Sports Digital Producer/Content Creator

We’re looking for an experienced digital producer who will relentlessly focus on growing audience, especially for Iowa sports coverage—from local fans following high school football on Friday nights to the national audience tracking Iowa State University and University of Iowa athletics.

About the role

You’ll collaborate with sports editors, reporters, photographers, and videographers to produce sports social videos for Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts; write 2–4 trending sports bylines daily; work with podcasts and newsletters; and create engagement through polls and crowd-sourced stories. You’ll also develop and execute a strategy to grow our sports audience and revenue on YouTube, monitor and engage with audience comments, and facilitate conversations between readers and journalists. The role requires flexibility to support SEO and audience plans for breaking news, features, business, investigations, and general coverage.

You’ll report to the Register’s sports editor and work closely with our newsroom audience team. The ideal candidate has an insatiable curiosity about digital audiences and their news consumption habits, plus a drive to maximize reach for every piece of content.

Responsibilities

• Use metrics and analytics to determine how to best reach and grow the digital audience.
• Increase digital audience engagement and grow subscriptions.
• Experiment courageously and apply innovative, creative thinking to support company goals.
• Collaborate with coworkers as a team player.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s or master’s in communications, journalism, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• 3+ years of professional journalism experience in writing, editing, digital production, or social media roles.
• Understanding of metrics, social media, and SEO.
• Solid news judgment and strong writing skills—ability to write quickly and clearly.
• Self-motivation, self-direction, and top-notch planning, organizational, and time-management skills.
• Ability to multi-task and excel under intense deadline pressure in a rapidly changing environment.
• Command of media law and principles of ethical conduct.
• Valid driver’s license, reliable transportation, and minimum liability insurance required by state law.

Skills

• Expertise in refining SEO, writing headlines, crafting social media posts, editing text, and shooting/editing photos and video.
• Experience with social media management tools and designing social graphics (e.g., Canva).
• Knowledge of analytics tools such as CrowdTangle, Google Analytics, Parse.ly, and social engagement insights is a plus.

Schedule

• Tuesday through Saturday during the academic year (focus on Friday night high school sports and Saturday college football/basketball).
• Typically Monday through Friday from April through August.
• Shift times vary during fall/winter months depending on football and basketball start times.