I think I can, I think I can, I...thought I could

All journalism students alike will have been faced with the same quintessential first-day-of-class ice breaker.

"Why do you want to be a journalist?"

Last Wednesday, in two of my journalism classes a resounding number of my classmates responded with, "I thought I wanted to be a ________ reporter, but..."

In the span of just eight hours I'd met 30 journalism students, around 80 percent of whom no longer wanted to be reporters.

It seems a variety of factors -- unwanted mandatory classes, grim professors, the equally grim reality of the shrinking profession -- have managed to push these students to the edge. Some believed they weren't cut out for journalism any more. Others planned on pursuing more financially stable careers. Others yet were going to travel different literary paths with their writing talents.

Perhaps the biggest challenge facing young journalists today is simply themselves. The aforementioned factors may have been a force that started the push but essentially the students themselves decided to jump away from their one-time aspiration. They convinced themselves they weren't meant for the media field, and/or vice versa.

Heck, after giving things a little (honest) thought, even I joined the bandwagon.

"Hi, my name is Allison and I thought I wanted to be a sports reporter or a foreign correspondent, but now I'd rather take my chances on the street in a box with my name on it."

Here's to one more year of journalism curricula, and hoping to restore a little faith in myself.



Allison Hong is (biding her time as) a print journalism major at the University of Southern California. She spends her days reading Reuters' Oddly Enough stories and trying to catch episodes of ESPN's Around the Horn.

Harry Potter...and the plight of the journalist

As a journalist in the 21^st century, it’s important to remember not to fall behind; one day you are the producer for a television news station, and the next you are searching the classified ads for a job (like all of the journalists who are my father’s patients.) Journalists face unique and often archaic challenge of dealing with ethical and personal dilemmas beyond their control.

One of the biggest challenges faced by journalists is avoiding the temptation to take the shortcut. When writing that story, posting that blog, or even just on the street interviewing an unreceptive source, there is great temptation (no pun intended) to take the easy way out. Making up the quote or story seems like a situation you can get away with, and your editor will never find out if you are careful…or will they?

Just ask Jayson Blair.

The Pulitzer-prize winning journalists fabricated numerous stories for the most reputable newspaper in the country—The New York Times. He worked for the New York Times for years thinking he could get away with it, until one day his editors caught him, and the rest was history (and him too).

Along the same lines, producing sensationalistic material isn’t much better. Overdramatizing and exaggerating a story for readers is a cheap and dirty. Keeping your focus on sensationalistic material becomes very frivolous and drives away readers and intellectuals looking to focus on the more serious issues.

Not everything in the world needs to be a la Perez Hilton—it’s possible to have readers interested in serious issues, from the Olympics to the election.

Everything boils down to how do we keep readers and viewers interested in serious news? Do we need to dumb it down, or keep it in our jargon?

We should do both—dumb down the content, but keep the nuts and bolts there, the hard facts. People need to be kept in the know.

Whether we are doing so though is up to you.

Brad and Angelina! Split!

Respect.

We've been told over and over since we first entered j-school that the job of a journalist is to give the public a fair, accurate and informed version of the world's events. With many less than reputable "journalists" increasingly clogging up the internet, it is hard to both earn and keep the attention and respect of our audience, which inevitably thrives on the media's mistakes and shortcomings. People often complain that the steadfast integrity of journalists such as Peter Jennings no longer exists; they say news outlets focus too much of their time on celebrity gossip and scandal.

But as discussed in class, ratings are everything.

A station's audience dictates what goes on air -- and unfortunately for those who whine about the state of the media, scandal is what people are drawn to (one needs only to take a look at Chris Hansen and his salacious predators to see how true this is).

How is a young journalist to earn the respect of a contradictory audience that demands "real" news yet is much more inclined to embrace the stories of TMZ and US Weekly? I admittedly love stories about Britney's new screwup just as much as the next person. But the ones who ruffle my feathers are those who flip embarrassingly through the newest issue of National Enquirer at the checkout line (while glancing around to see if anyone's witnessing this guilty pleasure), and then later moan about the quality of journalism.

But, as we all learned early on in our lives, respect is something that has to be earned. All we young people can do is focus on what's important and spread the belief that things such as politics and foreign affairs do matter. And all journalists can do is remember that their job first and foremost is to report on what matters.

Fairly and accurately.

Melody Chiu is a junior studying print journalism at the University of Southern California. She enjoys playing with her spotty dog named Nicky and staring at her Tom Welling shrine.

Young Journalists' Biggest Challenge

The biggest challenge facing a young journalist in today’s media is that the internet has created has created more competition than ever before for an aspiring reporter. In addition, the increased viewership of the internet has brought about a steady decline to both print and broadcast media, creating a smaller workforce for journalists.

Throughout the last decade, internet blogs and news web sites have grown at a rapid pace. While this may seem like a step toward a better democracy – and it very well may be the best way for anyone to get their voice heard nationwide - it actually hurts journalists who are looking for a job.

Print media, more so than any other form of journalism, have become a dying breed in contemporary society. With news easily accessible and free to view on the internet, print media have found it hard to compete in the market. Readership in major newspapers across the nation, such as the Los Angeles Times and New York Times, has been on a steady decline within the last few years.

This decrease in readership leads to fewer advertisers paying for ads in these print medias, which means newspapers aren’t making as much money as they did in the past, which has led to numerous layoffs across the nation in the print journalism industry.

Broadcast journalism has also hit hard times due to the internet. Ratings on major television networks are down because audiences find it easier to read and watch a video clip online rather than sit down to watch primetime news every evening. The multimedia aspect of the internet is the most appealing tool to viewers across America.

Many viewers have turned toward the internet instead of print or broadcast media, and nothing is wrong with that. However, it has created a more difficult time for journalists to find jobs because the competition on the internet is much greater than any generation before this has ever seen.

A 13-year-old boy who has never watched a news show in his life can start his own blog and post about something he heard at school. While he may not be a journalist to the true definition of the word, he still has created something out on the internet that other professional journalists must compete against. A decade ago, this was never an issue.

A War For Words

A young journalist in 2008 should be nervous, anxious and ready to face an infinite abyss. I’m talking about the online world. A world that’s completely destroying the English language and murdering every grammar rule that’s left standing. A world that accepts “g2g” and “aka” as perfectly acceptable lingo. With the rise of online media and journalism, are we supposed to fall prey to the social norms that are being set? Or as journaslits, are we supposed to uphold the formal language we were taught as children?

I believe that the biggest challenge facing today’s young journalists will be a war for words. If the community of trendy Internet junkies is going to continue making up this new code language, then the beauty and grace of the English language will disappear faster than you can say “ttyl.” And by that point, the journalism students who spent four years and $120,000 to learn the art of writing will not be “lol-ing.”

Our biggest challenge will not be finding a job when we graduate. And it won’t be learning how to acclimate to life as an amateur anchor in Just-Past-The-Middle-Of-Nowhere, Kansas. Our biggest challenge will be to uphold the standards of writing. It is our job to set the bar high and show the world that there is a difference between journalism and gibberish.

“Lauren Rosenblum is a print journalism student at the Annenberg School of Communication at USC. She loves to bake, watch movies and aspires to have her own editorial column one day.”

Finding a Place In the Journalism Job Market

At one point in time, it was enough for a young journalist to be a good reporter. Being a star reporter or a sharp-shooting cameraman was enough to land a good job after college. Not anymore. With cuts coming left and right at papers and news stations, it is getting increasingly harder for journalists to acquire-and maintain- their jobs. Not only that, but now as online media is taking center stage journalists are expected to be more than just a writer, camera man, or web whiz. In order for newspapers and networks to save money and cut back on jobs, journalists today are expected at times to be all three and more so that as convergence continues, it is not necessary for more jobs to be created.
Originally, the addition of online news media seemed as though it could be a catalyst for more journalist jobs. Instead, many journalists, especially at small publications, had to take on a heavier work load to help get their work online. This change in skill sets may come as a shock to some journalists who, for example, went into journalism only wanting to write. Those who have a passion for writing may not feel as comfortable with a camera or on the internet as they find they need to be. Journalists have to worry not only about finding a job in a market which is growing increasingly smaller in the first place, but also about doing jobs they did not readily set out to do.
With online news and media convergence, the role of the journalist is constantly changing. Journalists have to learn as much as they can about all fields of journalism and hope for the best.
Miriam Finder is from a small suburb outside of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She has two sisters (one older, one younger) and has grown to love small pets such as guinea pigs since she and her sisters were never allowed to have a dog. She enjoys reading, skiing, and hiking.

Here's the link to buy the textbook

http://www.hh-pub.com/book.php3?book=HH1888