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It might be an understatement for me to write that these are trying times in journalism.
Over the last year or so, we have seen big-time newspapers close their doors (The Rocky Mountain News, The Seattle Post-Intelligencer). Others are making the move to strictly online (The Ann Arbor News to AnnArbor.com, although both are separate entities). In Michigan, the move to three publications per week is becoming more popular, as we saw with the Bay City Times, Flint Journal and Saginaw News.
Community papers, often overlooked, are thought to fare better because of their local connection. But some smaller publications also are getting the axe. The Eagle Times, once a 7,800-circulation daily in Claremont, N.H., abruptly closed, leaving the community without a true reliable news source. It does not just hurt the community. It hurts advertisers looking for a medium to sell their product. It hurts those looking to sell in classifieds. It takes away the watchdog that oversees local government. It hurts an entire community.
My Central Michigan Life coworkers and I at our publication banquet last May. I work with a group of very talented journalists, some of which this industry could use.
Will local news ever come back to Claremont? Probably, even if it means online only. My biggest concern, however, as a student journalist, stems from colleges’ production of young, talented journalists who are watching these unfortunate events unfold. In my four years at Central Michigan, I have seen a handful of student reporters, taken aback by the news of buyouts and layoffs, reconsider their career choices. I have seen a handful of others who earned their degree but, despite the talent I and many others saw in them, look at changing their paths because they can’t find jobs.
That, right there, is a great loss of what could have been wonderful journalists and trend-setters for an industry in transition. Think about the other dozens of J-schools in the country who are experiencing the same thing.
Thankfully, I am not speaking from experience (yet). I haven’t even finished college yet. But there are success stories out there that should inspire students, even from those who spent a good amount of time in unemployment. Take Mark S. Luckie, writer of the multimedia journalism blog “10,000 Words,” for example. The story is in his title: The best thing that ever happened for Mark, in his career, is being unemployed. Sounds ridiculous at first, at least until you read on.
Maybe I am beating the dead proverbial horse by writing this. I realize it is these trying times that will separate aspiring journalists with a true passion for their career choice from those who truly do not. But if you have a passion for journalism, don’t give up on it. Ever. Do whatever it takes. Make yourself known with the Internet’s networking tools, such as Twitter. Experiment with other forms of media, such as Soundslides. Consider being an entrepreneur and starting your own Web site, even.
Journalism will never die as long as there are passionate journalists who are willing to communicate, adapt and grow to changing demands. And there are plenty of them out there already. It is the boatload of other leading journalists who are set in their ways and unwilling to adapt that are making things more difficult on newspapers. Twenty years from now, we may not even have what we today call “editors” or “writers.” As student journalists, we have to lead a new wave in this industry and keep it viable with society.
Sometimes, it might take a kick in the rear. Like Luckie, you may spend more than than you would like on the unemployed list. You may find yourself questioning your career decisions from time to time. Understandable. But if you are anything like me, a journalist with a great passion for this industry, do not succumb to all the whispering about how journalism is dying, how newspapers all are going broke and how now is a great time to run the other direction.
If anything, these great challenges are what you should embrace. It could be your work that helps define the next generation of journalism. That is what all of us need during these trying times.
Posted by Brian Manzullo at July 13, 2009
Journalism