Assistant Picture Editor

About us

The Independent is an online news publisher that was established in 1986 as a national newspaper independent of party political affiliations or proprietorial influence. In 2016, The Independent became a fully digital publisher, moving away from print in pursuit of sustainability, and to safeguard its values and journalism for the future.

The Independent has always thrived through innovation and change. It was the first British newspaper to add a Saturday magazine; the first to give photography the same prestige as a news copy; the first to challenge the Westminster lobby system of closed briefings; the first broadsheet to move to the more compact ‘tabloid’ format; the first to launch a concise quality compact paper; and the first – and only – major newspaper to pull off a successful transformation to fully digital publishing.

Through The Independent, Independent TV, eCommerce, indy100, subscriptions and other ‘reader revenues’, The Independent plans to continue the work of many decades, bringing much-needed independent journalism to over 100 million unique global visitors a month, make its voice ever louder and more insistent the world over.

We have an international editorial team with our main offices in London and New York.

The role

The Independent is looking for an Assistant Picture Editor who will be responsible for leading the smooth running of picture operations across Independent platforms.

The applicant needs to have a passion for all forms of photojournalism, adept at using Adobe Photoshop to edit images and will bring a proactive energy to the picture desk.

They must have experience of working on a live picture desk and knowledge of copyright laws.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

• We champion diversity in our teams and in our reporting. As a growing and global brand, we must have a workforce that’s more representative of our readers, viewers, clients and partners, and a workplace that creates a sense of belonging for everyone
• We are committed to hiring and developing a diverse workforce regardless of background, and we support our people to thrive in their careers here.

The Independent is an equal opportunities employer, if you require any reasonable adjustments to complete your application, please do not hesitate to advise us accordingly.

About you

Key responsibilities and accountabilities

• Lead on pictures across the newsroom
• Work across several platforms to supply visual content as needed
• Able to prioritise tasks in a fast-paced and changing environment
• Proactively carrying out picture research, and optimising content for online performance.
• Monitoring picture feeds – highlighting breaking news and other relevant images to department heads
• Produce/pitch engaging and original picture stories
• Ensure that all content is of the highest possible standard and adheres to house-brand requirements, with an awareness of the readers’ point of view
• Answer any copyright-related queries with confidence
• Working with a tight budget to ensure resources are used efficiently
• Able to train other staff on content systems where required
• Candidate will be expected to work 40 hours per week (not including breaks) including some weekends and different shift times

Essential skills and experience

• Must have worked on a live picture desk with experience of web publishing and using image databases
• Excellent communication – across all departments, as well as external contacts
• Understand current affairs, as well as longer form feature content
• High attention to detail
• A proactive approach to work – to help ensure department is running as efficiently as possible
• Resourceful and creative – able to identify the very best imagery using a variety of sources
• Has an ability to work autonomously with minimal supervision
• Knowledge of Photoshop/Indesign/Illustrator – ability to design a variety of visual content for online, the daily edition and social media
• Able to add metadata to images
• Understanding of agency-editorial contracts, usage rights, permissions and copyright

Our values – you will deliver across all our values

Inclusive: We champion diversity in our teams and in our reporting. Working as a team, we put transparency and effective communication at the heart of everything we do.

Innovative: From the very beginning, The Independent has been breaking the mould. We take risks and are always looking to try new ideas in pursuit of excellence.

Independent: Nobody tells us what to think; we make up our own minds and aren’t afraid to do things differently. Like our readers, we value honesty and integrity above outside influences.