What are the responsibilities and job description for the Creative Producer, The National News Desk position at Sinclair Broadcast Group?
Are you ready to break the myth that news is boring and join a creative team looking to innovate how we keep people informed about the issues that matter? If so, this is the role for you!
As the centralized hub of Sinclair's vast network of stations, The National News Desk examines local stories and the impact they have on a larger scale. With a focus on news, politics, science, and weather, our team's mission is to go beyond basic storytelling and find unique and impactful ways to connect with our audiences where they are, through the types of content they like to consume. We are a passionate group of seasoned journalists eager to grow our content offering on-site, on social, and in short-form video. In this role you will be developing and producing highly sharable original content in all mediums for YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok, and also act as the voice of your pieces from our various accounts.
If you apply, you should come to this role with an immense curiosity about the world around you, as well as the visual storytelling skills to capture the attention of audiences of all ages. You must be willing to push boundaries and encourage those around you to step outside of their comfort zone. We are not looking for someone to produce traditional stands-ups and VOSOTs, we are looking for someone with creative foresight to make us first in the industry as new approaches to storytelling evolve. To succeed in this role, you must be well-versed in the language of the internet, hyperaware of social trends, and possess the ability to articulate a creative vision.
Responsibilities include, but not limited to:
- Maintain an active finger on the pulse of society, and create and monitor daily trend and listening reports to identify fresh and original ideas for potential coverage
- Attend daily Content Strategy Sessions, and independently pitch/produce original digital content that takes a deeper look at the issues, stories, and events happening that day
- Pitch, script, and edit broadcast-adjacent original social video content
- Shoot/Direct/Edit both field-based and in-studio content when necessary
- Assist reporters and anchors in the creation of native social content
- Mentor junior team members in all aspects of development, production, and community management
- Work in coordination with Creative Service to develop and design social graphics that maintain brand guidelines through all video and social content
- Coordinate with local news teams on coverage plans when necessitated by breaking news or major events.
- Review social and digital analytics and translate them into actionable steps to increase engagement and content performance
Preferred Experience:
- BA in Film/Television/Video Production/Journalism and/or minor in Graphic Design
- Experience in news or other editorial background required
- Minimum 5-7 years hands-on experience in all aspects of video production including shooting, lighting, sound recording & editing, and ability to operate all associated equipment.
- Operational knowledge of Adobe Creative Suite (Premiere, Premiere Rush, Photoshop, After Effects, etc), and other creative software is a must
- A strong preference for applicants with experience in front of the camera, and a strong personality to match
- This position requires impeccable spelling and grammar, a deep understanding of social media trends and what works on each platform, vertical video editing skills, and the ability to capture well composed videos on a phone
- Must be highly motivated, extremely organized, and come to the position with a uniquely creative mind
- Late-night, early-morning, weekend, and holiday work may occur depending on the news cycle
- Must be comfortable with ambiguity and change that may come about as our team evolves over time
- All applications must include links to reels/websites of recent projects.
