The UK’s largest commercial news publisher Reach is hiring an overnight team in Australia for the first time.
Job adverts are live for a UK and world news editor and reporters to provide “the highest standard of coverage and editorial continuity” for newsrooms like the Mirror, the Express and the Manchester Evening News from the other side of the world.
The new full-time journalists will work at home without a central office to deliver “what UK news audiences want to see”.
Paul Rowland, editorial director of Reach’s Live network, said: “Being a 24/7 news operation is really important to us and we’re also looking for ways to improve our offering to readers on major breaking news.
“We know there’s a great deal of journalistic talent in Australia – including a strong expat contingent – and we believe operating an overnights team from there makes a great deal of strategic sense.”
The expansion into Australia follows Reach’s growth in the US. The operation for its dotcom websites for the Mirror, Express and Irish Star now has a 70-strong dedicated team of which ten people are based in the UK covering the morning before the America-based staff start.
The editor job advert states that they will “take the reins during the day while the UK team is offline – overseeing news gathering, story selection, editing, and digital publication for national and regional brands.
“Your leadership will be vital in ensuring our UK audience wakes up to timely, accurate, and engaging news coverage.”
Reach currently has one employee based in Australia: Sam Shedden, former head of subscriptions at National World in the UK, who as senior editor of off-platform newsletters is supporting the launch of a series of free Substack newsletters based on topic areas, cities or sports clubs. The newsletters are
But the new roles will mark the first time Reach has had a dedicated team in Australia to help cover the otherwise quiet overnight hours in the UK.
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