Art Director, Visuals

About the role

The New York Times is an industry leader in visual journalism, excelling in photography, video, graphics and design. We want to further use our visual and social expertise to expand our offering and deliver greater concentrations of visual news and lifestyle coverage to social audiences and readers on our platforms. The Digital News Design team is looking for a digitally focused art director and designer. You have experience in visual journalism and social media. You will design and produce material including templates, patterns and unique formats for several platforms, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and TikTok. As the senior designer and art director on the Social Visuals team, you will collaborate with reporters, editors, producers and designers to craft digital assets and visual experiences for our various social media channels. You will assess the needs and possibilities for typography, video, photography, illustration, audio, and animations. You will use journalistic judgment, visual creativity and innovation while ensuring accuracy, clarity, and validity of the content presented. You will also ensure the content, templates and story formats produced align with The Times design systems and visual identity guidelines. This role will ensure that it follows the design direction and visual standards of all work produced for our off-platform channels. It will also coordinate visual direction and design with our homescreen and video surfaces within our apps and web platforms. We expect design team members not only to make exceptional contributions to our journalism, but also to engage with others to foster an environment of learning and constructive dialogue about our work. This is an in-office position based in New York and includes regular attendance in the office four days each week. There may be some flexibility to work remotely per your departmental guidance.

Responsibilities

• Responsible for the design direction and visual standards of all work produced by Social Visuals for our off-platform channels
• Coordinate the design direction and visual standards of work produced for some on-platform packages, surfaces and feeds
• Demonstrate expertise, sensitivity and rigorous judgement in crafting digital assets, art direction and visual experiences on platform and for our various social media channels
• Mentor the work of our designers and visual strategists who work on our sub-brand, audience, and identity teams
• Direct the assignment of illustration, animation and video
• Conceive and create original bespoke assets, translating visual and graphic storyforms from on platform for social
• Identify story and coverage challenges and opportunities for development
• Onboard, train and mentor visual editors (both in-house and temporary placements) on design systems, strategy, workflow and editorial best practices
• Optimize social strategy and curation with desk editors and the newsroom at large
• Assist the Social Visuals team in determining how to apply resources against various incoming requests and opportunities
• Develop, design and standardize core templates and workflow for Social Visuals as well as our branded accounts
• Run an in-house training program for new users of Figma
• Convey story ideas and complex information with wire-frames or prototypes
• Demonstrate support and understanding of our value of journalistic independence and a strong commitment to our mission to seek the truth and help people understand the world
• You will report to an assistant editor on Digital News Design

Requirements

• 6+ years of digital design experience
• Experience creating presentations that intelligently incorporate audio, video, still images, illustrations and text.
• Expertise with Figma, Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, and Premier.
• Strong portfolio of design work
• Considerable experience with social media publishing and passion for the possibilities of the Times' visual storytelling off-platform.
• Enthusiasm for designing and making great products and experiences, for current events and The New York Times
• Deadline-oriented and experience adapting to change in a daily, unpredictable news production environment.
• Open to working a flexible schedule that may include nights and weekends.
• Experience with After Effects, designing for motion and animation
• A keen interest in and knowledge of NYTimes.com 's competitors, both in the United States and

Benefits

Additional Information

The mission of The New York Times is to seek the truth and help people understand the world. That means independent journalism is at the heart of all we do as a company. It's why we have a world-renowned newsroom that sends journalists to report on the ground from nearly 160 countries. It's why we focus deeply on how our readers will experience our journalism, from print to audio to a world-class digital and app destination. And it's why our business strategy centers on making journalism so good that it's worth paying for.

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