POSITION IDENTIFICATION
TITLE News Director
CLASSIFICATION NUMBER 5079
GRADE 43
CLASSIFICATION Exempt
IMMEDIATE SUPERVISOR General Manager, KSMU and Ozarks Public Television
GENERAL FUNCTION
The News Director manages the KSMU news department and the planning, scheduling, production,
broadcast, and digital publication of local news programs and features. The News Director
is the primary staff member responsible for managing and coordinating the production
of local news and features, ensuring they meet established standards for subject matter,
length, quality, and adherence to the mission, values, and established on-air sound
of KSMU.
MINIMUM ACCEPTABLE QUALIFICATIONS
Education: A Bachelor’s degree in journalism, media, or a related field is required.
Experience: At least three years of experience in news reporting is required. Supervisory
experience is preferred. Experience with audio editing software is preferred. Experience
in public media is preferred. Experience in digital news production is preferred.
Experience filing with a national network is preferred. Experience in TV reporting/producing
is preferred. An equivalent combination of years of experience and education may be
considered for substitution of educational requirements.
Skills: Management and supervisory skills are required.
Other: Travel as necessary to perform job duties is required; a valid driver’s license
is required.
ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
1. Ensures that KSMU attracts, maintains, and increases its listening audience by
planning, producing, coordinating, and scheduling local news and features that provide
a strong public service to the community and reflect KSMU’s service area.
2. Provides leadership and overall direction for KSMU’s news team, including developing
and managing staff; enforcing and adhering to high standards of journalistic ethics;
and ensuring compliance with institutional, local, state, and federal regulation governing
news coverage.
3. Supports KSMU’s mission to educate students by managing the news internship program
and establishing a climate for effective student learning, including hands-on training
and evaluation of work.
4. Develops a competent and effective news team by hiring, training, supervising,
coaching, providing story assignments, and editing the work of professional and student
journalists.
5. Serves as the primary point of contact for communication with NPR regarding submission
of news pieces of national interest.
6. Produces, writes, edits, and serves as on-air talent for radio and TV public affairs
programming which may include newscasts, features, call-in programs, talk shows, and
newsmagazines.
7. Manages KSMU’s digital news efforts, including the digital publication of news
on the station’s website and news-based social media postings.
8. Participates in community and professional organizations, representing KSMU and
Ozarks Public Television and establishing and maintaining credible relations with
local community leaders and area news media.
9. Supports KSMU and Ozarks Public Television fundraising by serving as an on-air
spokesperson, promoting listener/viewer support of the stations.
10. Remains competent and current through self-directed professional reading, developing
professional contacts with colleagues, attending professional development courses,
and attending training and/or courses required by the General Manager, KSMU and Ozarks
Public Television.
11. Contributes to the overall success of KSMU and Ozarks Public Television by performing
all other duties and responsibilities as assigned.
SUPERVISION
The News Director is supervised by the General Manager, KSMU and Ozarks Public Television
and supervises the Morning Edition Host/Senior News Producer, Reporter-Editor, and
student interns.
OFFICE OF HUMAN RESOURCES
REVISED JANUARY 2025
JOB FAMILY 4
Factor 1: Professional Knowledge, Skill, and Technical Mastery
Level 3.0 - 1500 Points: Entry-level knowledge of the principles, concepts, practices, and methods of an administrative, managerial, technical, or professional specialty. Knowledge permits employee to carry out basic recurring tasks and routine portions of assignments or to carry out less demanding professional elements of assignments in professional or technical areas including accounting or auditing, financial management, business administration, human resources, law, engineering, science, or medicine, while gaining familiarity with the University's policies and goals, business practices, and/or accounting systems. This level of knowledge permits the employee to schedule and carry out the steps of a limited operation or project, or to complete stages of a multi-phase project. Alternatively, knowledge at this level might also permit the employee to carry out recurring tasks and routine assignments requiring moderate experience in specific areas within higher education. Knowledge at this level is typically acquired through a combination of formal education and/or training and experience that includes a requirement for a college degree in a specific technical or professional specialty. Knowledge requirements may also include a limited amount of related work experience. Alternatively, equivalent knowledge requirements at this level include a non-technical or general Bachelor's degree requirement with a moderate level of additional related work experience or a non-specific Master's degree requirement with some related work experience.
Factor 2: Supervisory Responsibility
Level 4.0 - 470 Points: Supervision of (a) a moderate number of operative, administrative support, or paraprofessional employees who do not exercise a full range of supervisory responsibilities over other full-time employees, (b) a small number of professional employees who exercise limited supervision of others, or (c) large numbers of student workers or graduate assistants, or some equivalent combination of the above. The incumbent performs a full range of supervisory responsibilities including performance reviews of subordinates. The incumbent is responsible for training, planning, and directing the work of permanent employees, and generally controls hiring decisions. Supervisory responsibilities consume moderate amounts of work time and may include general work planning tasks.
Factor 3: Interactions with Others
Level 4.0 - 500 Points: Interactions with others are somewhat unstructured. The purpose may be to influence or motivate others, to obtain information, or to control situations and resolve problems. Interactions may be with individuals or groups of co-workers, students, or the general public, may be moderately unstructured, and may involve persons who hold differing goals and objectives. Individuals at this level often act as a liaison between groups with a focus on solving particular unstructured problems. Interactions at this level require considerable interpersonal skill and the ability to resolve conflict.
Factor 4: Job Controls and Guidelines
Level 3.0 - 500 Points: The employee operates under general supervision expressed in terms of program goals and objectives, priorities, and deadlines. Administrative supervision is given through statements of overall program or project objectives and available resources. Administrative guidelines are relatively comprehensive and the employee need only to fill in gaps in interpretation and adapt established methods to perform recurring activities. In unforeseen situations, the employee must interpret inadequate or incomplete guidelines, develop plans, and initiate new methods to complete assignments based on those interpretations. Assignments are normally related in function, but the work requires many different processes and methods applied to an established administrative or professional field. Problems are typically the result of unusual circumstances, variations in approach, or incomplete or conflicting data. The employee must interpret and refine methods to complete assignments. Characteristic jobs at this level may involve directing single-purpose programs or performing complex, but precedented, technical or professional work.
Factor 5: Managerial Responsibility
Level 3.0 - 850 Points: Work involves providing significant support services to others both within and outside of the department that substantially influences decision-making processes. Work activities are complex and others rely on the accuracy and reliability of the information, analysis, or advice to make decisions. Work activities have a direct, but shared, impact on further processes or services, affect the overall efficiency and image of the department, and may have material impact on costs or service quality within the cost center. Incumbents may be responsible for identifying areas of need and for developing proposals that request funding to fulfill those needs.
