The Kent Stater/KSU Buzz

Spring 2015 Editors Application

Applications due: 5 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2014 by email to Matthew Merchant
(mmercha1@kent.edu) and Mitch McKenney (mmckenne@kent.edu). Send copies to
BOTH, with the subject line (LASTNAMEFIRST NAME_POSITION).
Name:
Email:
Phone:
Graduation date:
Major:
Minor:
Spring 2015 credit hours (Please attach a copy of your schedule.):
Please list all other outside jobs and (if you can) the general schedule of the work:
GPA:
What are you applying for (in priority)? Job descriptions are listed below.
1.)
2.)
3.)
Requirements:
- Must attend one mandatory meetings for training week.
- Must be able to work at least one night and one day shift every week next semester.
- Must attend a daily 5 p.m. planning meeting and a weekly Sunday meeting at 4 p.m.
(Senior enterprise reporters and enterprise reporters should expect to meet with their
respective editors at least once a week outside of regularly planned meeting to develop
content for centerpieces and feature stories. We may also be holding a meeting at the
end of each week to reflect and plan for the following week.
- Must be available for training week during the week before classes begin in the fall.

Please take time to answer the following questions. Your input, suggestions and ideas are
valuable.
1. Please attach an up-to-date resume, or list all previous jobs on the Stater or other
student media and/or other journalism experience (not counting high school).
2. What ideas do you have for your desired position? Pay special attention to how this
position can help make our coverage more web-first (with a focus on KentWired for
breaking news and event coverage).
3. What makes you the best person for the position?
4. What do you think will be your greatest challenges in that position? How will you
overcome them?
5. Briefly give three student life and/or investigative story ideas. Why would college
students be interested in reading them?
6. How will you encourage your reporters to produce more multimedia content?
7. How can we develop our print products two newspapers and one entertainment
paper the best possible?
8. How can you work closely with KentWired and TV2 to make sure web-content has
multimedia elements and content is going up in a timely manner?
9. Are you involved or have you been involved in any organizations that would pose a
conflict of interest with this job? Also, if youre planning to be involved with other
student media, please specify the publications and your duties.
10. Please answer additional questions below specific to the job or jobs youre applying
for.

Job descriptions:

Senior Editor
This person will assign and plan content for centerpiece stories. He or she will also
be in charge of the senior enterprise reporters. Meeting with photo and design will
be crucial in planning these centerpiece stories and this editor should hold weekly
meetings to do so. He or she will also be responsible for thinking of web-only
content to go with centerpiece stories as well. The special projects editor must work
with the other editors to see if they have centerpiece-worthy stories in the works as
well. This person will supervise night production of the Stater once a week. Reports to
managing editor.
11. How can you work with design, photo and web to make centerpiece stories
thorough and interesting?
12. How will you push enterprise reporters to always dig deeper with their stories?
13. How can we improve the visual appeal of the front page of the paper?

News Editor
This person will lead the organization of news coverage, in addition to planning longterm coverage for special projects or features. He or she will be responsible for
monitoring news and tracking incoming story ideas and making sure that these are
covered. The news editor will be responsible for managing the news staff of up to 10
principal reporters from different backgrounds, conducting weekly meetings, coaching
reporters and communicating regularly with the other newsroom leaders. This person will
supervise night production of the Stater once a week. Reports to the managing editor.
11. Our coverage has shifted to a lot of event coverage and far less issue-based reporting.
How can your leadership reverse this trend?
12. How will you get reporters to cover their beats more thoroughly?
13. Scenario: Important news happened today. Its 6 p.m. and you cant get ahold of the
reporter who was supposed to be writing the article. What do you do?
14. How can you work to get coverage on KentWired as soon as possible after something
happens? (This includes event coverage and other daily happenings, not just breaking
news and also includes weekend coverage.)

Assigning Editors (4-5)

These people will work primarily with the print beat reporting classes and the news
correspondents. They will be responsible for helping assign stories, coaching reporters
and editing stories, in addition to communicating regularly with newsroom leaders and

the print beat professors. Most importantly, they will be responsible for getting updates
posted on KentWired as soon as possible. They will work with teachers, reporters and
editors to get a visual/multimedia element (photo, video, audio, timeline, graphic, etc.) as
much as possible. Assigning editors will also supervise night production of the Stater
once a week. Report to the managing editors and KentWired editor.
11. How will you manage print beat reporters who may be resistant to working for the
Stater?
12. How will you get reporters to cover their beats more thoroughly than they have in the
past?
13. Scenario: Important news happened today. Its 6 p.m. and you cant get ahold of the
reporter who was supposed to be writing the article. What do you do?
14. How can you work to get coverage on KentWired as soon as possible after something
happens? (This includes event coverage and other daily happenings, not just breaking
news and also includes weekend coverage.)

Features Editor
The features editor will supervise the writing and production of the features page, which
runs on Wednesdays each week in KSUBuzz. He or she should establish weekly sections
to gain reader familiarity. The features editor will lead a staff of feature writers, who will
produce entertainment, fashion and student life content as well as traditional features and
profiles. He or she should also encourage writers to try using multimedia, such as doing
podcasts or video blogs to accompany their pieces. Reports to the managing editor.
11. Critique this semesters KSUBuzz. What worked? What needs improvement?
12. I am considering regular special sections of Buzz, focusing on various topics such as
health, technology, environment, travel, science etc. Much like the Sunday edition of
metro newspapers have additional sections. How would you make this work?
13. How do we increase the partnership between Thursdays printed version of KSUBuzz
and the website?
14. How can we include more feature stories in our daily coverage, instead of just having
them in KSUBuzz?

Senior Reporters
Instead of covering a specific beat, this team will work with the senior editor, the photo
staff and design desk to complete vibrant, planned centerpiece stories. In addition to
producing regular centerpieces, senior enterprise reporters will work on 2-5
investigation projects throughout the semester. The topic and number of these
projects will be decided between the reporter, special projects editor, managing

editor and editor in chief, according to the enterprise reporters interests. These
reporters will share the same authority and a similar pay rate as the assigning editors.
These reporters will write many of our front-page centerpieces, and their bylines will be
above some of our most innovative and popular projects. They will also be required to
produce at least two multimedia projects. Ideally, these reporters should have worked
as an editor in some capacity or as a principal reporter. They will be required to attend
maestro sessions each week to plan out stories and projects. They may also be asked to
supervise during one daily news shift each week. Report to the senior editor.
11. Critique the kinds of centerpieces you see in the Stater. What works, what doesnt?
12. What could the enterprise team do to produce more hard-hitting, current stories while
maintaining our readers interest?
13. What kind of investigations would you be interested in tackling?
14. How can you help plan and execute visuals for print, but also extra web-content for
each of your centerpiece stories?

City Editor
This person will work primarily with the Reporting Public Affairs class to ensure
adequate and appropriate coverage of city affairs. He or she will be responsible for
monitoring city news, helping assign stories, coaching reporters and editing stories, in
addition to communicating regularly with the newsroom leaders, the TV2 editor in the
class and the RPA professors. He or she will work with teachers, reporters and editors to
get visuals/multimedia elements (photo, video, audio, timeline, graphic, etc.) as much as
possible. The city editor should also keep up-to-date with Kent issues, especially
student-oriented ones. The city editor will also supervise night production of the Stater
once a week. Reports to the managing editor.
11. Critique this semesters city coverage. What worked, what needs to be improved?
12. What will you do to monitor and get ahead of city news?
13. Scenario: Important news happened today. Its 6 p.m. and you cant get ahold of the
reporter who was supposed to be writing the article. What do you do?
14. How can you work to get coverage on KentWired as soon as possible after something
happens? (This includes event coverage and other daily happenings, not just breaking
news and also includes weekend coverage.)

Sports Editor
The sports editor will run our sports coverage for both KentWired and the Stater. This
person will ensure KentWired is updated with sports coverage on days the Stater does not

publish a sports page. In addition to game updates, this editor will assign sports enterprise
stories, features and profiles, and will work closely with the special projects editor to plan
in-depth centerpieces. He or she will be responsible for managing the sports staff,
conducting weekly meetings and communicating regularly with the other newsroom
leaders. The sports editor will also supervise night production of the Stater once a week.
The sports editor must make sure every game story is posted within an hour of the end of
the event. He or she will also make sure breaking news is posted as soon as possible. This
person will also help think ahead about ways to enhance centerpieces and other major
stories with content exclusive to KentWired. These will be noted on the budget. Reports
to the managing editor.
11. Critique this semesters sports coverage. What did we do well? What needs
improvement?
12. What can you do to lead the coverage away from lengthy previews and toward more
alternative story formats, features and analysis?
14. How can you work to get coverage on KentWired as soon as possible after something
happens? (This includes event coverage and other daily happenings, not just breaking
news and also includes weekend coverage.)

Photo Editor
The photo editors primary responsibility is to plan photo coverage, supervise other
photographers and work to make sure the most interesting photos get into the Stater and
on the Web. This person will also ensure that KentWired has slideshows and videos
whenever possible, and will actively assign multimedia. He or she should work with
editors, reporters and designers early in the reporting process to plan packages instead of
waiting for photo requests. This person must attend a maestro session roughly one week
before a centerpiece runs to determine the best photo options for the story.
Even if a story doesnt run in the paper, the photo editor should work to get a visual for
the online version. When only one photo can fit in the paper, the photo editor will ensure
that more photos get online. In most cases, stories should contain slideshows. The photo
editor may also shoot pictures, but that is a secondary part of his or her job. He or she
will also supervise the photo and video production side for the Stater (at night) and
KentWired (when needed) a few times each week. Reports directly to the managing
editor AND the special projects editor.
11. What can be done to improve communication between the photo staff, assigning
editors and reporters?
12. What can photographers do to help produce and drive content?
14. How can the photos staff plan to take on more multimedia projects this semester?

Assistant Photo Editor

The assistant photo editor will help the photo editor supervise the other photographers
and make sure the most interesting photos get into the Stater. He or she should help keep
track of all upcoming stories and photos. The assistant photo editor will also help
determine which photos will go in the paper and evaluate photo assignments. He or she
will also shoot pictures when needed and help supervise night production. This person
also must help encourage other photographers, including him or herself, to broaden their
skill sets by learning to shoot video. Reports to the photo editor.
11. What can be done to improve communication between the photo staff, assigning
editors and reporters?
12. What can photographers do to help produce and drive content?
14. How can the photos staff plan to take on more multimedia projects this semester?

Design Director
The design director will oversee the design staff. He or she will supervise all page design
and help to supervise graphic content of the paper. He or she will be responsible for
communicating regularly with the section editors, photographers and designers to help
plan stories visually, in addition to attending daily budget meetings. Because of our
emphasis on better planning, he/she will work to change the design schedule to
accommodate designers working on specific packages in advance. He or she will also
conduct weekly meetings with the design staff to help train young designers and
improve the overall design and layout of the Stater. Additionally, the design director
will work with the KentWired editors to convert graphic presentations and informational
graphics for web use. This person must attend a maestro session roughly one week before
a centerpiece runs to determine the best design for the story. Reports directly to the
managing editor.
11. Critique the day-to-day design of the Stater. What are the strengths and weaknesses?
12. What can be done to make front pages more visually appealing (both in nightly
production and planning/communication beforehand)?
13. Are there any overall changes youd like to make (font selections, mastheads, etc.)?
14. How can we make sure graphics are complete and ready to go well in advance of run
date?

Copy Desk Chief

This persons job is to make sure copy is polished and clear, while checking for
inconsistencies and errors. He or she needs to train the copydesk staff to keep grammar,

spelling, style and punctuation errors to an absolute minimum. The copy desk chief
should update the Stater style manual and organize a schedule for copy editors and
proofreaders. He or she should also critique the paper weekly for copy editing errors and
work with the staff regularly to help them identify strengths and weaknesses. He or she
will be responsible for holding weekly meetings with the copy desk staff. We all will be
thinking web-first, and this will impact the copy desk routine each copy editor
should be comfortable posting stories to KentWired. The copy desk chief should help
organize the flow of content coming in each day, perhaps by having several copy editors
come in an hour in the afternoon to copy edit KentWired content. This person will be
responsible for fixing copy editing mistakes online. Reports to the managing editor.
11. How will you continue to train copy editors throughout the semester?
12. How can you ensure complete and thorough copy-editing?
13. How can we best use InCopy to increase efficiency in the fall? (We have a new server.
It wont crash every 5 minutes. Dont worry)
14. How can we make sure copy-editors are available to edit stories before they go on
web? Should we train copy editors to post on KentWired and train KentWired staff to
copy edit?

Opinion Editor
The opinion editor will supervise the writing and production of the opinion page. He or
she will lead a staff of editorial writers who give the paper a strong voice and choose
columnists and guest opinion contributors who reflect a wide variety of political and
social viewpoints. The editor should make sure editorial writers generate thoughtful
positions based on significant, first-hand research. The opinion editor is expected to
choose an editorial board with whom they will write editorials. The opinion editor also
should encourage columnists and editorial board members to try using multimedia, such
as doing podcasts or video blogs of their columns. Reports to the managing editor.
11. Critique this semesters Forum. What worked? What needs improvement?
12. What kinds of outside content can we solicit for the opinion page?
13. What can we do to strengthen Our View?
14. Are there any special opinion pages we could do? How do we change it up from day
to day?
15. How can we increase opinion popularity on KentWired?