Talking About Careers: Is becoming a journalist as easy as it seems?
Is becoming a journalist as easy as it seems? No. Becoming a journalist (and remaining one) is not easy. Granted, it’s not as difficult or expensive as studying to be a lawyer or a doctor. But it’s not as easy as, say, sitting behind a computer keyboard and making up stuff - as Alex Jones seems to like to do - for blogs or websites along the lines of InfoWars. First, you have to take a lot of classes, first in middle school/high school, and then in college. Not only do you need to take the core curriculum classes that are required for your high school diploma, but you also need to sign up for specialized classes, such as Basic Reporting, Advanced Editing and Page Makeup, and (if you want to be a photojournalist) News Photography. Second, you need to have free time after school to work on the school newspaper, learn to meet deadlines, and develop a thick skin that will not only help you deal with the inevitable writer-editor dynamic but also with difficult assig...