We are no longer accepting applications for these internships.
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We’re looking for a couple of talented interns to join our team in the Greenspun Media Group multimedia newsroom — home of the Pulitzer-winning Las Vegas Sun, extremely cool Las Vegas Weekly, a couple of very slick and high-profile tourist and luxury publications, and some of the most award-winning and critically acclaimed local news websites in the world.
The positions we’re filling will work primarily with the Las Vegas Sun. We’re looking for interns who want to get real-world, practical experience with highly converged coverage of local news, business and entertainment.
First and foremost, we’re looking for candidates who can write clean copy, and write it quickly. We’re also looking for candidates who love local news and think that covering a local parade or the opening of a new family-owned pancake joint is as important a news story to our readers as a ground-breaking series on healthcare. (Important in a different way, of course. But very important to our audience and to our company’s strategy in placing the Sun’s news at the center of our community.)
We also want candidates interested in learning the police beat in one of the craziest news towns in the country — giving you access to stories and high-profile situations your fellow collegiate journalists likely won’t see for years. If ever.
Writing and reporting are the main responsibilities for the candidate in this position, but you’d also be responsible for tasks like posting video on our website and working with our online listings and databases. Often, you’ll be asked to take photos to go along with your stories. You’ll likely also be asked to even shoot video on a smartphone.
We expect you to be comfortable with technology like Twitter and Facebook and to look at your mobile phone as an important reporting tool. Being on live TV to help report a story with our television partner, either from the cameras in our newsroom or from Skype on your computer or on your smartphone, is not out of the question. It’s even likely.
If you’re multimedia savvy, that’s great, and we encourage you to apply — but please don’t come here with expectations of shooting tons of video or putting together elaborate Flash projects. First and foremost, this is an internship for journalists who want to hone their writing and reporting skills in a fast-paced newsroom.
The start date is flexible, but we’d like you here sooner rather than later. And yes, if you’re still in school you can still apply, but this is probably a position better suited for a recent graduate. We’re asking candidates to commit to a minimum of six months and would prefer nine months. There is a possibility for the position to become full-time. And yes, this is a paying internship.
You absolutely need a car and must have a clean driving record.
In regard to actually committing journalism, solid grammar knowledge and writing skills are a must. The folks who work with us must be effective communicators on the phone and in person and be able to conduct interviews, research and write stories with minimal supervision. They must be receptive to editing and coaching and be able to take instruction when working in collaboration with full-time staff members.
Because much of what you will be writing will be breaking news, you must be able to handle pressure and stress with diplomacy, all while writing a lead that is concise, a story that is accurate and full of words that are all spelled correctly.
You also should know the correct pronunciation of Nevada. I will ask. And if you get it wrong, others will make fun of you.
Above all else, the students or recent graduates who become interns for the Sun will demonstrate maturity and critical-thinking skills, show exuberance toward the career of journalism, and embrace its values of accuracy and fairness. At the Las Vegas Sun, documenting the living history of our community and helping our audience to make the most-informed decisions possible are not viewed merely as the characteristics that embody the most honorable career choice a person can make, but almost as a calling.
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These are “fiber-cyber†internships, with focus on the analytical journalism featured in the Sun print edition, the breaking news featured on lasvegassun.com and the local-lifestyle journalism that makes up Las Vegas Weekly and lasvegasweekly.com.
To apply, send the following to internships(at)lasvegassun.com:
(As noted above, we are no longer accepting applications.)
* A copy of your resume.
* An informal email cover letter that tells us, for example, what classes you’ve taken that you feel might have prepared you for this internship, as well as what other experiences have you had that might have prepared you for this. Have you ever worked at another newspaper? Have you worked at your student radio station? Do you have a website or a blog? Etc.
* Links to published clips.
* Audio clip of you pronouncing Nevada. (Optional)
DEADLINE: MAY 7. NO APPLICATIONS WILL BE ACCEPTED AFTER THIS DATE.
Rob Curley 