Executive Editor, Visuals

The Guardian is a global, reader-funded news organization that delivers fearless, independent journalism. From breaking news and award-winning investigations, to in-depth coverage of technology, sports, film, culture and lifestyle, the Guardian offers a global view that deepens our audiences’ understanding of America and the world.

The Guardian’s US edition – headquartered in New York City, with growing bureaus in Washington DC and Los Angeles – is an entirely digital operation that combines the best of the Guardian’s international reporting with US voices and expertise. Core coverage areas include the climate emergency, economic and racial inequality, wellness, culture, digital privacy and sports – all highlighting the Guardian’s distinctive role within the US media landscape: journalism that’s global, independent, and free. 

It’s the talent, energy and commitment our people bring to the Guardian that make us who we are. Across our business we have some of the most creative thinkers in media and beyond: award winning journalists, cutting edge commercial teams, digital talent and more.

Department: Editorial, Visuals

Reports to: Creative Director, Guardian US and Executive editor, Guardian US
Location: New York, NY

Hybrid/Remote/In-Person: Hybrid
Terms and conditions: Full-time, permanent, News Guild Media position

Annual Salary: $170,000 - $190,000

 

About the role

Delivery lead for the Visuals team—incorporating photography, data graphics, interactive formats, design, art direction and illustration/animation—as a hands-on practitioner/producer in a fast-paced, dynamic newsroom, ensuring creativity and efficiency go hand in hand. Collaborate with the Creative Director/Head of Visuals and Executive Editor to shape visual ambitions, ways of working and team output, and with editors, journalists and creatives to elevate the experience of our journalism. Manage reactive daily demands with longer-term projects, team resources and stakeholders, keep projects on track and budget, and ensure that creativity is respected and protected throughout the process. Produce stories such as the US elections 2024, the impact of climate crisis, the investigation into Ice deportations and Bushwick, Brooklyn: the US’s most exciting neighborhood.

Key responsibilities and accountabilities

• With the creative director and executive editor, lead the team of creative journalists working across photography, graphics, design, illustration, animation and interactive formats to enable creation of ambitious visuals-led stories in the fast-paced newsroom to amplify our journalism, with the reader in mind. 
• A hands-on CMS user contributing to and implementing the creative team’s work, you will maintain the highest standards of journalistic accuracy, storytelling techniques and visual clarity, quality, look and feel in the team’s approach and output, ensuring functionality, accessibility and usability across platforms and devices. Be a source of visual, editorial and production expertise for projects and initiatives from inception to implementation.
• Oversee prioritization, planning, schedules, workflows and resourcing of visuals projects to ensure efficiency and delivery at pace. Use Slack, Trello, and other tools to track progress, visibility and communication across teams. With the Creative Director, identify and resolve blockers on progress, risks, and resource needs. 
• Balance fast-turnaround, reactive requests with longer-form proactive projects, ensuring priorities are clear and achievable while maintaining high editorial and creative standards.
• Manage team rotas, budget and contributor payments. Ensure level of team cover supports newsroom operations.
• Actively foster a culture of collaboration, collaborative processes and efficiency, and a dynamic, creative office environment to motivate and cultivate the creative, technical and journalistic skills of team members.  Support Guardian US journalism with photo research, commissioning, art direction, illustration, data visualization, interactives, motion graphics and animation.
• Work with clients of the visuals team, including US news, features, the west coast bureau, philanthropy projects and front page editors to ens