University of Washington

As a UW employee, you have a unique opportunity to change lives on our campuses, in our state and around the world. UW employees offer their boundless energy, creative problem-solving skills and dedication to build stronger minds and a healthier world.

UW faculty and staff also enjoy outstanding benefits, professional growth opportunities and unique resources in an environment noted for diversity, intellectual excitement, artistic pursuits and natural beauty.

KUOW Puget Sound Public Radio is Seattle’s NPR news station. We are an independent, nonprofit news organization producing award-winning journalism, podcasts and events in service to the 3.9 million people in our coverage area. As a self-sustaining service of the University of Washington, our mission is to create and serve a more informed public with a vision to broaden conversations and deepen understanding. We are committed to fostering a workplace of belonging, dismantling racial inequities, and amplifying underrepresented voices in our community.

We have an outstanding opportunity for an Editor to supervise and lead KUOW’s morning news team to develop and produce long and short form stories that appear on KUOW’s broadcast and digital platforms, ensuring they reflect KUOW’s audio and online standards and editorial priorities.

The Editor leads a specific team or reporters, strategically managing, organizing, and supporting content delivery, while collaborating closely with the News Director to create and serve a more informed public. At the core of editors’ work is to broaden conversations and deepen understanding in our audience. Integral to editor’s success is ensuring our coverage amplifies underrepresented voices in our community and challenges narratives that normalize systemic racism.

JOB SUCCESS SUMMARY

The Editor’s success is in managing the morning news team in researching, conceiving, developing, structuring and broadcasting relevant news stories in alignment with KUOW Mission, Vision, Values and essential transformation work to become an anti-racist organization.

Success in this role also requires commitment to work in collaboration with many departments across the station. Success includes being self-directed and being willing to jump in both as a leader and as an individual contributor.

A successful Editor will thrive in a fast-paced, constantly changing environment, have outstanding communication and people management skills, be able to make quick, strategic decisions that balance immediate, short, and long-term priorities, manage time effectively, and a bring a strong journalism background to the team.

Responsibilities include researching, conceiving, developing, structuring, writing and editing relevant news stories in alignment with KUOW Mission, Vision, Values and essential transformation work to become an anti-racist organization.

KUOW Editors must be committed to racial equity and transforming KUOW into an anti-racist organization, dismantling racial inequities, and fostering a workplace that is inclusive, supportive, and welcoming to all. Editors ensure KUOW’s coverage amplifies underrepresented voices in our community and challenge narratives that normalize systemic racism. Editors know how to earn trust, are curious, have courage, value diversity, act in service, demand integrity, always grow, and collaborate.

Maintaining positive relationships, internally within the team and other departments and externally with listeners, businesses, sources, etc. is critical to the success of this position. Editors will be skilled at building trust, clear and timely communication, and cultivating respect. Critical in this role is a finely tuned news sense and the ability to identify stories and angles.

A successful Editor will also model the values of KUOW: earning the trust of our audience through transparency and public service. Valuing diversity by seeking a multitude of perspectives and striving to be inclusive and equitable. Continuing to grow as a journalist by acting in service of the public.

KEY DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

Edit News Coverage (70%)

• Leads and supervises the morning news team to develop and direct daily local news coverage in line with outstanding journalism, developing long term features, investigative reports, short form stories, ongoing series, and breaking news that reflect KUOW’s audio and online standards and editorial priorities.
• Edits material, such as news reports, series, interviews, etc. based on established editorial guidelines and technical standards.
• Articulates the station’s editorial policy and works with the News Director to evaluate and implement editorial guidelines.
• Works with News Director to evaluate editorial needs and to shape future topics for news coverage.
• Assists in the production of other news programming, such as special reports and/or remotes.
• Works with newsroom staff to evaluate tools necessary for coverage, including research, source and technical needs.
• Works with the wide variety of internal departments across the station, including digital news and marketing, to identify diverse opportunities to engage with the KUOW audience in the community, online, and over social media.
• Maintain up-to-date knowledge of breaking news and current events and effectively triage material for broadcast and web publication. Assign, reassign, support, and manage various story development
• Develops stories that reach diverse audiences and that are accurate and reflective of as many perspectives as possible. Center underrepresented and marginalized communities most affected by story. Consistently seek diverse sourcing.
• Participates in daily and long-term coverage planning meetings.

People Management (30%)

• Recruit, mentor, coach and lead professional development for a team with a critical focus on hiring and retaining a diverse team.
• Cultivate a team culture of high motivation, collaboration, creativity, engagement, positivity, work life balance and mission-focus in a rapidly changing environment.
• Leads daily meetings with team to discuss reporting strategy for the day, tracks trends, review editing and actively collaborate with staff both as a leader and peer.
• Lead with outstanding communication skills, including the ability to have candid change conversations, conflict management, and ability to resolve issues as they come up.
• Support reporters to shine and to troubleshoot emergent challenges.
• Advise the News Director regarding staff evaluations and strategic planning.

SUPERVISION

• Position reports to the News Director.
• Position currently supervises a team of three (Morning Edition host, Morning Edition producer, General Assignment Reporter), subject to change.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS and Ability

RACIAL EQUITY

• Commitment to anti-racism
• Demonstrate the initiative to learn and enhance skills that promote anti-racism, cultural competency and an understanding of oppression and its impact.
• Participate in intentional learning efforts, including events relating to understanding and dismantling institutional racism and building cultural competency.
• Ensure BIPOC people are present as decision-makers on every team
• Actively contribute to a workplace culture of anti-racism, belonging, and inclusion that is supportive and welcoming to all.

SUCCESS PROFILE

Knowledge of:

• Full cycle best practices in reporting and journalistic ethics applying anti-racist practices.
• Strong news writing, script editing, feature production, and storytelling skills for online delivery.
• Communities, dynamics, and current issues in and around Seattle.
• Journalism best practices
• The mission of public radio journalism and a deep commitment to it.

Ability to:

• Work independently and collaboratively as part of a team.
• Motivate, inspire and lead a team through transparent best practices in delegation, prioritization, decision making, collaboration and valuing the whole person.
• Prioritize effectively and make real-time decisions in a fast-paced, quickly changing environment.
• Maintain consistent detail orientation, time management, and a high level of organization.
• Communicate proactively and effectively with a range of individuals, engage in courageous conversations, maintain trust and respect in challenging situations.
• Work independently under deadline pressure.
• Innovate, think critically, be creative, earn trust, center racial equity in everyday work.

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS

• Bachelor’s degree in Journalism or related field and 3-5 years’ relevant experience.
• Proficiency skills in writing, interviewing, scripting, researching, editing, and relevant technical skills.
• Experience supervising and training a team; in particular, experience coaching and mentoring reporters in best practices for journalism.
• Demonstrated commitment to Diversity and leadership with a racial equity and DEIAB lens.

Equivalent education/experience will substitute for all minimum qualifications except when there are legal requirements, such as a license/certification/registration.

WORKING CONDITIONS

• Duties may occasionally require evening and weekend work when necessary to meet critical deadlines.
• Cubicle/open workspace environment which may result in additional or higher levels of noise and visual distractions.
• Position is suitable/eligible for hybrid/occasional telework.

KUOW Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

At KUOW, we believe that attracting and retaining diverse staff is crucial to serving the communities where we work and live. We understand that diversity in lived experiences, perspectives, knowledge and ideas, strengthens journalism and our organization. We are dedicated to building a diverse and pluralistic staff committed to working in an anti-racist, multicultural environment that promotes racial equity and inclusivity. Women, Black, Indigenous and people of color (BIPOC), veterans and individuals with disabilities are highly encouraged to apply.

KUOW staff are employees of the University of Washington. The University of Washington and KUOW are committed to full and positive compliance with all applicable federal, state, and University of Washington laws and policies regarding discrimination based on race, color, creed, religion, national origin, citizenship, sex, pregnancy, age, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetic information, disability, or veteran status.

Application Process:

The application process for UW positions may include completion of a variety of online assessments to obtain additional information that will be used in the evaluation process. These may include Work Authorization, Cover Letter and/or others. Any assessments that you need to complete will appear on your screen as soon as you select “Apply to this position”. Once you begin an assessment, it must be completed at that time; if you do not complete the assessment, you will be prompted to do so the next time you access your “My Jobs” page. If you select to take it later, it will appear on your "My Jobs" page to take when you are ready. Please note that your application will not be reviewed, and you will not be considered for this position until all required assessments have been completed.

Committed to attracting and retaining a diverse staff, the University of Washington will honor your experiences, perspectives and unique identity. Together, our community strives to create and maintain working and learning environments that are inclusive, equitable and welcoming.

The University of Washington is an affirmative action and equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, age, protected veteran or disabled status, or genetic information.

To request disability accommodation in the application process, contact the Disability Services Office at 206-543-6450 or dso@uw.edu.

Applicants considered for this position will be required to disclose if they are the subject of any substantiated findings or current investigations related to sexual misconduct at their current employment and past employment. Disclosure is required under Washington state law.

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