Leaving Journalism, from reporter to ... ?

Question

It is becoming clear to me, as a young journalist, that the market for reporting jobs is troubled and uncertain at best. We won't go into why, because anyone who can help me out already knows. I'm a reporter now and trying to look at my long-term career plan. I know this won't last forever.

Where do reporters go with a couple of years of experience and a desire to get paid what their worth? PR is out of the question but I'm going for a Master's in Digital Media and love technology/new media.

Any ideas? Where have others gone?

Answer 1

I empathize with your plight as a young reporter. Making crappy wages, working sometimes-strange hours and not necessarily getting the respect you think you deserve--these are some of the big downsides of journalism.

I worked for many years as a reporter for a chain of bi-weekly community newspapers. Not to brag, but I was the best reporter working for the company, and within a year (not counting a couple years as a stringer), I was given the plum job--covering a major municipal City Hall, with state and national political campaigns and other choice stories that came along thrown in. I moved within the heart of politics--and did some pretty exciting crime coverage as well--but I was never paid much. Even though my editors recognized my ability, their hands were tied when it came to salary. I continued working as a reporter because my job was fascinating, and I had the independence of my own private office in City Hall and rarely even had to stop by the main office. I was not interested in going into management, and at that company, even managing editors didn't make great money. But with a wife and two children, my income was woefully inadequate, even supplemented with a bit of freelance newsletter publishing, etc. on the side.

My first leap was taking a government job--"going to the Dark Side," as my fellow journalists called it. I worked my political contacts and landed, to my surprise, a job in the mayor's office. It was not exactly public relations. I was a community liaison and problem-solver, did various kinds of writing (from legislation to speeches to ghost-writing letters). In time, I was promoted to being the mayor's lobbyist to the 28-member Board of Aldermen, a job described accurately as "herding cats." That lasted a while but when the political winds shifted, I wound up out of a job after several years.

I did then go into public relations, again for a government, although this time for a much smaller municipality. That job included a greatly varied set of tasks: writing speeches, press releases, newsletters, etc.; website maintenance; media spokesman; and (my big downfall) overseeing the basics of a government-access cable television station.

To my surprise, after having been a reporter seeing politics with a jaundiced eye, I actually liked public service. Because I knew government much more broadly than many people because I had written about everything from campaign contributions to community choruses, I could easily work my way through the bureaucratic maze and get things done. Rather than seeing myself as a functionary with a safe job, I did my best to work the system to actually help people. I got a sense of satisfaction from doing that. Finding a homeless family a place to stay, walking a frustrated businesswoman through the paces to get her business expanded when she butted heads with everyone else, even simply getting a pothole fixed--I found working rewards in being a "public servant" in the best sense of the term. I was much less a spin doctor than a straight-shooting communicator who did my best to make a positive impact on people’s lives.

Obtaining your master's degree is a great move. There are a host of digital media opportunities out there. I got some training in digital editing but was terrible at it. I'm a writer to the core, and after giving video work my best shot (trying to make something more of a boring, slide-driven TV station), I concluded that I will never be a video editor/producer. I just don't have the visual orientation.

Anyway, with your master's degree, you should be in some demand; at least you will have the credentials to work in any number of fields: television, the web, etc. If you are not anxious to get rich, you might find public service an interesting way to go. Salaries are reasonably good and benefits are usually excellent. The hours are not too bad, either. If you have covered government/politics, you have some understanding that you would bring to a public-sector job that many people will lack. A large number of cities have cable franchises (although laws are changing and could phase funding for that out). Government websites are also often behind the curve in terms of adding new technologies, such as streaming media or video clips on their sites. I well-trained video specialist who understands the public sector could be a great asset to many governments or government agencies. Clearly, digital media and related technologies will continue to expand into the foreseeable future. So, if it has some appeal, you could check into how government might suit you as a career move.

You may see that as public relations, and of course it is. Most journalists see government PR people as prostitutes and I shared that view for a long time. But there is a good side to working for the public--and that is helping others, being a person who is able to explain the ins and outs of government to people, with the ideal kept in mind that you are directly participating in strengthening democracy and genuinely doing some good. I am personally less cynical about the government than I am about business in general. If you see working for government as a sellout, you might find working for a private company driven exclusively by the profit motive far more compromising to your ideals.

Those are my thoughts. I hope they have been of some benefit. Please feel free to email me if you have any more in-depth questions and I'll be glad to help. Best of luck in your search.