City Reporter, Metro Vancouver - Jobs in Burnaby, BC

Job Description

At 604 Now, we go above the obvious, sharing intriguing stories and exciting opportunities for experiencing life in the Vancouver metropolitan. By creating conversations and empowering exploration, our goal is to inform readers what’s new, what’s now, and what’s next in their city.604 Now is seeking a City Reporter to cover the timely, fast-moving stories in our brand’s core coverage areas of travel, events, food, drink, and culture across Metro Vancouver.The ideal candidate has the ability to spot big stories before they blow up, advance stories with new reporting, and add meaningful contributions to the conversation. A particular interest in at least one of our coverage areas is preferred, though you’ll also need to be a generalist capable of writing stories about everything from the latest city reports to how to watch the next major meteor shower.We value writing that is clean, clear, and useful to our audience. A writer in this role must also be willing to not only accept constructive feedback and editing, but also utilize it to improve over time. The best candidate will have a good understanding of how every story should be packaged and optimized for distribution on social, search, and newsletters.Good reporting is equally important. We’re seeking someone who isn’t afraid to pick up the phone to chase down a detail that everyone else has overlooked. This person should also be hungry to own a beat by cultivating sources, paying close and consistent attention to specific coverage areas, and being first to the best stories. They should constantly seek out trusted sources for their beats and build relationships with them to bring additional authority to our coverage.A typical day will look like:

• Write 2-4 (typically 250-400 words), informative, punchy news stories every day.

• Use solid news judgment and editorial instincts to create stories that align with the values of our site, and also attract large audiences, particularly on Facebook and via search.

• Write clean and factual copy, following our process checklist.

• Source quality images and video that perfectly reflect each story's content.

• Assisting the managing editor in reviewing, researching and assigning content.

• Use third-party listening tools, but also devise your own unique and creative paths for finding, reporting, and telling the very best stories out there. This includes building and maintaining a strong rapport with sources.

• Devote consistent attention and reporting on subjects and take ownership of beats within our key coverage areas.

• Use traffic data and insights to identify story opportunities and guide your coverage.

Success looks like:

• Consistently meeting and sometimes exceeding the story output expectation.

• Turning in story drafts that are consistently free of factual errors, follow our in-house style guide, and require little-to-no copy editing.

• Regularly applying insights and other lessons gleaned from story traffic performance when evaluating potential stories to write, brainstorming ideas.

• Finding and writing stories that bring in significant traffic and contribute to our team’s ambitious goals.

• Contributing to larger projects across the department in addition to fulfilling your daily duties.

Requirements:

• At least 2 years of writing experience for a competitive digital publisher.
• Strong understand of Metro Vancouver and Fraser Valley culture.

• A fast news metabolism and an analytical mind. You jump on news quickly and are always looking for the next big story.

• Fundamental understanding of SEO best practices and an eagerness to learn more.

• An interest in storytelling across genres (explainers, narrative, Q&As, etc.) and platforms (written, video, social, etc.).

• An eagerness to do the reporting that brings fresh, original angles to stories.

• A demonstrated talent for news analysis.

• A constant commitment to writing tight, clean copy.

• Experience translating traffic data and insights into learnings.

Job Types: Full-time, Part-time, Contract, FreelanceSalary: $39,383.00-$48,135.00 per yearBenefits:

• Casual dress
• Company events
• Discounted or free food
• Flexible schedule
• On-site parking
• Work from home

Schedule:

• Monday to Friday

Experience:

• Digital Media: 2 years (required)
• Journalism: 2 years (required)

Work remotely:

• Temporarily due to COVID-19