Digital Ads and Community Manager

POSITION OVERVIEW:

The Digital Advertising and Community Manager is an exciting new dual-focused position responsible for developing, leading and executing comprehensive, full funnel digital advertising strategies while crafting and building out cultivation and fundraising strategies across PBS News communities on major social platforms. This role requires a strategic mindset combined with hands-on execution skills to drive awareness, engagement, audience growth, and revenue through paid media campaigns, authentic community building, and member benefit initiatives. The successful candidate will combine fundraising and analytical rigor with creative community stewardship on platforms like YouTube, Patreon, and other social media channels. 

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES:

Digital Advertising (50%)

• Develop and execute comprehensive digital advertising strategies for WETA (and potentially PBS News) that align with organizational goals, including audience growth, engagement, membership, and revenue targets.
• Manage full-funnel campaigns spanning awareness, consideration, and conversion phases across platforms including Google Search and Display Networks, programmatic display, CTV/OTT, and emerging channels.
• Plan, implement, and optimize paid media campaigns with rigorous A/B testing of creative assets, targeting parameters, and messaging strategies. Monitor campaign performance daily, analyzing key metrics such as CPM, CTR, CPA, ROAS, and engagement rates to inform optimization decisions and budget allocation.
• Collaborate with creative teams to develop compelling ad creative that resonates with target audiences while maintaining brand consistency. Provide data-driven creative direction based on performance insights and audience research.
• Manage advertising budgets, ensuring efficient allocation of resources and maximum return on investment.
• Evaluate WETA (and potentially PBS News) digital advertising performance, in coordination with the Data Strategy and Development Services team. Provide regular detailed reporting on campaign performance, insights, and recommendations for optimization to leadership and stakeholders.
• Work in coordination with the Director of Digital Fundraising and lead the cross-departmental Digital Ads advisory group.
• Stay current on digital advertising trends, platform updates, and best practices in the public media and news sectors. Identify new opportunities for audience reach and engagement through emerging platforms and innovative ad formats.

Digital Community Management (50%)

• Build, manage and grow a membership or subscription-based community, from existing large PBS News audiences, creating exclusive content opportunities and member benefits that drive maximum fundraising revenue and retention while deepening supporter relationships.
• Develop and build out community engagement strategies to build, nurture, grow and manage communities on major social media platforms such as YouTube, TikTok, Instagram and Patreon for PBS News.
• Develop and implement PBS News community guidelines, moderation policies, and engagement protocols that create safe, inclusive spaces for dialogue while protecting organizational values and community members.
• Monitor and respond to comments, questions and feedback across platforms in a timely, authentic, and brand-appropriate manner.  Identify opportunities to elevate community voices and user-generated content that strengthens relationships with PBS News digital audiences.
• Monitor and analyze community sentiment, engagement metrics, and feedback providing insights and recommendations to help inform content strategy, advertising approaches, messaging, and organizational decision-making. Track and report on community health metrics including growth, engagement rates, sentiment, and retention.
• Collaborate with PBS News Digital Fundraising Manager, PBS News digital team,   content creators, editors, and producers to facilitate community-driven content opportunities.

Cross-functional Collaboration

• Work closely with membership, editorial, production, development, and communications teams across both WETA and PBS News programs to ensure alignment between advertising campaigns, community initiatives, and organizational priorities.
• Coordinate with data and analytics teams to develop comprehensive measurement frameworks that track the supporter journey— from ad exposure through community engagement and conversion—and identify opportunities to optimize.

CORE COMPETENCIES:    

• Bachelor's degree in marketing/advertising, communications, or related field.
• 3-5 years of experience and demonstrated expertise in digital advertising, including paid search/SEM, native and programmatic display, CTV/OTT, with a proven track record of increasing digital revenue. Google Ads certification preferred.
• 3-5 years of experience and demonstrated expertise in social media and community management.
• Exceptional writing and communication skills, with the ability to craft compelling and persuasive marketing and fundraising copy.
• Strong project management skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines.
• Proficiency with Google Analytics 4 (GA4) and Google Tag Manager (GTM).
• Passion for public media and independent journalism.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a collaborative team.

EDUCATION:

• Bachelor's degree in marketing/advertising, communications, or related field.

LOCATION:

WETA and NewsHour Productions are Washington, DC established media and news organizations. We are a largely local workforce based out of the Campbell Place office in Arlington, VA. WETA and NewsHour Productions value employee flexibility when possible. Most positions based in our Arlington, VA office will be onsite or hybrid, depending upon the role.

COMPANY OVERVIEW:

WETA and its subsidiary NewsHour Productions LLC serve local and national public media audiences by producing and distributing content of intellectual integrity and cultural merit. Through broadcast, digital and community services, the organization offers compelling, diverse programming on five television channels, including primary channel WETA PBS, and on WETA Classical, the exclusive home for classical music in the nation’s capital; produces a portfolio of national television productions, including PBS NewsHour, recognized globally for bringing balanced, in-depth news coverage to all Americans; creates impactful documentaries with longtime production partners Ken Burns and Prof. Henry Louis Gates, Jr.; features a variety of content offerings on weta.org, WETA Passport, the PBS Video App and the WETA Classical App; and serves communities near and far with education and engagement initiatives that contribute to the company’s mission of public service. Benefits | WETA

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY:

WETA and NewsHour Productions are equal opportunity employers committed to diversity and inclusion in the workplace. We prohibit discrimination and harassment of any kind based on race, color, sex, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, genetic information, pregnancy, or any other protected characteristic as outlined by federal, state, or local laws.

This policy applies to all employment practices within our organization, including hiring, recruiting, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, leave of absence, compensation, benefits, training, and internships. WETA and NewsHour Productions make hiring decisions based solely on qualifications, merit, and business needs at the time.