Chief Copy Editor job at Code for Africa

JOB DETAILS:
Responsibilities: Your daily responsibilities will include
• Recruit and manage a core team of highly skilled copy editors, that transforms raw journalism into award-winning multimedia storytelling.

• Manage a centralised news diary/schedule, in consultation with the Managing Editor, that governs copy flow with clear production milestones and that delivers content for publication on deadline.
• Implement a rigorous proofreading/quality control editing system, that ensures factual accuracy/coherence, legal compliance/fairness, context, grammar/syntax consistency and adherence to PesaCheck’s editorial style/standard guidelines.

• Design and curate PesaCheck’s editorial style/standard guidelines, including tipsheets or learning resources for journalists and other content producers to incrementally improve the quality of their raw reportage.
• Provide regular constructive feedback, guidance, and mentoring for both copy editors and journalists, to nurture and grow new talent.

Required: minimum requirements include
• Excellent journalistic copy-editing and proofreading skills to ensure factual accuracy/coherence and grammar/syntax consistency.
• Experience in managing a copydesk and team in a mainstream multimedia environment, where content is packaged for publication in a wide variety of formats.
• Demonstrable understanding of technical editorial production systems and CMS tools, involving multi-stage copy-editing processes.
• A track record for copy flow management that sticks to editorial deadlines and quality standards.
• Experience in coordinating digital multimedia content (such as infographics or social media collateral) as an element of copy-edited reportage.
• Experience in creating or refining editorial guidelines, style guides and playbooks that set the tone, voice and standards for storytelling.
• Passion for mentoring young talent and growing new voices.
• Strong organisational and decision-making skills, with the ability to coordinate multiple tasks and projects simultaneously, while meeting deadlines and maintaining standards.

Preferred: characteristics that will give you an additional competitive advantage
• At least 3 years experience in a managerial/leadership role on a fast-paced multilingual and transnational copy desk in mainstream digital media, such as international news agencies/wire services or digital first media platforms.
• Experience in working with cross-platform data-driven journalism or other multimedia storytelling.
• A keen eye for data visual storytelling techniques, including experience in integrating social video and interactive infographics into story packages.
• An understanding of social media storytelling techniques, and editing guidelines, with insights into the strengths/differences of different platforms, including ‘dark social’ channels.
• A track record for using copy-editing to actively and formally mentor/train award-winning digital storytellers.
• Experience in using digital collaboration tools, including Slack, Google Workplace, and Trello to manage editorial workflows, alongside more traditional editorial CMS platforms.
• Proven ability at working effectively in virtual or distributed newsrooms, coordinating multicultural and multilingual writers, editors, and other project teams across different time zones.

Language and Location Requirements
• Location: East Africa or anywhere else in Africa
• Languages: English
• Preferred, but not required: French or KiSwahili , plus major African languages such as Amharic, Afaan Oromo, Dioula or Fula

Work Hours: 8

Experience in Months: 36

Level of Education: Professional Certificate

Job application procedure

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