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Senior Texas Reporter, Chron

Chron is seeking a Senior Texas Reporter with sharp editorial skills, a strong voice, and experience working for a digital-first newsroom. The ideal candidate has a deep understanding and appreciation for the Lone Star State. They have experience covering news, culture, history, and trends unique to Texas, and, importantly, know how to find and tell a good story while working independently. As they cover a crowded and competitive landscape, the ideal candidate will use their experience and resources to unearth off-beat stories no one else has and that Chron's audience wants. Candidates will embrace the chance to craft well-reported stories with voice; they will be able to toggle between writing well-sourced features and faster-paced daily news on interesting personalities and indelible places; and demonstrate why the saying "as goes Texas, so goes the nation" is more relevant now than ever before. Candidates based in Houston are preferred but open to candidates across Texas. 

Primary Responsibilities:

• Excellent news judgement and news writing skills
• Excellent reporting, researching, and interviewing skills
• Familiarity with the people, issues, and culture that are reshaping Texas
• High metabolism for turning out must-read stories each day
• Familiarity with national digital media landscape
• Familiarity with content management systems
• Strong copy-editing skills and knowledge of AP Style

Competencies/Critical Skills:

• Find unique angles on Texas, craft news and culture pieces that draw statewide attention
• Quickly cover newsworthy moments as they happen to capitalize on social and search traffic
• Juggle responsibilities, including reporting and writing multiple pieces daily across different topics
• Balance daily, weekly, and longer-lead deadlines, working with editor to establish your beat

Describe the most challenging aspect of this position:

• Establishing Chron's new North Texas beat, finding stories that reflect regional knowledge & curiosity
• Working with an editor to craft stories and franchises exciting to readers inside and outside of Texas
• Covering a wide variety of topics, from news and weather to North Texas culture and local drama

What type of decisions does this position refer to others for approval?

• Development of long form features, franchises, and projects

Measures of success for this position include:

• Overall traffic performance in aims of meeting daily and monthly goals
• Proven success establishing a new area of coverage for Chron's audience 
• Meeting deadlines and keeping pace with publishing schedule while improving work quality
• Mentions, links, shares, and pickups of stories from prominent third-party publications
• Reader shares and other engagement with stories on social media platforms
• Overall increase of unique in-DMA visitors and loyal in-DMA visitors

Experience, Qualifications, Technical Requirements, and Education:

• Education: Bachelor's degree in journalism, communications, or English.
• Experience: At least 5-7 years of news reporting experience, with a strong focus on covering Texas news and culture.
• Knowledge: Familiarity with key personalities and events across Texas; a deep connection to Texas culture is highly preferred.
• Technical Skills: Experience with analytics tools such as Chartbeat, Google Analytics, or Looker is preferred.
• Publishing Platforms: Proficiency in using a CMS and publishing to digital platforms is preferred.

Chron is an essential digital-first local news source serving more than 6 million unique readers a month in Houston and the surrounding region, including Galveston and the Gulf Coast. Once the digital home for the Houston Chronicle, Chron became its own distinctive site and newsroom in 2012, when HoustonChronicle.com launched. Focusing on stories that capture local culture and spark conversation, Chron covers trending sports, food and entertainment, travel, local TV personalities, real estate, space and more. Chron.com has become the go-to destination for metro and regional readers who are curious about what's new in Houston and what's affecting culture and life in the Bayou City.

About Hearst Newspapers:

With 2,500 employees across the nation, HNP encompasses a network of 24 daily and 52 weekly publications, including the San Francisco Chronicle, Houston Chronicle, San Antonio Express-News and Albany Times Union, several top digital-only news and lifestyle sites, marketing services businesses, and entertainment businesses such as King Features Syndicate. 

At HNP, we are investing in new and innovative ways to tell stories - growing newsrooms, diversifying tools, evolving platforms - to support the millions of people who trust us each month to help them make decisions, take action and be inspired.  

Be a part of something bigger - your headline awaits.

Recognizing the diverse needs of our candidates, if you are interested in applying for employment and need assistance or an accommodation to use our website or regarding the application process, please contact us by email at hnpemployment@hearst.com.  Please do not use this email address to inquire about the status of applications. We will only respond to inquiries concerning requests for a reasonable accommodation through this email address.

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