Sports Writer/Web Coordinator -- Huntsville (Ala.) Times,

The Huntsville Times, a 50K circulation daily in northern Alabama, is looking for a full-time sports staffer to help us expand our online and local presence.

Ideal candidates have a technological and social media savvy. The position will be responsible for promoting and planning our web content on al.com, with an emphasis on our high school and community sports teams. A successful candidate should be comfortable working with web publishing software (HTML, as well as familiarity with CSS and Movable Type or similar blogging software), basic video (shooting and editing) and engaging readers online with Twitter, Facebook and other social networking sites. An understanding of design software, Quark or InDesign, is a plus.

Candidates also should have strong writing skills and will be counted on to produce preps enterprise, features and game recaps for our more than 40 area high schools, as well as ensuring content and results are posted on al.com’s High School Sports Network.

This is not a copy-and-paste job; we’re looking for energized, enthusiastic candidates with their own ideas on how to help us connect with readers online and the vision to make our efforts successful.

Requirements:

A college degree in journalism or a related field and two years relevant experience. Strong writing and communication skills. Demonstrated experience writing and packaging digital content. Must be able to work a flexible schedule.

Contact:

Candidates may send a cover letter, resume, work samples and references to The Huntsville Times: ATTN Sports Editor John Turner, 2317 Memorial Parkway SW, Huntsville, AL 35801. PDFs may be e-mailed to john.turner@htimes.com. No phone calls, please.

Per: http://www.journalismjobs.com/Job_Listing.cfm?JobID=1219852

 

Sounds like a good gig.

 

Things must be looking up at the Times after two rounds of buyouts in the last 18 months.

 

I say this with an admitted bias, but John Turner not only knows his shit and is one of the hardest workers you'll ever meet, but is also a blast to work with.

 

And a haircut makes him look much less like Danny Noonan. Seriously though, Turner does good work and I'm sure would be great to work for.

 

Hmmmm ....

rb

 

Definitely applying. Thanks for posting.
It's this type of job that makes me so thankful I'm a closet computer nerd and minored in IT.

 

This.

Seriously, this is a young guy with lots of talent and fresh ideas. A real up-and-comer.

If I lived near Alabama (and if divorce lawyers weren't so damn expensive) ...

 

It's nice to see this one open. But the two rounds of buyouts should be a cause of some concern.

 

How quickly are they looking to fill the position?

 

this likely will be a good gig, but the website al.com, which includes content from h-ville, mobile and b'ham, is a gigantic cluster unless its alabama or auburn content.
it used to be relatively easy to navigate. now, not so much.

 

I'm with 2-under. The site has no aesthetics to it, but that being said, looks like every other every other site out of that chain.

If you're going to make your mark, it'll have to come in what you do video wise, but you won't have a lot to live up to with B'ham where standing in a lobby in front of a camera is the standard.

As far as engaging on Twitter, I'm convinced that is very hit or miss. At least in how you measure it. Is that measured in retweets? Is it measure in @'s? Is it measured simply in followers, which in my opinion is not a great way to measure anything, though many think it is. There are plenty of teens on Twitter that refollow anybody who follows them, and I know some that use that technique to bloat their numbers.

It's a great position, and I wish more papers would/could have a similar slot. I just don't know how you quantify the worth of that job. Good luck, HuntsVegas.