First Taylor, now Beyoncé: USA Today publisher looking for writer to cover Queen Bey

Gannett, the publisher of USA Today and several other newspapers, is looking to add a Beyoncé-focused writer to its staff.

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The company posted a job opening for a reporter who will “tap into stories about the Beyhive,” The Washington Post reported.

This isn’t the first entertainer-specific beat the company is looking to cover. Gannett posted a job that would pay between $21.63 and $50.87 an hour to cover Taylor Swift.

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Like the Swift stint, the Beyoncé reporter will be a remote writer working for both USA Today and The Tennessean, with their articles appearing in about 200 local papers. The pay rate is the same for both positions.

Gannett is looking for “modern storytellers” who are multifaceted and able to write for print, but also have experience in audio and visual journalism, The Associated Press reported.

The requirements include:

Bachelor’s or master’s degree in communication, journalism, marketing or a related field, or experience combined with education.
At least five years of experience in a digital-first newsroom.
Willingness to travel extensively.

The Tennessean already has a team that focuses on music, said the newspaper’s editor and Gannett’s vice president for local news, Michael Anastasi, according to the AP.

With news of the entertainer-specific postings, the company also announced several other positions this week, including a reporter who will focus on climate change at the Savannah Morning News, the Post reported.

But jobs for a Swifty and a member of the Beyhive come after Gannett fired 6% of its staff in December following an August 2022 layoff that affected 400 employees, the Post reported. The company also closed some local newsrooms, creating news deserts where communities are not served by a local publication covering local news topics, such as local politics, crime and neighborhood issues, The Los Angeles Times reported.

“At a time when so much serious news and local reporting is being cut, it’s a decision to raise some questions about,” said Rick Edmonds, an expert at the journalism think tank the Poynter Institute, according to the AP.

Anastasi countered by saying, “We’re not hiring a Taylor Swift reporter at the expense of other reporters.”

This isn’t the first time a journalist had a specific person as their beat, as The New York Times hired Amy Chozick to cover Hillary Clinton exclusively in 2013, the AP reported. The Los Angeles Times reporter Suzy Exposito was “unofficially” on the beat of Bad Bunny since she had focused on the entertainer in a previous job.

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