved resources, and resolve competing demands across concurrent projects.
Serve as the primary production decision-maker for assigned projects, exercising independent judgment to resolve complex content and production challenges, adjust priorities, and escalate sensitive or high-impact issues that exceed delegated authority.
Supervise assigned production staff, establishing performance and quality expectations, delegating work, coaching employees, and evaluating performance; participate in hiring and disciplinary actions in partnership with management and HR.
Collaborate with distribution, marketing, and audience teams to adapt content across relevant platforms; evaluate performance against established objectives and implement improvements based on audience insights, content performance, and production results.
Partner with leadership to develop future programming and production initiatives; recommend new formats, resource needs, and workflow improvements that increase production capacity, efficiency, and content quality.
Shape podcast episode formats, narrative arcs, interview approaches, and scripts in partnership with hosts, reporters, and editors.
Direct studio, remote, and on-location podcast recordings, guiding host and guest performance and coordinating audio and video needs.
Oversee podcast post-production, including audio editing, mixing, sound design, scoring, and coordination of video edits.
Oversee episode publishing, including titles, descriptions, show notes, metadata, and release scheduling across podcast and video platforms.