General Assignment Reporter

KCUR
Kansas City , MO

Application Deadline: Sunday, Mar 20, 2022

Description

KCUR 89.3 is hiring a full time general assignment reporter to be an integral part of our growing newsroom and expand our weekend coverage. This is a great opportunity for an ambitious, flexible self-starter who wants to develop their journalism skills in a vibrant Midwest city.

This reporter will brainstorm, research, write, report and produce spot news and long-form, NPR-standard features on issues in the region; create web and social content to accompany radio stories; participate in community engagement efforts; and appear as a guest on talk shows as needed.

We’re looking for someone who can be a primary responder to breaking news, most often on a Wednesday through Sunday schedule. We envision this role having the opportunity to serve as a backup for morning and afternoon newscasts. In short, a reporter who wants to immerse themselves in reporting.

Characteristic Duties

  • Identifies, researches, pitches, writes, reports, edits and voices a wide variety of spots, two-ways, and feature stories for morning and afternoon news magazines, local talk shows, and national programs (as appropriate).
  • Contributes regular content to KCUR’s newscasts, website and social media platforms, including audio, text, extended interviews, photos, etc.
  • Anticipates and responds to breaking news.
  • Handles newscasts and/or announcing, as needed.
  • Contributes segment ideas and appears as a guest on KCUR’s local talk shows.
  • Collaborates with other KCUR reporters and talk show producers on projects.
  • Participates in all assigned fund-raising and outreach activities, on air and off.
  • Other duties as assigned.

Minimum qualifications

A Bachelor’s degree or an equivalent combination of education and experience and at least 2 years of experience from which comparable knowledge and skills can be acquired is necessary.

Preferred qualifications

  • Two years of work experience in a public media or news organization.
  • At least one year experience in a related position.
  • Bachelor’s degree in journalism, marketing, communications or a related field or equivalent combination of education, training and experience that provides the requisite knowledge, skills and abilities for this job.
  • Ability to cover breaking news as well as report through long-form, innovative storytelling.
  • Aggressive, enthusiastic, and self-motivated approach to daily news coverage.
  • Excellent writing skills, proven news judgment, and journalistic integrity.
  • Enthusiasm for the role of public media in a changing journalism environment.
  • Ability to multitask and work on diverse projects simultaneously in a fast-paced, deadline-oriented environment.
  • Demonstrated ability to take direction and work collaboratively with various personalities.
  • Ability and willingness to work a varied schedule, including weekends.
  • Experience operating a variety of broadcast equipment including audio boards, digital editing systems (e.g. Adobe Audition), field recording units, and other production equipment.
  • Experience producing content for the web and social platforms.
  • Ability to perform a writing test as part of the interview process.

Salary

$19.47 to $25.00 per hour. Commensurate with experience and education.

Send Application Materials To:

KCUR 89.3 is the NPR affiliate in Kansas City and is an editorially independent community service of the University of Missouri-Kansas City. Please apply online at UMKC’s website: https://info.umkc.edu/hr/careers/  Select “Staff Positions,” then “View Jobs,” then “View All Jobs.”  Application deadline is March 20, 2022.

For additional information about this position, please contact: