Judy worked for The Oklahoman. So I could listen to the real story about a journalist. Normally journalists have a bachelor of journalism. However, that is not a must. Regardless of a major, people have to get some practices for writing article or internships to be a journalist. Judy said that she did nothing before being the Oklahoman reporter, but today journalism students have to get some internship related to their job.
However, Judy expressed that curiosity is the most important ability to be a news reporter. I thought the most important ability is writing skills, but that is not true. A journalist has to keep their curiosity about everything. When a journalist keeps their curiosity about everything, he or she can want to research something for article. Above all, when a journalist has a curiosity for their article, he or she can view some issues from different standpoints.
A journalist keeps the great relationship with specific photographer, because print company has their own photographer for picture. Whenever a journalist goes to interview, he or she has to talk to them about their imagined image as a picture.
I heard getting the news source is really hard to a journalist. A journalist feels really harsh stress because of the print’s due. Especially he or she has to find something new for a article. However, Judy recommended another point of view. Whenever I felt that a new idea had run, I have to change my point of view. I must see a society, and the world with a curiosity. ‘Why do a community, and this system works like that?’ Judy said that this question is starting point to change our standpoint. After this question, he or she can make the article source bigger. When he or she can get the interviewee person, he or she has to want to get more expert persons. For example, if I want to write the article about storm, I can get a one expert of a weather reporter. However, not just that person, a journalist has to ask the phone number of another two experts like metrology professor, and city hall officer of protecting disaster. That is the way that a journalist makes their news sources bigger. Judy express that the important point to control their stress is journalist’s mind, not situation.
After her interview, I got the original question about print reporter’s life. How about the future of newspaper’s future? As we know, the circulation of newspaper declines, and even some newspapers are really hard to run their company. Unlike the past, today’s journalist must be able to do many things, not just a writing skill. Because we have to keep pace with the technology development, so we should be able to use many multimedia quite freely. That is why we take this kind of class in university.
Judy said that at the age when she worked as a journalist, she needed nothing, except a writing skill. However, she also said that today’s journalism students have to change to survive. In the past, journalists had to be an expert who can do everything, because journalist area did not specialize like today. Today, with different meaning, we should be the expert who can do everything for writing article to survive. We already know that the only solution of print journalism is the Internet. In multimedia age, a journalist has to be a print’s reporter, and also be an online reporter. For this thing, a journalist must use many computer programs like HTML, Dreamweaver to post their writing on blog or their website. Not only this thing, he or she also has to use the online editorial skills like Photoshop, and video editor.
Today’s journalist has to change for surviving. However, if we can think in a different way, that is not a big deal. In today’s age, we can make many channels to connect with our audience, and also communicate with them in two ways. Judy said that the age is changing. Even though everything is changing, one thing is never changed. The most important point to a journalist is an accuracy, and curiosity about the world. That is the only thing that guides a journalist to tell the truth to their audience.
Hi, I find your insight about journalism refreshing after 18 years working as both a television cameraman and a still photographer.. My name is Michael, I base in Fort Worth Texas and have worked all over the world. My hope for you is that you keep your enthusiasm for what you are doing in spite of those in this business who have burned out and are not going quietly into the night.. If this is your passion you already know it.. Let no one stand in your way.
ReplyDeleteHere's a little back roads story I did last week: http://journalisticphotography.blogspot.com/2009/04/my-sunday-with-owengene-blackwood.html