Sports editor -- (Flagstaff) Arizona Daily Sun

[boundforboston]

Description

The Arizona Daily Sun has an immediate opening for a Sports Editor. This is a very demanding position working in a college city of 65,000 with three high schools. The editor position is the only full time position in the Sports Department. A half-time reporter and several correspondents report to the editor. The successful applicant will be a versatile and productive reporter with the ability to cover a wide range of prep and college sports with depth and flair. Experience in running a string of correspondent is a plus. Use of social media in reporting and engaging readers is a must.


The position is salaried and requires reliable transportation and a flexible schedule, including work on weekends, evenings and holidays. Please upload clips, resume, references, and a cover letter with your application. Qualified candidates apply online at www.azdailysun.com/workhere/.


Qualifications


A higher education degree in a relevant field is required
Must have two years of sports beat writing and the
Demonstrated ability to manage staff
Must have reliable transportation and proof of motor vehicle insurance
A drug and background test are required

Benefits:



Excellent health care benefits
401k with matching
Paid time off

Who We Are



The Arizona Daily Sun is a division of Lee Enterprises, a leading provider of local news, information and advertising in primarily midsize markets, with 46 daily newspapers and a joint interest in four others, rapidly growing digital products and nearly 300 specialty publications in 23 states. Learn more about us on our website www.azdailysun.com . We are an equal opportunity employer and drug-free workplace. All applicants considered for employment must pass a post-offer drug screen and background check prior to commencing employment.

 

[CarlSpackler]

This seems like an awfully big market for just one full-time sports person. But I guess these are the times we live in. ****imes.

 

[BrianM]

Seriously, how much coverage "depth" can any reporter provide, as a one-man shop in a city as big as Flagstaff?

 

[MileHigh]

Well, it's not as big as one would think, though there should be more than full-timer (obviously). And there will be travel, obviously.

 

[gravehunter]

Isn't this a 1 1/2-man shop with stringers?

 

[Jim_Carty]

When I worked there from 1990 to 1993, we had three full-timers in sports. It was a great place to start a career. Obviously a different gig now.

 

[pressboxer]

The ad makes it sound like it's mostly a writing position. No mention of layout or photography. That would make it slightly (but only slightly) easier to handle. In a situation like this, I would think the SE would need to be in the office most nights compiling everything sent in by the stringers.

 

[HanSenSE]

When I worked there from 1990 to 1993, we had three full-timers in sports. It was a great place to start a career. Obviously a different gig now.

It's the state of Lee. Need more be said? But I would think having a mid-major FCS school in town would rate a full-timer on that beat.

The ad makes it sound like it's mostly a writing position. No mention of layout or photography. That would make it slightly (but only slightly) easier to handle. In a situation like this, I would think the SE would need to be in the office most nights compiling everything sent in by the stringers.

Supposedly, Lee is moving toward design centers. Of course, every time I ask how it works, no one has answers.

 

[Cosmo]

When I worked there from 1990 to 1993, we had three full-timers in sports. It was a great place to start a career. Obviously a different gig now.

I worked there from 1997-2005, right as Lee was coming into the picture. We used to cover a lot of ground with a three-man staff. Once I left, they went to a universal desk, and then they started whittling away at the full-time staff to where it is now.

As Carty pointed out, it's a much different gig than it used to be. We used to travel regularly with NAU football and basketball, and as far as I can tell, that no longer happens. There used to be opportunities to cover the Phoenix pro sports teams -- albeit on your own dime -- but those are gone now. This is now an aggressively hyper-local section, main focus on high schools and the local running scene and home NAU events. Flagstaff is a great city, but it's isolated and expensive. I can't imagine the salary for the sports editor has increased much in the years since I left, though I could be wrong on that. For a city of 65,000, the circ of the paper is not very big. It was around 12,000 when I left. I doubt it's grown much.

 

[Mark2010]

This seems like an awfully big market for just one full-time sports person. But I guess these are the times we live in. ****imes.

As recently as three years ago, they had three full-timers. Our paper (also Lee Enterprises) used to trade out stories with them on Big Sky Conference stuff. (Flagstaff is home to Northern Arizona University.)

Yeah, covering a Big Sky school --- even if you don't travel with them --- and the high schools is a lot for one person to handle.

 

[spikechiquet]

I know the SE that is leaving this gig...and it looked liked he worked his ass off while he was there. So, I would say it will be a very demanding job.

 

[CarlSpackler]

I started in a market one-third the size with three times the manpower, and that was less than a decade ago. Sadly, we also had higher circulation. 12,000 is a pretty sorry number. Had no idea that was the case. But having been a sports editor in the past and now covering a serious FCS program in the present... yeah, that's a hell of a lot to put both on one plate.

 

[gravehunter]

Cody Bashore is the new SE here. He was already doing work at this paper, as a stringer perhaps? His old bylines carried the "Special to the..." tag.

 

[mpcincal]

When I worked there from 1990 to 1993, we had three full-timers in sports. It was a great place to start a career. Obviously a different gig now.

It's the state of Lee. Need more be said? But I would think having a mid-major FCS school in town would rate a full-timer on that beat.

The ad makes it sound like it's mostly a writing position. No mention of layout or photography. That would make it slightly (but only slightly) easier to handle. In a situation like this, I would think the SE would need to be in the office most nights compiling everything sent in by the stringers.

Supposedly, Lee is moving toward design centers. Of course, every time I ask how it works, no one has answers.

It's going to happen soon, HanSense. At my shop, the word it that it's going into action in February; not much else is know though.

 

[HanSenSE]

When I worked there from 1990 to 1993, we had three full-timers in sports. It was a great place to start a career. Obviously a different gig now.

It's the state of Lee. Need more be said? But I would think having a mid-major FCS school in town would rate a full-timer on that beat.

The ad makes it sound like it's mostly a writing position. No mention of layout or photography. That would make it slightly (but only slightly) easier to handle. In a situation like this, I would think the SE would need to be in the office most nights compiling everything sent in by the stringers.

Supposedly, Lee is moving toward design centers. Of course, every time I ask how it works, no one has answers.

It's going to happen soon, HanSense. At my shop, the word it that it's going into action in February; not much else is know though.

I heard the same within the last week or so. Thanks.

 

[Mark2010]

When I worked there from 1990 to 1993, we had three full-timers in sports. It was a great place to start a career. Obviously a different gig now.

It's the state of Lee. Need more be said? But I would think having a mid-major FCS school in town would rate a full-timer on that beat.

The ad makes it sound like it's mostly a writing position. No mention of layout or photography. That would make it slightly (but only slightly) easier to handle. In a situation like this, I would think the SE would need to be in the office most nights compiling everything sent in by the stringers.

Supposedly, Lee is moving toward design centers. Of course, every time I ask how it works, no one has answers.

It's going to happen soon, HanSense. At my shop, the word it that it's going into action in February; not much else is know though.

Been hearing that for a while (like two years) now. Are they putting one out west, like Gannett? They have enough properties in the western US that it would make sense. Otherwise, the poor folks in Munster or Davenport are going to working until 2 and 3 am.

It COULD turn out to be a positive twist, if it allows the local people to focus on writing and editing. After all, there are only so many hours in a day and if you have to paginate your own stuff in addition to writing it, less gets done.

 

[FreddiePatek]

This shop and its job description has catastrophic-career-ending-burnout written all over it.

 

[HanSenSE]

Latest word for us seems to be March, preceded by switching over to PCs like the rest of Lee. As a pm, I wonder what our deadlines will be like as well.

 

[Mark2010]

Do you paginate your own pages now? I can honestly see pluses and minuses for this, depending on who you are and how the whole thing is set up.

 

[mpcincal]

When I worked there from 1990 to 1993, we had three full-timers in sports. It was a great place to start a career. Obviously a different gig now.

It's the state of Lee. Need more be said? But I would think having a mid-major FCS school in town would rate a full-timer on that beat.

The ad makes it sound like it's mostly a writing position. No mention of layout or photography. That would make it slightly (but only slightly) easier to handle. In a situation like this, I would think the SE would need to be in the office most nights compiling everything sent in by the stringers.

Supposedly, Lee is moving toward design centers. Of course, every time I ask how it works, no one has answers.

It's going to happen soon, HanSense. At my shop, the word it that it's going into action in February; not much else is know though.

Been hearing that for a while (like two years) now. Are they putting one out west, like Gannett? They have enough properties in the western US that it would make sense. Otherwise, the poor folks in Munster or Davenport are going to working until 2 and 3 am.

It COULD turn out to be a positive twist, if it allows the local people to focus on writing and editing. After all, there are only so many hours in a day and if you have to paginate your own stuff in addition to writing it, less gets done.

No design centers out West, Mark. We're on the West Coast and the one thing we know is that our page production is going to be done in Munster.