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So you want to be a Print Journalist...
Journalism is largely perceived as being a job you do for love, rather than money. But if you find yourself constantly fantasizing about winning the Pulitzer Prize or breaking the biggest news story of the year, then it’s about time you get a reality check on the high and lows of journalism.
It is usually assumed that a degree in Mass Communication or Journalism is compulsory for a journalistic career. Though a background in the subject is helpful, people with an academic background in English or other humanities subjects also do well in this field. Some publications may consider A level and graduate degree holders for a position, but a Masters level degree in Mass Communications or Journalism can make you stand out in the crowd and improve your chances of landing a job. However, irrespective of one’s educational background the following skills and traits are essential for a good journalist:
* Creativity
* Knowledge of the structure and content of the language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
* Good typing speed
* Curiosity and inquisitiveness
* Ability to follow a complex argument
* An intrinsic interest in world events, current affairs — basically in all that is happening around you.
* It also helps to be thick-skinned.
One of the main qualities of a print journalist is the ability to hold the reader’s attention. It is important not only to have a good command of the language but also the ability to communicate effectively. In conversation, people at least have to be polite if you’re boring them. On the page you have one sentence and if readers find it dull or difficult to understand, they’ll move on.
You also need to be confident in speaking to people and able to think on your feet. Persistence is a key requirement as is an ability to listen to what you are being told, digesting it, thinking how it relates to the story in hand and considering your next question all at the same time.
Once you have decided that journalism is the career for you, it’s time to route out your academic path. Most seats of higher learning in the country offer a Mass Communication degree programme. If you intend to become a current affairs correspondent, it is advisable to pick International Relations or History as elective subjects at the graduate level. Similarly Psychology or Sociology also make a good combination with a Journalism major, because after all the focus of most features and reports is about the outcome of human actions and behaviour.
Print media journalists can work for a daily newspaper or they can be associated with a monthly or weekly publication. The roles played by the journalists in various capacities also vary — from the editor who directs editorial content, to feature writers who produce the lengthy, analytical pieces, to news reporters who dig for the latest news and finally the production staff or sub editors who take all the articles and mould them into a fixed house style.
Irrespective of a journalist’s position within the publication, one thing that remains constant is deadlines. Come rain, come sunshine, war or peace or whatever hell may break loose, a good journalist is expected to meet them. Sometimes journalists have to work on public holidays as well.
Then there are those frustrating moments when you have your painstakingly researched story, ready for printing when a new development occurs at the last minute, giving new perspective to the events covered in your feature. Sometimes the editor may ask you to incorporate the new developments and you have to work really fast to finish it before the printing phase begins or if there isn’t enough time to make amendments the feature may even get scrapped.
So before committing yourself to journalism, do keep in mind the work pressures associated with this profession.
However, being a journalist has its perks as well. It is one profession where one has the chance to inform and influence the opinions and mind set of not only the average reader but important decision makers as well. Your reports and writing can be an important instrument in altering societal perceptions, dispersing misconceptions and swaying public opinion. Journalists also get to interview decision makers and celebrities. And of course journalists get to travel too. Though it depends on the publication and your role in it, the potential to travel is there.
So if you still feel that you have what it takes to enter the demanding and challenging world of journalism, how about applying for an internship at a magazine or freelance writing during your spare time? Though freelancing can earn you a bit of pocket money, an internship
will help you get the feel of the actual work environment. And besides an internship on your resume can open doors for you when go job hunting after graduation.
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