Gene Farris Email & Phone Number

Greater Chicago Area

Chicago, Illinois

My duties in various assignments at the Tribune include programming and editing the Chicago Tribune's websites, posting and monitoring social media, monitoring web traffic, offering items to the ChicagoTribune.com home page, and monitoring wire services. Among my top duties are editing columnists David Haugh, Steve Rosenbloom, Brad Biggs and Phil Rosenthal. I also compile and write the email newsletter, add assets (photos, videos, related stories and graphics) to stories, edit and compile photo galleries, post and conduct light editing of video. I’ve also served as copy editor for Tribune Company's MoD (Media on Demand) group. MoD handled copy editing and page design duties for Tribune-owned Hartford Courant in Connecticut and Newport News Daily Press in Virginia. I’ve also served as chief copy editor for the sports desk.

Chicago, Illinois

As a member of this family-owned web-only business’ leadership, I oversee several business operations including payroll, customer relations, shipping and order fulfillment and website maintenance. At our former brick-and-mortar location in suburban Washington, D.C., I supervised employees and managed the physical store.

Mclean, Va.

Web/video editor and section editor for USAToday.com and USA Today. Programmed usatoday.com/sports, worked with other editors to publish and edit breaking news, features and blog posts as quickly as possible, monitor breaking news and topics trending online and in social media, Determined play and position of stories, features and videos on the website based news value, reader interest and potential to draw readers. Also shot video in the USA Today studio as well as in the field, and edited with Final Cut Pro. On the print side, I directed and managed USA Today’s International Edition, which circulated in Europe and Asia, targeting U.S. tourists and Americans living abroad. Additionally, I edited columnists Christine Brennan, Mike Lopresti and Mike Hiestand, as well as USA Today bloggers, for the Page 3.0 feature.

Served as a department manager, overseeing night operations of the sports department, including handling of breaking news, supervising the copy desk, coordinating with reporters in the field. Directed sports department during the absence of the sports editor. Managed various projects, including daily Olympics coverage, production of Cleveland Cavaliers/NBA and other preview sections, and was a member of the Beacon Journal’s Ethics Committee.My other duties included assisting the sports editor with reporters’ assignments, overseeing creation of graphics, hiring stringers and making newsroom budgets. I also conducted annual performance evaluations for sports copy editors and coordinated with other departments on sports-related coverage.

Supervised the sports copy desk, directing editing and proof assignments to copy editors. Edited numerous Sun-Times columnists, including Rick Telander and Jay Mariotti. Other duties included making initial reads of stories, headlines and graphics; coordinating story lengths and deadlines with reporters in the field; and working with the design desk on display.

Fort Wayne, Indiana

I edited news, sports, neighborhood news, features, national and world staff and wire stories. As a reporter, I covered courts, health, police, weekend and general assignment stories.

Bachelor Of Arts (B.A.), Journalism

Video Storytelling Lab.