If you follow our Zach Seward on Twitter, you may have seen his announcement yesterday that he’ll be leaving us at the end of this week. He’s gotten a great job at The Wall Street Journal. (You’ll actually still see Zach around here, in his new role as Lab blogger.) We’re thrilled for him, even though he’ll be extraordinarily hard to replace.

That said: We’re gonna try to replace him! We’re looking to hire an assistant editor at the Lab. You can get a good handle on what the job entails by reading the official job description. But you can also do so by looking at what Zach has produced and asking yourself, “Would I like to do that?”

We’re looking for an excellent reporter who can cover the beat of the future of news — tracking trends, uncovering new angles, explaining where things are headed. This person will pay attention to traditional media, online journalism, and the parts of the technology world that impact both. The job covers both journalism and the business models that support them. You’ll need to have a great writing voice — something neither straight news nor slangy blog, but somewhere in between. And you’ll need to be, as they say in these parts, wicked smart.

(You’ll also likely play a big role in managing our popular Twitter feed, which Zach built and which is a critical part of what we do here. So experience with social media is a big plus. The person we will hire very likely already has TweetDeck installed. And has a blog. And has already been reading our site for months.)

This is a full-time position in the Boston area with excellent Harvard benefits. I do want to explain one line you’ll find in the job description: “NOTE: This is a term appointment ending June 30, 2010, with the possibility of renewal based on funding and department priorities.” I’m required to include that line in the job description for internal Harvard HR reasons — officially, this is a position that extends until that date. But that line shouldn’t discourage anyone from applying: The Lab isn’t going anywhere, and my expectation is that we’ll be hiring someone awesome who will be a part of what we’re doing well beyond that date.

I’m happy to answer any questions about the job, but please don’t email me your resume. You’ll have to apply through the Harvard jobs site for us to be able to consider your application.

Photo by Social Blog Network used under Creative Commons license.