So you want to be a journalist

More than a decade now into the 21st century and technology rules our lives. Could any of us live without our mobile phones? How about our computers? Heck, what about something that’s been around even longer, our microwave?

These tools are now ingrained into our everyday lives, and are a part of our daily routine. So now I turn to something that’s been around for more than 500 years and has stood the test of time, but may finally be teetering on the brink of extinction: newspapers.

Call me old fashioned, but I’m one who still likes to go out to my driveway every morning and pick up my newspaper and read it with breakfast. I’m part of a dying breed. Sure, I can read it online free of charge, but there’s something about having an actual newspaper in front of me, flipping through the pages, that provides some sort of comfort.

This coming from someone communicating to you through a blog. Hey, I know where my bread is buttered.

Anyhow, I know there are many high school and college students that have dreams of earning a journalism degree. Although there are several different fields within the industry they could enter, there are some that still want to be a newspaper reporter. I can tell you now, that the hours stink and the pay stinks, but there was still that feeling of prestige and pride every time I saw my name in print.

Because of the rise of the internet and the world of blogging, the newspaper industry has suffered immensely, and it’s unfortunate. News isn’t covered as thoroughly as it once was. Ad revenue is down. Readership has fallen. People are getting their news elsewhere, and it’s becoming more specialized. If I want just sports news, I can subscribe to a sports site that will send me nothing but sports news. If I want it to just be baseball news, then it will be baseball, and if I want to be on a specific baseball team, well, you get the idea.

So what should these students who want to become the next great writer/reporter do? Don’t give up on your dream. Take some advice that I received some time ago…start a blog, and write about what you feel you are an expert on. Find your passion and expound on it.

Keep a journal. This is not a diary. Don’t write a detailed description of your days’ activities, unless it was something so interesting you don’t ever want to forget it. A journal can be pretty much anything. You can write a short story, whatever you are thinking at that moment, an idea you might have. The point is to always keep writing because it will spawn new ideas, keep your writing fresh, but most importantly, make you a better and more experienced writer.

Another idea is find a topic you are interested in, research it and write a story about it. You never know, there might be someone out there that’s interested in what you have to say about it. Don’t be afraid to shop it around to editors. Blogging and writing articles on your own, quickly builds a portfolio. Also, check around to various publications to see if they will allow you to freelance for them. It’s a great way to get your foot in the door, gain experience and again, add to your portfolio.

Hopefully, these will be useful tips and ideas to get the young journalist started on their journey to being the next great reporter. Like so many people who have worked in newspapers, I don’t want to see the industry die, but I’m afraid it will slowly fade away as this new-fangled internet continues its stranglehold on our lives.

It’s taken me some time, but I’m moving toward the technology. I have to because like so many other things in this world, it will pass me by if I don’t.