a communications question*

will post CASE 3.2: HIRING DECISIONS You are a manager at Morphis Media, a company that owns and operates 36 local radio stations and four local TV stations, all in small- to mid-sized markets. Morphis also recently purchased three websites that focus on popular music. You are in charge of hiring a "Digital News Editor" who would oversee both the production of news content and the online distribution of this content for a Web platform that serves all Morphis-owned radio stations in your state, as well as the three music websites. The Digital News Editor's job will involve performance of traditional journalism tasks such as reporting, writing, and edit- ing news stories on a variety of topics, in addition to a number of Web-oriented tasks such as tracking online audience statistics, producing and assigning multimedia elements, improving the sites' "search-engine optimization (increasing the likelihood that the site will be found via Web searches), and working with social media. Below is a draft of an ad for the position, which you on various job-search websites. Is there anything you would change in the ad? JOB POSTING: Morphis Media seeks a Digital News Editor to report, write, and syndicate stories on a variety of subjects, including music and entertainment, business, technology, and general lifestyle. Morphis owns and operates 36 local radio stations in the southwest- ern United States, as well as several popular music websites that reach over three million unique visitors each month. The position requires extensive experience writing and editing news copy, fluency with Web analytics and social media, and an ability to work with video and sound. Familiarity with the music industry is a plus. The Digital News Editor will create, assign, and edit news content for all radio stations' websites as well as the music websites, and will distribute this content through social media. The Digital News Editor also will be responsible for increasing audience traffic to the websites. The job requires: The ability to generate compelling stories Strong reporting and writing skills Strong editing skills The ability to write in many voices and handle a variety of subjects WORKFORCE Knowledge of search engine optimization and limited technical knowledge The desire to take on multiple projects. Multitasking is a desired characteristic Ability to develop content based on audience demand and search data The ability to distribute news content across the Web and grow the audience An understanding of online audience statistics (analytics) and how to analyze them Ability to strategize ways to increase site audience and engagement In-depth understanding of how the social media world interacts, when they interact, and what content interests audiences A willingness to adapt to a changing work environment The search has been narrowed to three candidates, profiled below. Rank these three candidates, and write a justification for the rank- ing. In your justification, address the following: What information led you to your decision? Which type of information did you con- sider to be more important? Less important? Justify your ranking by explaining how the job candidate information corresponded with details in the job posting. Candidate 1: Dylan Jackson (photo would show white male) BA, State University, May 2007: journalism major, political science minor, GPA = 3.3 City Editor, Newtown News Journal (circulation 46,000), February 2010 to present Reporter, Newtown News Journal, January 2008 to February 2010: Covered local government, schools, and police Skills: Daily experience reporting, writing, assigning, and editing community news stories; regular use of Twitter for updating news stories, regular use of Web WORKFORCE 75 analytics software to gather data on site traffic for presentation at daily news meetings Candidate 2: Shelley Neuzil (photo would show white female) BA, Liberal Arts College, May 2004: music major, journalism minor, GPA = 3.7 Instructor, Journalism Department, Southwest State University, August 2008 to present: Teach classes on TV and radio broadcast journalism and production. Morning cohost, production director, and writer, WZZZ Christian Broadcasting, August 2005 to May 2008: Generated show ideas, identified guests, wrote news for TV, radio and website, and cohosted weekday morning radio show. Production Assistant, Tones Music Studio, June 2004 to August 2005: Contracted music talent, scheduled studio time, set up and operated studio and recording equipment Skills: Daily experience producing and hosting radio shows, experience working with video and audio equipment, extensive experience and connections in the music business, experience writing and updating stories for the Web. Candidate 3: Gary Burrell (photo would show black male) MA, Northern University, May 2008: computer science, GPA = 4.0 BA, Northern University, May 2006: journalism major, computer science minor, GPA = 3.9 Software engineer, WebGear Industries, May 2007 to present: Designed and tested software programs, social media websites, and applications for the Web Reporter, Smallburgh Daily, July 2006 to May 2007: Covered lifestyle, entertainment, and technology Skills: Computer languages (Java, C++, PHP, Python, SQL, HTML); extensive use of Web analytics programs (Omniture, Google Analytics); extensive experience with SEO and social media