The Middle East Broadcasting Networks, Inc. (MBN) is an independent, international, multi-media broadcasting corporation based in the Washington D.C. metropolitan area that broadcasts news and information to the Middle East, and Northern Africa.
Primary Function
The Assignment Editor is a key figure during the morning and afternoon meetings during which stories are selected. AE manages assignments, deals with logistics, monitors the wires and keeps up with international contacts. AE is responsible for news gathering and disseminating news assignments to correspondents in the United States and overseas. The AE maintains a daily file which contains press releases, story ideas, reminders of follow-ups and scheduled events, and contact information about events. The incumbent has a good knowledge of the geography of the 22+ Arab speaking countries of the Middle East and North Africa.
Duties/Responsibilities
(Essential Functions: Duties and responsibilities noted with bullets are considered to be the essential functions of the job).
- Organize and coordinate daily news coverage including assigning news personnel and equipment resources to specific stories.
- Run down the list of potential stories during each news meeting. Generally these will be discussed and the stories chosen by the News Director, Executive, Producers, or a combination of managers.
- Prioritize and communicate assignments to correspondents
- Manage/coordinate the time and logistics to make sure selected stories are covered efficiently with the available staff demonstrating an ability to prioritize and make decisions consistent with the mission of the organization
- Maintain an assignment board listing with the stories that are being covered, who is covering them and approximately how much air time is required to each story, so that anyone in the newsroom can know the status of a particular crew simply by quickly looking at the board.
- Follow up on new reports
- Develop ideas for features and special reports
- Plan and coordinate special events
- Read and edit news copy to ensure that slanderous, libelous, and materials are avoided or deleted
- Help reporters find interviews
- Monitor Correspondents reports for balance, clarity and objectivity
- Alert management about major news events, disasters
- Find guests for newscasts
- Maintain a knowledge of current International and US events
- Conduct on-line research for difficult story assignments
- Research and develop daily story ideas and special news coverage.
- Assist editorial staff in developing all news coverage plans.
- Maintain regular contact with news sources.
Other duties
- Incumbent may contribute to the broadcast by writing news stories.
- The incumbent may be asked to perform additional duties and take on other responsibilities as dictated by events and circumstances.
Skills
- Bachelors degree in journalism (or related field) or 3-years of journalism experience
- Ability to communicate and translate from English to classic Arabic
- Must demonstrate strong news judgment and organizational skills
- Must have keen sense of logistics and ability to work well with others including producers, reporters, photographers, other personnel and the public
- Must have good creative and editorial judgment. Mastery of journalistic ethics and libel laws.
- Ability to meet tight deadlines and under stress with accuracy and balance.
- Strong people management skills
- Strong attention to detail
- Ability to quickly develop sources, contacts
- Strong computer and database skills.
- Exercise self-discipline and time-management skills
- Must be able to accommodate flexible work schedule to support 24/7 news environment, which could include overnight coverage.
MBNjobs@alhurra.com
