interviewing people in a range of different circumstances; building contacts to maintain a flow of news, for example, police and emergency services, local council, community groups, health trusts, press officers from a variety of organisations, the general public, etc; seeking out and investigating stories via your contacts, press releases and other media; attending press conferences and asking qu
estions; attending a variety of events, such as council meetings, magistrates' court proceedings, football matches, talent contests, etc; answering the phones on the news desk and reacting to breaking news stories; working closely with the news team, photographers and editors; recording interviews and meetings using shorthand or technical equipment; producing concise and accurate copy according to the newspaper's house style, and to strict deadlines - daily newspapers may have several each day; writing short 'fillers' to entertain, and researching and writing longer feature articles, sometimes for subsidiary publications and supplements; creating and uploading news content for the newspaper website; 'live' online reporting or real-time blogging when covering important events - a growing area of work, especially on national newspapers
