By Rebecca Palmer
With newspapers and magazines closing their doors around the country, enrolling in a four-year bachelor’s degree program in journalism can seem like career suicide. No one pays for news anymore, right? And subpar writers around the globe are happy earning peanuts for writing articles full of misplaced prepositions and missing punctuation.
It’s true that you may never get to write for the gray lady or pull off a Clark Kent move in a public phone booth, but gathering and disseminating high-quality information remains the bedrock for democratic governments everywhere. Even in countries with state-controlled media outlets, independent voices are springing up faster than authoritarian lawmakers can shut them down.
If you have the talent, energy and courage to be part of the foundation for the next generation of news media, the path that runs straight through J school can lead to success. If you’re unable to study full-time at a traditional university, look for opportunities to earn an online school degree by taking just a few classes at a time. In the end, trust that readers will recognize your superior data-gathering and writing skills regardless of whether your words are published beneath an inked masthead or a digital menu bar.
- Interviewing Skills
Remember the first time you tried to bake cookies on your own? It probably didn’t result in perfectly puffed treats in nicely rounded shapes. If you kept it up, though, your fourth and fifth batches were probably much closer to perfection. The same is true of interviewing sources. In your first journalism classes, you will get extensive interviewing practice far away from the harsh spotlight of professional writing. The classroom will also provide you with the chance to see the (bad) interview techniques used by other beginners. - Understanding Statistics
Understanding the basic principles of statistics can mean the difference between holding lawmakers accountable and being laughed out of the halls of power. Every respectable journalism school will demand that you show proficiency in this important field, whether your studies are part of a degree from an online school or a university. Pay special attention to make sure that you create accurate charts, graphs and interactive calculator tools. - Investigation Using Document Trails
Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein suspected U.S. President Richard Nixon of being involved in the Watergate cover-up long before they authored stories about his abuse of power. But their earth-shaking investigation wouldn’t have gone anywhere without the initial court documents and address books of the burglary defendants. Similarly, any investigation you undertake will only be credible if you have the documents (or digital files) to back it up. In J school, you will learn about all the documents available from public sources, such as police reports and corporate tax filings. You’ll also learn about private documents such as property titles and phone records that will be inherent to putting together the pieces of your investigative masterpieces. - Mentorship
The vast majority of journalism professors have spent time working in the field. They’ve personally made the most common mistakes and solved the hairiest problems with their own sweat, tears and skinny notebooks. Learn from their war stories and be willing to ask for help with the assignments and stories that come your way. Think of the red ink that comes back on your school news writing assignments as the blood and tears you never have to shed. - Networking
Organizations like the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) have college-level chapters that allow beginning students to rub shoulders with the best of the best. Additionally, professors in any journalism school are likely to have maintained professional contacts in the industry over the years. When you take communications classes, you can tap these resources for opportunities such as internships or correspondent work.
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Flickr photo courtesy of shordzi