Investigative Reporter..? several questions, 10 POINTS?

Question

This may sound like a dumb question but hey wut the heck I'll go 4 it.

I want to be an investigative reporter, that gets to travel extensively and sort of do the "detective work" if you get what i mean.

Does journalism necessarly have to be my major? Like I know I will have to do some writing but what if I want to be a reporter like either report the news also or be the person who delivers the news to the media.

I live in America by the way if that has any sugnifigance but I do want my work to involve traveling extensively.

*10 points.

Answer 1

While an education in journalism helps, it is not the "be all" or "end all" of investigative reporting. Take a real example. Victor Malarek, an important investigative reporter, never had any formal education in journalism. He started out as a coffee boy at the old Montreal Gazette more that thirty years ago. He learned to be a reporter because experienced journalists took an interest in a young kid who had grown up in a boys' home and lived on the streets.

After his stint as a coffee boy, he started out as a cub reporter covering the police beat. This meant he listened to a scanner that picked up dispatches between the police stations and their mobile cruisers. When something newsworthy came across the scanner, Victor raced to the scene and reported on what was happening.

While he covered the police beat, with the help of experienced journalists, he learned the basics of reporting. In those days, and even today, these basics are referred to as the "5W" formula. This means when a reporter writes about an event, he must include the WHO, WHAT, WHERE, WHEN and WHY of it. If you learn how to use this formula, you are on your way to being a journalist. For instance: Mr. John Doe (WHO) was apprehended by police (WHAT) at the Molson Bank (WHERE) this afternoon (WHEN) as he tried to rob it (WHY).

Journalism is a craft, as is investigative reporting. By their very nature, they are hard to separate. Both the journalist and the investigative reporter follow the basics of the above formula whether they write about the news or tell it on air. Both follow "leads," whether this comes from a police scanner or a telephone call or a casual conversation or a government official. To be a journalist, especially an investigative one, you must learn to follow leads, to ask the questions, to listen to the answers and to put it all together using the formula above.

Victor Malarek learned this. From the Montreal Gazette, he moved on to be a highly successful investigative reporter with the Globe and Mail and, was for a time, its Editor in charge of Investigative Reporting. Afterwards, he became a senior investigative reporter for the CBC, the Fifth Estate and W-Five. He continues in his role as an investigative reporter today, and has travelled across the world extensively in pursuit of the news.

It is difficult to get the kind of start that Victor Malarek did. The media, whether print or otherwise, wants credentials. Employers are looking for people with experience and/or education. Having a Degree in Jounalism can help. Other useful areas of study are Communications, Literature, Media Studies and Photography. Any mixture of the foregoing studies would make for a potent resume.

In his trek to where he is today, Victor Malarek has run the gauntlet of reportorial and journalistic challenge. From a newsroom coffee boy, to a cub reporter on the police beat, to a regular print reporter, to an investigative journalist and editor for both newspapers and broadcast medias, and to the making of documentaries, he has surpassed many of his more educated and advantaged peers. He did not do it alone. He recieved help from his fellow travellers. Lacking in a formal education, he took many craft-related courses throughout his career. For instance, he learned how to conduct interviews, how to present himself during interviews, how to use his voice and mannerisms for the camera, ecetera.

So, yes, you have options. There is more than one route to becoming an investigative reporter. Journalism does not necessarily have to be your major. But, whatever way you go, learn the "5W" formula. It will help you greatly in your craft. Be prepared to study elements of your craft on an on-going basis throughout your career, like how to conduct an interview, how to take a proper photograph, how to use a video camera, or how to present yourself as an on-air professional.

I wish you well in your future endeavours. You have chosen an honorable, socially-helpful and productive career. There was nothing "dumb" about your question. To be what you want to be, you must learn to ask a million more. Perhaps, your question is the first in a long and fruitful adventure. Being in America is an advantage. There are some great educational institutions and opportunities just around the next corner. Good luck, and I hope my words have been helpful.

Answer 2

Yes, you will still have to go through journalism.