Head of News

The Sunday Times, Ireland is looking for a Head of News to lead our news coverage in Dublin. 

The Head of News works closely with the Editor, Ireland and the Deputy Editor, Ireland to deliver a distinctive, agenda-setting news package across all platforms. You will be responsible for ensuring world-class standards of digital and print journalism, and leading the editorial team as we move to digital-first commissioning and publishing.

You will be an experienced News Editor with the ability to work under pressure, to tight deadlines and with rigorous accuracy. You must have an insatiable appetite for news and the skill to spot stories where others might miss them.

Apply with a covering letter and your CV by August 14th.
 

Day to day you will:

• Successfully manage productive relationships with the editor, deputy editor and other section editors

• Work with editors, writers and reporters to conceive, commission and edit exclusive agenda-setting news stories for a print and digital audience

• Use SEO, Inca, Parsley and Google Trends to help guide commissioning and construct headlines

• Oversee investigations

• Forward-plan, working with journalists on long-range projects and big campaigns

• Demonstrate an understanding of what works best for digital, offering content that is truly distinctive  

• Commision constructive news stories, putting people at the heart of stories, with high quality analysis and expertise

• Use social networking and other digital platforms for content generation and to promote The Sunday Times Ireland content

• Commission exclusive video, polls, interactive graphics and picture galleries to engage our digital audience and plan how these stories are shared and promoted online

• Help to lead and manage the newsroom, develop talent and support progression

What we are looking for from you:

• Experience working as a news editor for a national newspaper or website

• Demonstrable interest in news and current affairs

• An understanding of how audience data supports commissioning and how to promote a story on social media and through search engines

• Knowledge of how to attract and retain new audiences

• An ability to work under pressure, to tight deadlines and with rigorous accuracy

• Reliable and prepared to put in extra time and effort where necessary

• Ability to communicate succinctly and effectively

• Experience of working collaboratively with multidisciplinary teams 

• Persuasive presentation skills, well-developed interpersonal skills, with the ability to problem-solve

• A strong understanding of editorial compliance and regulatory issues

We are News UK: One of the leading media businesses in the UK and Ireland, our newsbrands include The Times, The Sunday Times, The Sun, The Sun on Sunday and The TLS. Our national broadcast brands include talkSPORT, Times Radio, talkRADIO and Virgin Radio, and we have market-leading local radio stations across Ireland. In 2022 we launched TalkTV, a major new TV channel available to everyone across the UK, delivering a schedule of news, current affairs, entertainment and sport. Our world-famous brands provide news, analysis, opinion and entertainment to almost 40 million people each month. Spanning digital and print, audio and video, events and experiences, our brands are home to a plurality of opinion, representing the diverse communities we serve. News UK is wholly owned by News Corp.

Life at News: At News UK we believe our people are our heartbeat - they are the driving force behind our brands and we want the ways we work to enable people to thrive.  Some of us work flexibly, in many different ways. We encourage you to talk to us about the flexibility you would like. We can’t promise to offer exactly what you want, but do provide multiple flexible working options.  Many of us work in a hybrid way between one of the News UK & Ireland offices and remotely.  

We champion diversity and inclusion, we strive to maximise and encourage every individual’s potential and ensure everyone feels valued. We support this through our Diversity Board, D&I  strategy & training, creating more diverse content and our intern and apprenticeship programmes.  We also have 8 employee-led networks; Cultural Diversity, News is Out, GenZ, Sustainability Champions, News for Parents, Women in Tech, News UK Christian Fellowship and we are awaiting the launch of our Women’s Steering Group. 

We take pride in looking after our amazing talent at News UK supporting the Health and Wellbeing of our staff. We offer private medical insurance covering pre-existing conditions, discounted gym memberships, ClassPass at Home, weekly virtual HIIT, yoga and run club classes, and a ‘Bikes for Work’ scheme, as well as offering opportunities for physio/massage, counselling and legal support. 

In addition we also offer:

• A generous pension scheme with employer contributions of up to 5%;

• 30 days holiday and up to 4 volunteering days per year;

• Maternity leave up to 18 weeks full basic salary & paternity leave up to 2 weeks;

• Wide range of training available, plus full LinkedIn Learning access.

We want to ensure that everyone we meet has the opportunity to perform to their best when interviewing, so feel free to let us know, at any stage, whether you require any reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process, and we will do our best to accommodate.  

News UK is an official partner of the Journalism Diversity Fund, founder of the Journalism and Disability Forum, and proud member of the Valuable 500. At News UK, we will continue to promote an inclusive and diverse workplace, to help people with visible and non visible disabilities create careers in media and aim to make our content accessible to all.