At Its Core, The Job Of The [Working] Journalist [Today] Is Unchanged

At its core, the job of the so-called working journalist in today’s setting is unchanged. This quote came across me as striking, but in all honesty the truth is there to an extent. The main idea stays the same, find a story, report on it and come up with good content to grab the attention and make it a compelling story. The only thing that seems to change along with everything in this world is technology. It seems that today most people don’t pick up a newspaper unless your pass a certain age. It also seems that the average male would rather watch television then read. So how do you get the attention of a reader in this world? You find them through the Internet while keeping the amount of hardcopy readers that you’ve already established. Newspapers and now even television and radio seem to be switching to the Internet to solve these problems. Today the Internet can allow for so much more. We do everything from entertainment (facebook) to getting our news or television programs can be streamed or at free online websites. So now instead of just having the basic skills that are needed to become a journalist, you need to have electronic skills also. It seems that what ever type of technology comes out we must adapt to, so being that you can get your information and your media fix online, then we as journalists need the basic skills that also go along with this media. We need the basic skills of how to set up a webpage, manipulate the content and find a way to make our content more accessible. If we can learn to effectively use the Internet, as we want it and to grab more subscribers, then we will have another different area to work in. With the economy the way it is we are seeing a shift in jobs, layoffs and freezes in hiring. But if the Internet can open up jobs and as the media we are just starting to scratch the surface of these possibilities then more jobs will open up. The economy will shift and we will adapt, finding new ways to put our content out there. This also makes a good question though, what will become of television and radio? Will it one day all be on the internet? And will antennas and cable be obsolete one day? That can only be answered in due time. But as for now we need to adapt to this medium and should we understand it, this could be the start of something better for all journalists. I should warn you about what type of content you put out there. Although this technology has shifted us to the Internet, you should also be weary about who can see it. Everyone from your mom to your dad can see it, so whatever you post make sure it is professional. Make sure that what you put out there is not going to jeopardize any type of professionalism that you may have created. But remember at its core, the job of the working journalist today is not unchanged. The world is flat, anyone anywhere can do the job that you can do so to change is good and to adapt could land you a job.

~Just Some Food For Thought~