Job Introduction

BBC News, with a weekly global audience of 468 million, uses multiple platforms to deliver accurate, impartial news in 42 languages. As the biggest international service of BBC News, World Service is a renowned multimedia broadcaster, delivering a wide range of language and regional services and working increasingly with other parts of BBC News to serve global audiences.

A new operating model is being introduced across BBC World Service Languages to focus on our digital offer where that provides a route to future growth. BBC World Service has announced plans for Afghan Languages to bring together all Pashto, Dari, Uzbek TV for Afghanistan and Persian Digital content into one service, simplifying our structure, and investing in original, high-impact content for the region.

This is a key role in the new World Service Languages Planning and Prospects team, taking responsibility for planning for the Afghan Service coordinating closely with the production hub and deployments team.

Main Responsibilities

• Commission and select relevant materials ensuring they meet expectations of our audiences and adhere to the BBC’s editorial guidelines.
• Coordinating stories and help with scripting, editing, outputting and presenting content across a range of BBC output.
• Running and overseeing daily and longer terms prospects and news agendas for all the Afghan Service.
• Representing the interests of the team, working closely with the relevant editors to ensure they are supplied with the content they need and that all strong material is flagged up shared when appropriate with other services.
• Coordinating with the Newsgathering and Deployments team.
• Coordinating with all teams in the Production Hubs and English content to ensure all potentially interesting content from outside the Service will be flagged to the relevant Output editor.
• Overseeing and managing complex roll outs of long form content in a range of formats for all platforms.
• Ensuring all content is factually accurate, has passed all necessary legal hurdles and is compliant with BBC’s editorial policy, including flagging up issues that might have been missed
• As required, to allocate work to a team and check progress; ensure the professional contribution of staff and the quality of output.
• Seek ways to increase diversity in our workforce and to ensure that our output reflects the audiences we serve.
• Deliver journalism of the highest standard and within the required timeframe using available resources.
• To act as a facilitator of change, clearly communicating and distributing best practices between teams.
• Delivering to tight deadlines while maintaining the highest editorial standards.
• At all times to carry out duties in accordance with the BBC health and safety policy.

Are you the right candidate?

• A deep understanding of Afghanistan's media landscape, audience demographics, and ethnic-linguistic dynamics.
• Proven experience of working in Afghanistan and deep knowledge of the region (Iran, Pakistan, Uzbekistan) needed.
• Demonstrable experience in planning for short and long-term news agenda, including big events and high impact content rollouts.
• A deep knowledge of the websites and different platforms of the Afghan language in and a clear understanding of their audience needs.
• Excellent English and fluent knowledge of Pashto/Dari are essential for this role.
• Effective planning and organising skills, ability to concentrate on several areas of work at one time, prioritising, delivering consistently to deadlines and reacting positively to changes and conflicting priorities.
• A successful record in digital production with demonstrable experience of both writing text and producing video content to the highest editorial standards. Proficient in optimo and Stitch is required.
• The ability to use audience metrics, international and in social media to track the success of content and to interpret trends, opportunities for stories, and feedback loops.
• Demonstrable experience producing content for social media and knowledge of social media best practice, key opportunities and of BBC/WS social strategy
• An excellent record of co-ordinating and planning with all teams high impact content rollout of the best digital material from the BBC
• Demonstrable experience in working in challenging and high pressured environments
• A clear understanding World Service Languages and of the needs and profile of our target audiences across Languages
• Demonstrable experience of – or the ability to quickly learn - BBC software and production systems and stays current with developments in this field. This include Wolftech, Open Media and TEAMS.
• Experience of using audience metrics internationally to inform decisions and commissions
• Ability to write creatively in an engaging manner, adapt, produce and translate with accuracy, clarity and style appropriate to differing audiences and forms of media suitable for multimedia output.
  

Package Description

Job Reference: 19174
Band: D
Contract type: Continuing. Local terms and conditions
Location: Islamabad, Pakistan

Any offer of employment with the BBC is conditional upon you having the right to work in Pakistan.