Crime & Safety Reporter

The Southern California News Group is seeking a talented and aggressive journalist to cover crime and public safety in Southern California. Part of a team that covers LA, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties, the ideal candidate is tenacious and able to write gracefully and quickly in response to breaking news for online and mobile platforms, writing through for print. Come join our team!

What you will do:
Versatility is a must, as stories will cover a variety of topics
Write on deadline in a fast-paced environment
Ability to take your own photos is a plus
Along with producing stories that are assigned, the reporter should also be able to pitch story ideas on a regular basis
Research and develop stories to the utmost accuracy
Cultivate sources both in person and via social media
Maintain communication with a supervising editor
Understand and use company-provided hardware, software and cloud-based equipment and systems for company business and tasks
Contribute to a positive culture of teamwork and collaboration
The reporter may work nights and weekends as needed
This job focuses on covering public safety and spot news, but also includes opportunities (and expectations) for enterprise and investigative journalism

What you will bring:

Strong news judgment and a drive to compete

Ability to write clean concise copy that draws readers in, including nut graphs and online headlines for SEO

We’re looking for someone who is flexible, can cultivate sources in person and via social media, and is comfortable mining public records

The skill to mine human sources, documents and data, including a facility for mining public records

Eager to juggle multiple stories of varying complexity, from quick news posts under intense deadline pressure to daily news stories and longer-term enterprise

Proficiency at using the web and social media to report stories and to share them

Facility a language in addition to English is a plus. Spanish, Mandarin and Vietnamese are key languages in our coverage area, but there are many more that would be helpful

Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience required