News, photo openings in Vicksburg, Miss.

Yeah, I know this board is mainly for sports jobs. Still figured there might be someone interested or in need, or know someone who wants or needs a job. We've had openings for a news reporter and a photographer for a while now and the ME was talking this morning about how we haven't gotten many resumés.
Feel free to PM me for info about the paper and town.
Here's the reporter ad from the Mississippi Press Association web site. Substiute "photojournalist" for "reporter" where applicable:

 

Vicksburg to New Orleans is a hard 3 1/2 hours, and Vicksburg to Memphis is four hours easy. But it is close to Jackson; that much is true.

 

And we are along an interstate, so that makes the travel much easier. Unless you take Hwy. 61 to Memphis, there's not a lot of two-lane, back-road driving to the bigger cities.
You won't want to take those trips every weekend, but if you want to get away for a day or two it's not too bad a drive.

 

My cousin and her husband are good friends with the publisher of the Post, and they tell me it's about as stable as any newspaper can be in these perilous times.

And Vicksburg is one of the nicer small towns in the South, with a ton of history.

 

We've certainly been blessed. There have been some people who left, and their positions weren't filled, or were slow to be filled, but we haven't had any layoffs. I feel it's safe to say being family-owned has had a lot to do with that. The paper has been in the publisher's family since it was founded in 1883. That might change within the next decade as the publisher nears retirement, but he's said he doesn't want to sell just for the sake of selling. He's a great guy. We're lucky to have him.

 

I'm also at a family-owned paper in Mississippi. Imagine that!

The ad mentions that the hired person will own "a beat." Do you want to give any information on what that beat is, is it undecided right now or do you want to hold that information until the interviews?

 

I'm just a messenger here. I'm nowhere near having any sort of authority on a hiring decision or being able to tell you exactly what beat you'll be working.
But, based on my own knowledge, I'll assume the beat is one of the usual news beats -- schools, city, crime/cops, etc. I think the woman whose job this was, was working the schools beat when she left. However, the beats seem to be rotated every few months. Since we're down a couple bodies right now, everyone is doing a little of everything at the moment.
You'll also cross over on weekends, having to make crime calls and cover wrecks, things like that.
I think the newsies take turns working weekends. This is our fourth reporter position, so figure you'll work one a month on average. Unless something major happens, or you have to cover the occasional parade or event, weekends generally involve a lot of sitting around listening to the scanner and catching up on any stories you need to write. The editors and production department handle layout and design.

 

Great catfish, fried dill pickles and gambling on the river. And Vicksburg is the only place in the country where you can shop at the Battle Field Mall.

 

If you are into that sort of thing.

 

Not anymore. They closed Battlefield Mall in the late 80s or early 90s and finally tore it down a few years ago. It's a car dealership now. You can, however, stay at the Battlefield Inn if you so choose.

 

There is the Vicksburg Mall, formerly Pemberton Mall. And there is the military park, which is very nice.

An update...we have a photog candidate interviewing soon with our ME. But that doesn't mean white smoke is billowing from our chimney. Candidates for both positions are encouraged to apply. We've only had a few resumes submitted for both so far.

We've had no layoffs, no furloughs and both positions will hit the deck running. No design or layout for either, which is nice. The cost of living here is inexpensive and there is a fairly nice downtown with a few bars. And the aforementioned riverboat gambling.

 

I worked at Vicksburg in 1994-95 as Brian Darden was leaving the high school gridiron and heading to be a Tennessee Vol.
Lucky for me, I was handed the beat and able to be at every one of Steve McNair's home games with Alcorn State in that magical fall campaign that nearly netted him the Heisman. He and others with the Braves would come up from Lorman for midweek press conferences/meals at a local Vicksburg hotel.
Charlie Mitchell and Karen Gamble ran the newsroom like pros and we had a great staff then in news and sports, despite my shortcomings. The SE today is newside in Tupelo and others are now working for Internet sites, large-circulation publications and one went on to now frequent National Geographic/GQ/others.
God bless you, Matt Teague.

I only wish I could have worked and lived there longer. Looking back, I didn't appreciate that job enough when I had it.
The Run Through History road race traverses the hilly and historic Vicksburg military cemetery, and is an event unto itself.
Any neophyte in the business would do well to start their career here. The history of the town and region is something to immerse yourself in.
Taking Highway 61 northward, up into the Delta, is an awesome, relaxing drive.
Live inside history ... go after one of these jobs.
You won't regret it.