Sports Director

Job Description

Sports Director - WHSV

About WHSV:

WHSV is located in Harrisonburg, Virginia situated in the Shenandoah Valley. Covering local sports is vitally important in our market. In recent years, WHSV Sports has been honored with various awards. We are no stranger to winning ''Best Sports Operation of the Virginias'', ''Best Sports Anchor of the Year'' and ''Best Sports Feature'' from the Virginias Associated Press Broadcasters. We've won Virginia Association of Broadcasters and a regional Emmy for our sports coverage as well. Needless to say, storytelling is important at WHSV, therefore we're looking for a Sports Director who understands what local sports mean to our community.

WHSV Sports Franchises:

''Endzone'' – for nearly 30 years WHSV has been covering high school football on Friday nights in the fall. Our Sports Director is the architect of this wildly popular show, designing which games our crews cover as well as producing and co-anchoring the highlight show.

''Student Athlete of the Week'' – this is a weekly segment during the school year that highlights high school seniors who excel in the classroom and athletically. This franchise is over 30 years old and still a ''fan favorite.'' The weekend sports anchor/reporter reports these stories and we end the year with a banquet with all the selected student-athletes in the spring. The Sports Director is on hand to greet our honorees.

''Women In Sports'' – a monthly story focusing on women in sports which is produced by our weekend sports anchor/reporter.

''WHSV Sports Presents'' – original sports storytelling. These stories are largely produced by our Sports Director and are longer-form stories that feature local athletes doing amazing things in life and in sports.

Job Summary/Description:

Do you love LOCAL sports?! WHSV-TV in Harrisonburg, Virginia has a rare opportunity for a Sports Director. Here, you'll cover the Shenandoah Valley's active sports scene including James Madison University athletics (Sun Belt Conference) as well as two Division III athletic programs: Bridgewater College and Eastern Mennonite University (Old Dominion Athletic Conference). High school sports play a major role in our coverage with over 20 schools in our market – both in Virginia and West Virginia. As Sports Director, you'll produce and anchor live sportscasts on the station's 6:00, 10:00, and 11:00 weeknight newscasts.

Duties/Responsibilities will include (but not be limited to) the following:
- Frequently update scores on-air and our online platforms
- Generate sports story ideas, conduct interviews, produce and anchor live sportscasts
- Work with news producers, managers, photographers and reporters to coordinate sports coverage, especially when additional help is needed or when sports warrants additional coverage
- Coordinate and plan high school football coverage by assigning a team of reporters and photographers to football games each week, while producing and anchoring a weekly highlight show (''EndZone'') every Friday night during the fall
- Shoot, edit and write highlights of local sporting events
- Produce longer-form sports feature stories regularly (''WHSV Sports Presents'')
- Build relationships with the sports community (coaches, athletic directors, etc.) for the purpose of creating content. Establish a network of contacts and sources. Have your finger on the pulse of the local sports scene.
- Must excel at updating our digital platforms and social media accounts. This includes live tweeting from games, promoting coverage of content, breaking sports news, sending urgent sports push alerts, etc.
- Work with the News Director to coordinate sports coverage and staffing
- Work with General Manager to build and manage the sports department budget

Qualifications/Requirements:
- Bachelor's Degree in journalism, communications, or related field
- Minimum 3-year experience writing, producing, shooting and editing video
- Minimum 3-year experience in news gathering, reporting and working in a newsroom environment
- Must be able to work flexible hours, including weekends and holidays

Interested applicants may go to https://gray.tv/careers#currentopenings, you may type in the job title, station call letters, or click on ''apply now'', upload your resume, cover letter and references

WHSV-TV/Gray Television Group, Inc. is a drug-free company

Jobcode: Reference SBJ-rb38p6-3-144-189-177-42 in your application.