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What Kind of Reporter Are You?

Upon graduation, you might want to consider what kind of reporter you are, in order to best select the objectives that are right for you.

In Quill magazine, Bruce L. Plopper, journalism professor at the University of Arkansas, wrote about the human landscape of today's newsrooms.  He said that young journalists entering the field will now see two broad divisions of labor: the features writers and the hard news reporters. 

In his article, "Alice in Journalism" within the December 2006 issue, he profiled each type.

Using data from a SPJ data collection, these were his findings:

  • Features writers are much less idealistic than hard news reporters. 
  • Features writers aren't all that excited about serving as the people's "watchdog" over government, leaving that job for the hard news personnel.
  • Hard news reporters gravitate much more toward jobs that investigate corruption in the business community or assignments that expose failing school districts. They think covering these types of news stories is much more important than reporting on existing social problems and injustices.

It's good to know how to cover both features and hard news, but most reporters lean toward one more than the other.  A lot of entry-level reporters start out as GA (General Assignment) reporters and act as a utility player, valued for their versatility and willingness and ability to cover a broad range of stories.  Beat writers typically don't get hired full-time without a few years under their belt doing GA but that's not to say that it never happens.

If you know what you gravitate more toward, I say go for it.  Hard news reporters usually start out covering cops, courts and breaking news, while features writers usually start out covering people, local issues and community news. Ultimately, it's your choice.

Other Findings in the Article

Continuing with this study, Plopper went on to other demographic analysis of the differences between genders and age. For instance, how older professionals rate their grammar skills higher and ability to accept rejection better than younger professionals. He wrote that young reporters are more willing to work overtime than older professionals (after 6-10 years, according to Plopper).

The article also enclosed that women reporters have significantly better people skills than men reporters but are much more prone to headaches. Females also need more variety in their work than men, according to the study.

Post a comment Tags: news, journalism, job search, quill, reporters, spj, features writers, bruce l. plopper …

Finding a Golden Editor

I can't emphasize how important this is when you're first entering the field. A good or bad editor can make or break your decision to continue in journalism. That's why it's vital to try to start your career under an intelligent and encouraging editor who will ignite the talent and skills within you, instead of stiffling them like many are known to do.

Think about it in terms of teachers or professors. Ever take a great class but had a terrible teacher? It makes the whole experience awful, and even makes you hate a subject you used to love.

It's the same concept in journalism. But unlike in school, where you couldn't pick your teachers, you can pick your editor when you get out, at least to a point.

Mac McKerral (pictured), professor of the School of Journalism & Broadcasting at Western Kentucky University, provided great insight on what makes a great editor and how journalists can work to maintain a strong relationship with him or her. He has spent more than 25 years as a journalist and journalism educator and has been a reporter and editor at newspapers in five states.

I met McKerral at an SPJ conference, where he gave a seminar on this topic. While attending, I frequently found myself shaking my head in complete agreement with what he was saying. We ended up talking a lot at the social that night, and I was impressed with his down-to-earth approach to journalism.

Here's some traits of a good editor, according to McKerral:

  • LISTENS MORE, TALKS LESS
  • Believes in his/her writers
  • Helps people discover things rather than telling them
  • Asks questions that don't provide defense mechanisms
  • Always remains open
  • Sets high expectations
  • Encourages them often
  • Leads by example and practices what he/she preaches
  • Is always honest
  • Shares sucesses and failures
  • Constantly challenges his/her writers
  • Asks good questions and acknowledges strong responses
  • Gives praise, praise, praise

Also, his Tangerine Rule was a concept that I was amazed at, because I believe it whole-heartedly. McKerral stated that any great editor will follow the Tangerine Rule. It says:

"Lead people to the point of success while all the while making them believe they reached that point by themselves."

Wow. Awesome stuff.

Another tremendous piece of advice McKerral gave was to make sure that your editor was a journalist for many years, so he/she understands what it's like to be in your shoes.

-Kim Hartman

2 comments Tags: news, journalism, job search, newspaper, editor, spj, relationships with editors, society of professional jou... …