NEW GRADUATES TURNING TO WRITING CAREERS

Recently it seems I keep hearing of more and more graduates who plan to make their living writing. I have to wonder if they know how to go about landing a job once they finish college, especially if they’ve never written anything besides school papers before. Mostly, I wonder if schools these days even prepare their students for a writing career. It’s obvious that TV journalists are either not being taught, or they’re too busy texting in class to listen. And we all know that texting involves using a shorthand language that allows messages to go out quicker—never mind spelling or grammar.

One of the major mistakes journalists make is venturing into territory where no one else has dared to go. Don’t they ever stop for a moment to ask themselves if a word they’re about to use is actually a word? Just last week, a local news reporter said she was “evidencing” something. I think she meant she was checking the evidence, or maybe she was searching for evidence? What it meant to a stickler for facts like me was that she was reporting on something for which she had no evidence, so maybe it wasn’t even true. Yesterday, a newscaster on a national network said “there’s no need to 'catastrophosize' your future!” (Not sure of the spelling since this word doesn’t appear in any dictionary that I know about.) Yikes!

In broadcast journalism, things happen fast, so I can understand occasional slip-ups in language usage. Newscasters often report on something that is coming over the wires, but for which facts are lacking. They should report that not all information has been verified. Verifying is a word, evidencing is not. All journalists should have some passing acquaintance with the English language, at least enough to know if a word is actually a word or not.

And then there’s pronunciation! It annoys me no end to hear someone pronounce “tour” as “tore.” The governor “tored” the State, the high school students are on a “tore” of China, etc. That’s not the only word that is often mispronounced, but it’s enough to set my teeth on edge. And never mind that I don’t always pronounce a word correctly every time. Not many people do. However, broadcast journalists should make every effort to learn the correct way to pronounce every word that might possibly cross their lips, or look it up in a dictionary. Pronunciation is an education in itself, and of course, requires teachers who know the correct way words should be spoken.

Then there are mistakes found in newspapers, books and magazines. Writers who submit articles should check their work on their computer’s spellchecker, and if they’re using unfamiliar words, look them up in a dictionary and thesaurus. How many times are articles full of misspelled words? In the old days, writers could always blame mistakes on typesetters, but today, words usually go directly to the page. In that case, it is up to the writer and back-up personnel such as editors and proofreaders to catch mistakes before they are published. Obviously, that doesn’t always happen.

I truly hope that future journalists get the education that is needed to help them report accurately and honestly. I can remember in the eighties when a study was done on how unprepared journalism graduates were to work in their chosen field. Publishers reported the bad news that recent graduates were not prepared to earn a living as journalists. It was hoped that the study would encourage a change in education, but I can’t find evidence that any improvement has taken place during the past thirty-plus years.

And then there’s the question of whether an education in journalism is even required to work in the field? You bet it’s required to work for the big boys today, but many of our top network journalists from the 1960s and forward were not even college graduates, much less journalism majors. They were well educated, though, even though some had only gone to high school in small town USA. I won’t mention names here because I can’t accurately remember which ones were not college graduates, and am not sure where to check. However, if you watched national news in the ‘60s, and even the ‘70s, ‘80s, ‘90s, and ‘00s, you would recognize their names. A couple were tops in their field.

News organizations want people who are energetic, honest, accurate, and can spin a good, interesting story. Small newspapers, in particular, are easy places to find jobs, especially if writers can show clips that have been published previously—no matter where. Church bulletins and club newsletters count as experience to many doing the hiring. Editors and publishers mainly want to be able to read something writers have written. Their criterion includes believing that a writer will have integrity, and sometimes the only way to prove that is to show up on time for an interview with samples in hand. They also want to know that the applicant is a go-getter who will do whatever is necessary and legal to get a story.

My high school journalism teacher’s motto way back when, was to “get the news, get it right, and get it right the first time!” That is all that really matters for journalists.

As for those who want to write books, there are definitely no educational requirements except to be well-educated. Authors of novels must be able to assemble words in a sentence, and string sentences together to create a good story. Non-fiction writers must also be accurate when reporting facts. Many best-sellers have been written by individuals who lack much more than a grammar school education. Either they’ve had someone on their team who could proofread and edit, or they’ve been exceptional writers. Either way, if they can do it, so can anyone who is willing to work to achieve their goal of being published.

I would encourage anyone just graduating from high school and seeking a career as a journalist to get some experience during the summer months, even if only writing copy for newsletters, volunteering in the marketing department of a non-profit, or covering sports for a local community paper. That will help them understand what they want to eventually do before they hit the doors of college. Then focus on learning everything possible about grammar and writing. Good writers can become successful, no matter what their educational background.

Last of all; always, ALWAYS be prepared for unexpected opportunities. They can crop up in surprising places. Write something about a subject you feel passionate about, make sure there are no typographical or grammatical errors, and print it out so you can hand it to any editor or publisher you meet. Yes, carry it with you or in your car at all times, preferably in a briefcase or folder to keep it neat. Tell the person you meet that you’re looking forward to becoming a working journalist. Ask for advice and suggestions. Sometimes you might learn about opportunities, and possibly, they’ll have a job opening where you would fit.

Writing isn’t rocket science, to use a cliché (which editors hate). It’s simply being willing to diligently work at presenting information in a way that can be understood by readers, that has been researched thoroughly, and that doesn’t slant the news. And that brings up a whole other kettle of fish, since some well-known “news” networks are now in the business of skewing news to fit the network owners’ political and economic views. Still, a moral, upright journalist doesn’t, and shouldn’t, seek a job with tabloids that sensationalize stories, or for those news organizations in the business of influencing people who don’t, or won’t, spend time learning the truth behind the story. During Hitler’s regime, that was rightly called “brainwashing,” which was very successful at motivating an entire population to become hate-filled murderers and/or enablers. It was wrong then, and it still is, no matter what the name or intent of the person or organization that does it.

A lot of people are willing to be cult followers, and a cult needn’t have religious intent to sway its followers. Always, its main purpose is to aggrandize its leaders and purpose. Journalists have a duty not to become followers of any type, but to only be interested in reporting the truth. A journalist’s job is to present the facts, without emotion, and let listeners or viewers use their own intelligence to decide what those facts mean. To do otherwise is to discredit the audience as being unintelligent and unable to understand facts.

Here’s hoping that the next generation of journalists will use their intelligence and integrity wisely as they learn how to write, and then demand jobs in organizations that are honest and fair. And here’s hoping that they will have strong, intelligent teachers to instruct them not only in how to gather news and write, but also the difference between real journalism, tabloid news, and indoctrination for deceitful purposes. Possibly, they’ll also learn how to pronounce words correctly, and how not to make up words that don’t exist.