Date Posted	October 31, 2025
Industry	Newspapers
Specialty	Not Specified
Remote / Telecommute	Hybrid
Job Status	Full-time
Salary	Not Specified

Description:

Job Title: Audience Director - Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Location: Little Rock, Arkansas Reports to: Managing Editor

Safety-Sensitive Position: Pursuant to Act 593 of the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Amendment

Overview

The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette is seeking a visionary and collaborative Audience Director to lead the development and execution of our statewide newsroom into a more digitally sophisticated and audience-first operation. As a newsroom leader of leaders, this role drives our digital strategy, expands our audience and strengthens engagement across platforms to maximize the impact of our journalism.

This person will oversee the digital team and work closely with every reporter and editor in the newsroom to ensure digital is not a siloed function — but a fully integrated priority in every story, workflow and beat.

Key Responsibilities

Leadership & Strategy

• Partner with the executive and managing editors and other top editors to set and execute audience growth and engagement strategies.
• Lead and mentor the newsroom's digital team to encourage growth and innovation.
• Champion an audience-first mindset across the newsroom, ensuring content strategies are optimized for each platform and tailored to audience needs.

Digital Integration

• Collaborate with reporters, editors and other content creators to embed digital thinking into daily journalism from pitch to publication.
• Develop best practices and training around SEO, social media, digital headlines and analytics-informed storytelling.
• Create workflows and systems that improve collaboration between traditional print teams and digital specialists.

Audience Development & Analytics

• Leverage audience insights and analytics tools (such as Google Analytics, Marfeel Analytics and social dashboards) to inform editorial decisions and newsroom priorities.
• Monitor and analyze key metrics (reach, impact, engagement, conversion) to evaluate performance and optimize results across multiple media platforms.
• Identify emerging digital trends, tools and platforms to ensure the organization remains innovative and competitive.

Platform Growth & Experimentation

• Oversee execution of content strategy on social media, newsletters, push alerts, the homepage and other digital distribution channels.
• Lead experimentation efforts in formats like short-form video, alternative storytelling formats and newsletters to better serve different audience segments.
• Partner with product, design and marketing teams at WEHCO on initiatives to grow digital subscriptions, reader loyalty and revenue.

Qualifications

Required

• Minimum 5 years of newsroom experience, with at least two years in a leadership role focused on digital journalism, audience development or content strategy.
• Proven success in growing digital audiences, leading editorial teams and translating data insights into actionable strategies.
• Deep understanding of digital content strategies, platforms and analytics.
• Strong communication, organizational and leadership skills.
• Collaborative spirit, able to build relationships and work effectively across teams and departments.
• Willingness to learn and experiment, and a desire to help others in the newsroom do the same!

Preferred

•  Experience leading digital transformation and change management in established news organizations.
• Proficiency with tools like analytics tools like Google Analytics and social scheduling tools.
• Experience managing teams or supervising direct reports.
• Experience developing AI products or applying AI-assisted tools for reporting, editing, or newsroom workflows is a plus.

About Little Rock

Nestled along the Arkansas River, Little Rock is a capital city with a small-town feel and big-city amenities. It offers an affordable cost of living, a thriving food and arts scene and easy access to the outdoors — from hiking Pinnacle Mountain to biking the 88-mile Arkansas River Trail. Home to a diverse community, Little Rock also boasts a growing downtown, rich history and a central location that makes it easy to explore the rest of the Natural State. As Arkansas’ state capital, Little Rock is full of stories waiting to be told — from politics to culture, business and the outdoors.

Benefits

●      Hybrid work model 

●      401K & profit sharing

●      Paid vacation and sick leave

●      Paid holiday and floating holiday

●      Paid personal day

●      Paid parental leave

●      Health, dental, and vision insurance

●      Life, disability, and accident insurance

●      Critical illness and hospital indemnity coverage

●      Employee assistance program

●      Behavior program

We are an equal opportunity employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, or any other status protected by law.

Applicants must pass a drug screening, undergo motor vehicle record checks, and complete a background check.