The profession of a journalist: the pros and cons, the essence and relevance

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

When a child is asked about what he wants to be when he grows up, he usually answers: a doctor, a writer, an artist, a firefighter, a journalist. Many of these childhood expectations will never come true. Only a few manage to realize their childhood dream. Today we want to tell you what the profession of a journalist really is. Pros and cons, all the hardships of work and joyful moments will be covered in this article.

How and where the profession was born

For the first time in writing, the news began to spread in ancient Rome. Then information was passed from hand to hand on clay tablets.

But such progenitors of newspapers often fought, and their production was quite troublesome. During the Renaissance, news was already being circulated in the form of paper scrolls. But this way of transmitting information was also not convenient. The progenitors of news publications were handwritten, so it was very easy to falsify information. The first printed newspaper appeared in China. Already in the VIII century. residents of large cities could read state news and political decrees. Such newspapers were not printed, in the sense that modern man is. In the 8th century there were no printing presses, people used primitive methods - they made prints.

The first handwritten newspaper in Russia appeared in 1621. Its circulation was very small, so it was distributed to a narrow circle of close associates of the king. But the newspaper Vedomosti, which began to appear on a regular basis since 1702, was already truly printed. Today it is difficult to count the number of publications that exist in our country. 74,000 are officially registered, but not all of them are functioning and release their products on time.

What journalists don't write about

Many young people entering college want to write the truth and nothing but the truth. But the profession of a journalist, the pros and cons of which we will consider below, is not a work on a description of life without embellishment. First of all, this is work on orders. In large newspapers, which are published in large circulation throughout the country, the customer is the government. So it was before, back in the time of Peter I, who first published the Vestnik. Of course, the media plays a huge role in shaping public opinion. Knowing this, journalists always try to covertly present the government in a favorable light in their work (if it is, of course, a state publication).

But magazines and newspapers are not only political. All the pros and cons of the professiona journalist learns when he starts working for a commercial publication. Here you need to write interesting articles, but according to the strict standards of the journal. And also do not forget that the printed edition lives off advertising, so hidden PR partners in glossy magazines can be found on almost every page.

Varieties of profession

A journalist is a calling. But people of this profession can work not only in the printing industry, but where else?

• In publishers.
• On the radio.
• On TV.
• In the press services.
• In advertising agencies.

Each of these areas needs its own specialist. Of course, a journalist who has just graduated from the institute has an idea about the profession in general terms. Subtleties and nuances are not taught at the university. If the student is very lucky, then during the practice he can get acquainted with various types of journalism. But this rarely happens. The advantage of all areas of this profession is that it will not be difficult to retrain from one to another.

What qualities do you need to have to become a professional

A person who has decided to connect his life with journalism, first of all, must be very sociable. Many evaluate this ability by the number of friends. It is not worth defining the skill of sociability in this way. A person who works as a journalist does not make friends with everyone he interviews. He just needs to be able to win people over.

BEvery job has its pros and cons. The profession of a journalist is no exception. Therefore, in addition to ease of communication and the ability to win over people, a person must also be able to get into someone else's soul without asking. Not all people are eager to tell stories frankly, and without an honest story, a good article will not work. Therefore, arrogance, in the good sense of the word, should be the quality of any journalist. Naturally, if a person wants to talk about interesting things, he must have a broad outlook. You can't write a good article about the oil industry without having a good idea of what oil is and where it is pumped from.

Is it difficult to learn

Description of the profession of a journalist can be read in the brochure of almost any major university. But one thing is a beautiful article about learning, and quite another is the learning process. This is not to say that training as a journalist is difficult. But you need to understand that you will have to read a lot first of all, and only then write. After all, before you sit down to write an essay yourself, you need to learn the canons and rules for constructing any article. It is also desirable to develop your own unique style. After all, it is precisely by its presence that a good journalist is distinguished from an amateur. Naturally, the training includes the study of foreign languages.

In some institutes they teach only English, while in others they teach 3 languages at once. Of course, you should understand that without knowing at least one foreign language, you won’t be able to go far up the career ladder.

Salary

Is the profession in demanda journalist? Of course, its popularity is growing every year. Indeed, today paper publications are slowly dying, and all media are moving into the virtual space. How are journalists paid? Of course, you don’t have to wait for the golden mountains here. Like any creative activity, journalism is not very profitable.

But if we take into account that a large number of printed materials are still designed not for high-quality creative work, but for the commercial sale of goods, then such work is valued many times higher. This is a huge disadvantage of the profession of a journalist.

The average salary in the country ranges from 15,000 to 60,000 rubles. The specific figure will depend on the abilities, length of service and work experience in a particular field.

Famous Representatives

The best way to tell about their vocation is people who work or have worked as a journalist. A. Malakhov's stories about his work are unusual. He graduated from the Faculty of Journalism of Moscow State University with honors. A red diploma confirmed the high level of knowledge of a young specialist. Andrey improved his skills in the USA, watching foreign professionals. Returning to his homeland, Malakhov hosted the program "Style" on the radio. Andrei managed to become not only a popular journalist, but also a scandalous TV presenter. Currently, A. Malakhov is transferring his knowledge about the basics of the profession to the younger generation within the walls of the Russian State Technical University.

Anna Politkovskaya is another well-known graduate of the Faculty of Journalism of Moscow State University. Popularity came to a woman when she was activelywrote articles about the conflict with Chechnya. During her short life, Anna managed to work as a columnist in many newspapers, the most famous of them: Novaya Gazeta, Air Transport, Izvestia. The woman was distinguished by her original writing style and rather bold choice of topics for articles.

Pros

Being a journalist is interesting no matter what. It is especially great that you can turn your hobby into a permanent source of income. Pros of being a journalist:

• There is always the opportunity to be in the thick of things. Indeed, thanks to special privileges, journalists can even go to places where no VIP guests can enter. Even if there is no opportunity to cover the material seen, there is always something to tell friends, acquaintances and relatives. And most importantly, thanks to such “excursions”, life will definitely not be ordinary.
• Self-expression through articles. Everyone needs to be creative in some way. Here journalists also find application to the abilities. They form their own unique style and write articles.
• Traveling is a unique opportunity to learn something new, get acquainted with the culture of other countries, and also just satisfy your own curiosity. Most people go on business or vacation once a year, but journalists can fly to other countries 5 times a month.

Meeting interesting people is another privilege of this profession. Movie and show business stars, writers, poets, directors and artists - all these people are unique and they have a lot to learn. But the journalistshave the opportunity not only to get to know these people better, but also to ask them all the questions that interest them

Cons

When choosing the profession of a journalist, of course, you need to know the other side of the coin. The main disadvantages of such work:

• Irregular working hours are, of course, a big disadvantage. Often you have to stay up late, and sometimes even work at night. Sometimes it is not even possible to go somewhere with the family for the weekend.
• Constant stress - work in a rush mode, sometimes too expressive people with whom you have to talk can ruin your mood. Sometimes you have to work in this mode all week or even a month.
• Often there is not enough time for personal life - family and friends go by the wayside. Just like a hobby. Many evenings will be busy with work. Opportunities to read, go to the pool or have dinner with friends will be very rare.

Further prospects for the development of the profession

Journalism is an area that is becoming more popular year by year. The format of publications and popular topics are changing, but the essence of the profession of a journalist remains unchanged. Even despite the fact that now less than half of the people of our country read books, leafing through the newspaper in the morning is an obligatory ritual for many. People love news and they want to receive it. That is why the duty of a journalist is to describe events as truthfully as possible so that ordinary people are aware of what is happening in our country.