Journalist
A journalist is a professional dedicated to reporting news and events to the public through various media channels, including print, broadcasting, and online platforms. Typically beginning their careers as reporters, journalists cover a wide range of topics from politics and crime to sports and culture. As they gain experience, they may advance to roles such as editors, guiding the storytelling process. The work environment is often fast-paced, with journalists facing tight deadlines and the pressure to deliver accurate information swiftly.
The field has seen a notable decline in job opportunities, attributed to the rise of the internet and changing audience behaviors, which have shifted the landscape of traditional journalism. Despite these challenges, successful journalists are characterized by their curiosity, adaptability, and commitment to factual reporting. Educational requirements generally include a bachelor's degree in journalism or a related field, along with valuable hands-on experience through internships and school publications. The role is multifaceted, ranging from local reporting to international correspondences, demanding resilience and a strong ethical foundation to navigate the complexities of modern news.
Journalist
Snapshot
Career Cluster(s): Arts, A/V Technology & Communications
Interests: Writing, story-telling, research, solving problems, communicating with others
Earnings (Yearly Median): $57,500 per year $27.64 per hour (2023)
Employment & Outlook: -3 percent (Decline)
Entry-Level Education Bachelor's degree
Related Work Experience None
On-the-job-Training None
Overview
Sphere of Work.The field of journalism involves reporting news, events, and ideas to wide audiences through various media. These include print (newspapers and magazines), broadcasting (television and radio), or the Internet (news websites and blogs). Journalists usually start out as reporters covering anything from sports and weather to business, crime, politics, and consumer affairs. Later, they may become editors, helping to direct the process of gathering and presenting stories.
Journalists can operate on many different levels such as in local, regional, national, or international reporting. It is common for a journalist to start out working on the local or regional level and then move up the ladder as his or her career progresses. Journalists spend the bulk of their time investigating and composing stories, observing events, conducting interviews, taking notes, taking photographs, shooting videos, and preparing their material for publication or broadcast. This work can happen in a matter of minutes, or it can take days or weeks to gather information and build a story.
The rise of the internet and social media in the late 1990s and the first decades of the twenty-first century has significantly eroded the position of traditional journalism in the United States. Daily newspaper circulation has declined from a high of more than 60 million in the 1970s and early 1980s to 20.9 million in 2020. Audiences for local television news programs have also declined from a nationwide average of about 4 million for 6 p.m. and late-night broadcasts in 2016 to about 3 million in 2022.
As a result, the number of journalism jobs in the United States has also declined. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), 58,500 people were employed as journalists, news reporters, and analysts in 2022; by 2032, that number was forecast to shrink by 1,900.
Work Environment. A journalist’s work environment is fast-paced and competitive, subject to tight and changing deadlines, irregular work hours, and pressure to get breaking news on the air or online before other news organizations. Journalists covering “hard news”—current events that directly affect people’s lives, such as crime, politics, or natural disasters—typically work with stories that are moving and changing constantly. Their challenge is to present as much relevant and verifiable information as possible under the circumstances. Journalists covering less pressing subjects, like economic and social trends, popular culture, or “human interest” stories, are subject to less immediate time pressures, but are under no less of an obligation to get their facts straight.
Journalists must therefore be able to adapt to unfamiliar places and a variety of people. They must be accustomed to interruptions and have the ability to pick up and process new information at all times.
Occupation Interest. Successful journalists are curious by nature and can work comfortably with a wide variety of subjects. They enjoy writing and presenting stories, and they have a great respect for the principles that define a free society. These principles include the public’s right to know and to question government, business, and social institutions. They also respect an individual’s desire to feel connected to what is going on in society. Journalists have to be adept at dealing with people, and successful journalists often have a competitive nature that drives them to try to get the “scoop” before other journalists.
Journalism can be multifaceted work—it can be a low-key, local position for a community newspaper, or it can involve travel and a myriad of settings. Reporting can be a fast-paced in- or out-of-office experience driven by publication editors or broadcast producers.
Finally, journalists have to exhibit tenacity and a tough skin, able to pursue a story to its natural end with a commitment to fair and accurate reporting, even when dealing with controversial topics or evasive interview subjects.
A Day in the Life—Duties and Responsibilities.On any given day, journalists are researching and developing story ideas, checking facts, and writing articles for publication; all on a tight deadline. Journalists uncover news, information, statistics, and trends that they incorporate into news stories, broadcasts, feature stories, and editorials. They meet regularly with editors and get assignments based on current happenings. A typical day can vary depending on what a journalist has been assigned,
Daily newspapers and news wire services have journalists working constantly, around the clock, following ongoing news stories, with very short lead times. Weekly newspapers, and weekly and monthly magazines, have longer lead times, and so deadlines are less frequent.
Some journalists work in the field as correspondents, such as traveling with a camera crew and conducting “man-on-the-street” interviews, or gathering information about rapidly developing events, which they then submit electronically to newspaper editors or radio or television producers. Since the rise of the Internet, the distinction between print and broadcast journalism has blurred. Newspaper websites today often include video feeds, and television news stations have websites where their stories appear in text form.
The most important part of a journalist’s job is making sure that the stories he or she presents are based on solid, verifiable facts, rather than rumors or misinformation. Inaccuracies can creep into news stories in many ways: honest mistakes, the reporter’s own conscious or unconscious biases, and sources attempting to deceive the public are just a few. For this reason, journalists must invest a good deal of time in making sure their stories are correct before they reach the public.
Reporters and Correspondents (131.262-018). Reporters and Correspondents gather and assess information, organize it and write news stories in prescribed style and format. They may also take photographs for stories and give broadcast reports, or report live from the site of events.
Columnists (131.067-010). Columnists analyze news and write columns or commentaries based on personal knowledge and experience with the subject matter. They gather information through research, interviews, experience, and attendance at functions such as political conventions, news meetings, sporting events, and social activities.
Critics (131.067-018). Critics write critical reviews of literary, musical, or artistic works and performances.
Editorial Writers (131.067-022). Editorial Writers write comments on topics of reader interest to stimulate or mold public opinion in accordance with the viewpoints and policies of publications.
Work Environment
Immediate Physical Environment. A journalist’s work environment can be anywhere, from a crime scene to a press conference to a desk in an office. News outlets usually house journalists in large, well-lit rooms filled with workstations, computer equipment, and the sounds of keyboards and printers. “Boots-on-the-ground” reporting can take a journalist anywhere, though: embedded war correspondents may travel with a military unit into battle; a journalist reporting on the fishing industry may spend several days on a fishing boat at sea; the next week, that same journalist may tour a farm or a factory or a school to get the next story.
Human Environment. Journalists deal with people. They are constantly interviewing people and collecting and analyzing information; therefore, they can usually be found speaking with anyone who has something to do with the story at hand, be it politicians, company officials, protesters, or an average person.
Technological Environment. Journalists submit their stories electronically and can therefore be anywhere in the world, collecting information. They often carry their technology on their back, with just a laptop computer and camera, or travel with a crew of broadcast professionals who can put the journalist on the air live at any time.
Education, Training, and Advancement
High School/Secondary. High school students can prepare to be a journalist by working for the school newspaper or yearbook, volunteering with local broadcasting stations, and participating in internships with news organizations. Coursework should include a strong focus on writing and communication, through classes such as English, social studies, political science, history, and psychology. Knowledge of foreign languages can also be highly useful in many journalism jobs.
Practical experience is highly valued and can be found through part-time or summer jobs, summer journalism camps, work at college broadcasting stations, and professional organizations. Work in these areas can help in obtaining scholarships, fellowships, and assistantships for college journalism majors.
Local television stations and newspapers often offer internship opportunities for up-and-coming journalists to improve their craft by reporting on town hall meetings or writing obituaries and human-interest stories.
Postsecondary. Most, but not all, journalists have a bachelor’s degree in journalism, English, or another liberal arts-related field. There are many journalism schools within colleges and universities across the country. Many schools also offer master’s and doctoral degrees, which are especially useful for those interested in journalistic research and teaching.
Bachelor's degree program coursework should include broad liberal arts subjects, a general overview of journalism, and then specialty courses that correspond with the highly important requirements for good writing and communication. These can include classes in social media, broadcast writing, news editorial writing, magazine writing, copy editing, interviewing, journalistic ethics, blogging, feature writing, news reporting, and news photography.
All college and university students should make the effort to use career centers, academic counselors, and professors when seeking opportunities for advancement through volunteering or interning.
Related Occupations
− Radio/TV Announcer and Newscaster
Bibliography
Lipka, Michael, and Elisa Shearer. "Audiences Are Declining for Traditional News Media in the U.S. – With Some Exceptions." Pew Research Center, 28 Nov. 2023, www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2023/11/28/audiences-are-declining-for-traditional-news-media-in-the-us-with-some-exceptions/. Accessed 22 Aug. 2024.
"News Analysts, Reporters, and Journalists." US Bureau of Labor Statistics, 17 Apr. 2024, www.bls.gov/ooh/media-and-communication/reporters-correspondents-and-broadcast-news-analysts.htm. Accessed 22 Aug. 2024.