Blog, News

The journalist is the person who determines what information we see or hear in the media: on television, on the radio, on the Internet.

History

Journalism originated in ancient Rome. Archaeologists “dug up” clay tablets on which the decisions of the Senate and city news were carved. After engraving, the plaques were hung in crowded places at the behest of Julius Caesar.

Journalism did not become a separate field until the 17th century. Divided into several different directions, it almost immediately became a tool to influence society. Printed media, namely newspapers, played a significant role in the propaganda of revolutionary ideas in Europe.

The first successful publication was the English newspaper The Daily Courant. Its first issue was printed in 1702, and then it came out daily for 33 years. The proliferation of printed publications and their popularity led to the need for specialists who would gather information, process and organize it, and then turn it into a printed text. This is how the first journalists came into being.

Now, of course, journalists have much more responsibilities than before, because the media in the modern world includes not only newspapers, but also radio, television and the Internet. The media these days is not just a source of some informational data, but a tool that shapes public opinion and sometimes even manipulates it. Therefore, journalists now have a great responsibility: the interpretation of events often depends on their personal qualities and beliefs.

Description

At first glance, the job of a journalist seems interesting and simple. Visiting events and places, communicating with interesting people, and then telling everyone about it – what’s so hard? But it may seem so only to someone who hasn’t yet gotten to know the profession better. Activity – yes, in most cases it is really interesting, but simple journalistic work can not be called.

Working as a journalist, you need to think about a lot of details: choose reliable sources of information and arrange meetings, communicate with a variety of people and find each of them an individual approach, because not everyone will come into contact with a journalist. Finally, you have to present your material with dignity, so that the editor, and then the reader, becomes interested and reads to the end. At the same time, you must write truthfully, without embellishing or exaggerating.

Journalists do not spend the whole day in an editorial office-a lot of time is spent on meetings, interviews, conferences, and presentations. Only after these events does it come down to reading documents, reports and press releases.

In addition, in journalism, it is important to be able to dive deep into the subject matter, to have good connections with sources of information, and to always stay in touch and visible, and often not just during working hours.

The profession of journalism is perfect for active, inquisitive, and communicative people. Those who have a broad outlook and strive to keep abreast of the latest events. However, you should understand that such work combines creativity with a high level of responsibility. A professional journalist is responsible for each word written or spoken in the material, he must be able to convey information objectively to the audience.

A journalist not only writes articles for newspapers and magazines. There are many sources of information now, and each requires “different” journalists. In addition, the profession itself is divided into many specializations.

A military journalist. His job can be not just hard, but even dangerous. Journalists who cover military operations in the media accompany the army, aviation and navy during combat operations.

Before being sent to a hot spot, a war correspondent receives training: he or she learns how to behave (for example, how to properly fall and which way to run in a critical situation), learns to defend themselves and help others by providing first aid, and so on.

A war correspondent must not only navigate quickly during combat operations, but also be able to document everything that happens on the fly – no comfy chairs and hot tea!

Sports Journalist. To become a professional sports journalist, the most important thing is to love with all your heart the sport you’re reporting on. Sports journalists seek, analyze and evaluate information about sports events, interview athletes, coaches and members of sports associations, write articles and host programs about sports in the media (radio, TV).

Sports correspondents often try to do everything at once. They comment on soccer games behind the scenes, participate in sports news programs on television, write their own column in newspapers, and so on. When trying to set your work at a breakneck pace, you have to keep in mind that it is difficult to remain a universal professional. It is much more productive to choose one, the closest direction, and develop in it.
Sports journalists talk to famous athletes and coaches.

A science journalist can be called a guide between science and people. It is he who takes information that is difficult to understand and presents it in a way that everyone understands. Science journalists can explain what information is worth trusting and why, protect against false scientific information, myths, unpleasant or dangerous misconceptions. They provide fascinating insights into the latest research and discoveries, upcoming experiments, and how biological and chemical processes work.

In addition to the fact that a science journalist must write competently, he must of course be knowledgeable in the field about which he writes. And not just knowledgeable, but to be a true expert in it. After all, only in this way can one understand all the processes taking place and be able to describe them in simple language.

Reporter. How it differs from the journalist? To understand the difference, you can compare the two professions to a policeman and a homicide detective. The latter is a more concrete example of the former. A reporter works with primary sources: he interviews, participates in press conferences or news events. Then passes on the facts, information, information gathered. That is all. That is, the reporter does not deal with the data later. He does not edit them, arrange or publish them.

A television journalist, or TV journalist, is a journalist who works on the creation of various television programs and television reports, both entertaining (such as shows) and informational (such as popular science programs). A television journalist seeks out topics for stories, writes news and reports, participates in the creation of television programs, and hosts television programs. As a television journalist, it is important to be active, outgoing, and hardworking. The ability to quickly navigate in a large amount of information and the ability to intelligently express his thoughts are also useful. Last but not least, a clear diction, presentable appearance and the ability to present themselves to the camera.

International journalist. Like any other journalist, an international journalist creates materials for the media. The only difference is that he does it on a global level, that is, he specializes in foreign news. He should not simply know the business well, but also perfectly know languages, understand history, culture, features of life, policy and economy of other states. The work of an international journalist is also a work on oneself that never ends. You always need to be aware of what’s going on in the world, understand the news agenda, to work really well.

Pros

The main advantage of being a journalist is the acquisition and development of many skills: interviewing, writing texts, creating photos and preparing other graphic materials, shooting and editing videos. And it’s all on a new topic every time!

There are many other perks:

• Access to information, people, places
• A credential as a journalist opens many doors closed to other people.
• Interacting with different people
• A journalist does not have to be bored at work. He is always surrounded by a lot of interesting people. All of them have their own views on the world, life experiences and fascinating stories.
• Respect and attention
• In this field you need to work on your name. Famous journalists with a good reputation are always in the public eye.

Minuses

Journalistic work involves a long schedule. Often you have to work at weekends, late at night, and even at night, sometimes there are no free days for a long time. This is probably the main disadvantage of the profession of a journalist. Other disadvantages include:

• Bias.

Let’s be honest. Who likes journalists? Most people don’t have the nicest associations with them. Many people think they are such meticulous people who pry everywhere in search of a scoop. And when they get information, they embellish it or even lie, openly distorting the facts.

• Difficulties in a team

In any workplace a good team plays an important role. In the field of journalism – the most important. People can be different. And some of them are sometimes ready to do anything to achieve universal recognition and career promotion.

• Physical danger and emotional stress

The work of a journalist is always hard. Yes, a war correspondent especially. But there are dangers in other kinds of journalism, too. It’s emotionally hard when you have to look at sick children or people injured in an accident. It’s dangerous when you have to report from the scene of a disaster.