Sports writer, Beaufort (S.C.) Gazette

[sblust]

As Jeff Kidd from the Island Packet noted in an earlier post, Zach Van Hart is moving from our sports staff to Jeff's staff. Zach was with us for two years and did a tremendous job. His exit creates an opening for us.

The Gazette is a 12,000-circulation McClatchy daily on the southern coast of South Carolina, about halfway between Charleston and Savannah, Ga., and 30 minutes from a beautiful beach on the Atlantic Ocean. It's a gorgeous part of the country.

We have a 27-person newsroom and a four-person sports staff, meaning that we're not big enough for this job to be 100 percent writing. But since we were able to add a fourth person to Sports late last year, it went from about 50-50 to about 85 percent writing, 15 percent desk. Considerable design experience isn't required, but if you have no design experience, it's going to be tough to emerge as the top candidate. There will be more than ample opportunity to get some great clips.

Zach is a perfect example of what we hope to accomplish here - provide someone with a first or second job out of college, work with them, offer lots of feedback, help them become a better overall journalist, then help them move along, hopefully to another McClatchy paper. If you give us two years, we think we can prepare you very well for your next career stop.

The job pays $28,000 - not enough to buy a Corvette but not bad for a $12K daily. We have an excellent benefits plan, including 401(k).

I worked in sports departments for 27 years in an earlier journalism life, so I probably look more closely at our sports section than some executive editors do at theirs. We have an excellent sports editor in Dave Hale, who has been at The Gazette for six years and is the primary hiring contact for this job.

Interested applicants should send a cover letter, resume, six to eight writing samples showing a variety of work and any design samples to:

Dave Hale, Sports Editor
The Beaufort Gazette
P.O. Box 399
Beaufort, SC 29901-0399

If you have questions, contact Dave at [email protected] or me at [email protected].

Steve Blust, Executive Editor
The Beaufort Gazette

 

[Steak Snabler]

Anybody know what all these guys cover? I'm assuming preps and local golf heavy like most of the papers in that part of the state?

 

[sblust]

Anybody know what all these guys cover? I'm assuming preps and local golf heavy like most of the papers in that part of the state?

Our focus is preps. We cover three high schools in Beaufort (two public, one private) and two in a neighboring community (one public, one private). Local golf is big, and there are plenty of other amateur events to cover. We had a criterium here in May, and there are many other recreational events, such as triathlons, that attract some top athletes. I realize that won't sound glamorous to everybody, but good writing is good writing, regardless of what you're covering.

We're two hours from Columbia, but since The State is now a McClatchy paper, we don't cover the University of South Carolina much unless we're doing a feature on a local kid.

If you're looking to cover pro or major-college sports, this isn't the job for you. But if you're looking for a job that will get you the clips that could lead to that type of job, it might be.

 

[luckyducky]

Jeff said in his e-mail to the rest of the applicants that he was going to forward them to Beaufort. Will you be sifting through those, or do we need to send a new packet?

 

[sblust]

Jeff said in his e-mail to the rest of the applicants that he was going to forward them to Beaufort. Will you be sifting through those, or do we need to send a new packet?

Jeff has forwarded some of the top applicants' material this way. But without knowing whether you're in that group, I would recommend sending a fresh packet to Dave Hale just to play it safe.

 

[John]

I haven't been there in years, the family always passed through on the way to Fripp Island, but Beaufort always seemed like a nice place. If you've seen The Big Chill or The Great Santini, those were filmed there.

 

[SCEditor]

I don't know Mr. Blust, but I've heard good things about him. I do know Dave Hale, and you couldn't meet a better guy (I rank him above Jeff Kidd, but only because we've had a "few" beers). This is a great job for somebody talented starting out and wanting to move up. The majority of the coaches you deal with down there are great, and you're living near the ocean, which is always good. This is really a gig much like Hilton Head, except HH probably pays a little more and their paper is a little bigger. But still, it's a good gig.

 

[TyWebb]

Met Steve briefly as a senior in college and he has never hesitated to give me advice on my way up. He seems genuine in wanting to help young writers develop. This would be a great place to start and get a lot of experience. The pay seems pretty good for a 12K at first, but cost of living there can be on the expensive side. Overall, a quality job here.

 

[Mizzougrad96]

Gorgeous city. Great fishing... Is the Shrimp Shack still there?

 

[Cousin Jeffrey]

28 isn't bad for a first job.

 

[Editude]

Another solid representation of the job and what it entails. Let's hope that becomes a trend.

 

[sblust]

Gorgeous city. Great fishing... Is the Shrimp Shack still there?

It sure is, out on St. Helena Island. World-class shrimpburgers.

 

[John]

Gorgeous city. Great fishing... Is the Shrimp Shack still there?

It sure is, out on St. Helena Island. World-class shrimpburgers.

I love that place. My family went to Fripp for a week or two every summer when I was growing up -- they still go, but I can no longer make the trip -- and the Shrimp Shack was a regular stop.

 

[Jeff Kidd]

Gorgeous city. Great fishing... Is the Shrimp Shack still there?

It sure is, out on St. Helena Island. World-class shrimpburgers.

I love that place. My family went to Fripp for a week or two every summer when I was growing up -- they still go, but I can no longer make the trip -- and the Shrimp Shack was a regular stop.

Only drawback — it's not open on Sunday or in the off-season.

Underrated plus — if you eat there a lot, you don't have to have a shrimpburger every time; they do all fried seafood well.

FYI, Dave Hale was my successor in Beaufort, and I've come to know him well since that time. He's a first-class guy who runs a good department. Ditto, Steve Blust, who also was not there during my tenure in Beaufort. I've gotten to know him a bit over the years, though. He seems as though he'd be a great guy to work for, and in fact, I've never heard anything to the contrary. He knows the biz and has a reputation for giving constructive feedback to sports writers who seek it. If you wind up with this job, you'd be nuts not to pick his brain.

 

[SCEditor]

Another solid representation of the job and what it entails. Let's hope that becomes a trend.

You should expect these things from folks in the Palmetto State. ;D

 

[credroc]

Gotta love SportsJournalists.com.
Only place I know where you can get job tips and five-star ZAGAT ratings.

 

[sblust]

We've made a hire.

Brandon Parker, a 2006 graduate of UNC Chapel Hill who is finishing up his graduate studies at Medill, will join our sports staff early next month.

Thanks to all who applied for this position. It was a solid field of candidates.

- Steve Blust, Gazette Executive Editor

 

[imjustagirl2]

We've made a hire.

Brandon Parker, a 2006 graduate of UNC Chapel Hill who is finishing up his graduate studies at Medill, will join our sports staff early next month.

Thanks to all who applied for this position. It was a solid field of candidates.

- Steve Blust, Gazette Executive Editor

I know Brandon Parker. Good luck to him in this job.

 

[MU_was_not_so_hard]

Between UNC and Medill, hopefully his parents helped him out with school.
Congrats to him, either way.

 

[Moderator1]

Great hire, to steal a line. I know Brandon and know he'll do well.