Senior Writer

Arizona State University•Tempe, AZ

3d•$70,000 - $82,000•Hybrid

About The Position

Under the general direction of the ASU News editors, the Senior Writer researches and writes high-level content for university channels, primarily the ASU News website. The role reports and produces compelling long-form and day-turn journalism about important people, programs, issues, and developments at the university, and represents ASU News and Arizona State University to university and external audiences. The Senior Writer develops a reporting beat and sources, turns complex subjects into clear and accessible prose under deadline pressure, and creates story arcs and narratives for internal and external audiences. The role produces stories across formats and works closely with editors, media relations officers, journalists, visual teams, and other colleagues to deliver engaging storytelling aligned with university priorities. The position is based in the ASU News office on the Tempe campus. It is an in-office role with up to two work-from-home days each week.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree and five years of experience appropriate to the area of assignment or field, or an equivalent combination of experience and/or training demonstrating comparable knowledge, skills, and abilities.

Nice To Haves

Experience writing multiple news stories per week, including a mix of day-turn stories and enterprise or longer-form reporting.
Experience building sources, developing a beat, and covering that beat.
Knowledge of English language structure and content, including word meanings and spelling, composition, grammar, and AP style.
Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination methods, including alternative ways to inform and entertain through written, oral, and visual media.
Knowledge of social media resources and their use in finding stories and disseminating work.
Experience organizing work and meeting varied deadlines.
Experience using computers, software programs, and applications.
Experience working on interdisciplinary teams with other journalists.
Experience creating new and informative storytelling approaches.
Experience quickly and accurately understanding high-level concepts.
Experience managing multiple ongoing reporting efforts at once.

Responsibilities

Report, research, and produce compelling long-form and day-turn journalism for ASU News about university people, programs, issues, and developments.
Work productively and creatively in a fast-paced environment while maintaining composure.
Translate complicated topics, including science and technology, engineering, energy, heat, and enterprise-level stories, into clear, accessible prose under deadline pressure.
Develop and cover a beat, maintaining regular contact with sources inside and outside university schools and departments to generate ideas and support ongoing reporting.
Develop story arcs and narratives that communicate the New American University’s story to internal and external audiences.
Execute pitched or assigned stories to generate media coverage and external awareness.
Organize material, determine emphasis, and produce stories for multiple media with advanced journalistic style and writing ability.
Work with editors during the editing process to clarify storytelling and align presentation with university priorities.
Build and maintain collaborative working relationships with colleagues, faculty, and outside constituencies.
Manage multiple complicated reporting efforts simultaneously with close attention to detail.
Develop new storytelling approaches across print, video, audio, slideshows, informational graphics, and social media.
Coordinate with media relations officers to balance university priorities with compelling storytelling.
Occasionally pitch stories directly to outside media.
Collaborate with senior editors, photojournalists, the visuals team, media relations, the social media team, and the ASU News director.
Represent ASU News and Arizona State University to university leaders, deans, faculty, staff, students, alumni, parents, applicants, and other community members.