I'm sure most Whyville Times Writers have all set goals and achievements within journalism, to which they hope to aspire to in the near future. In this particular workforce, journalism, you aspire to do your best and deliver the news as it happens with the most up-to-date facts and statistics on hand. This may include going on location or digging around for that hard-hitting story. Though, a job in journalism might be a little too far into the future for some.
As most of you don't know, I was recently hired by my district's newspaper as a journalist. My district covers a vast majority of cities and towns within my state. The newspaper that I work for has won many prestigious awards and has been commended several times by higher authorities. Unfortunately I can not release the name of the newspaper on Whyville as that breaches Whyville's set guidelines to not release personal information that can lead to your location.
I started off through an amazing program here in Australia that works with newspapers to adopt the concept of Junior/Student Reporters. In my particular district I was fortunate enough to have had access to this program through my school. So by the start of last year I was up and writing for this Student Reporter program. I went on location, interviewed a series of interesting people and celebrities, visited amazing locations, met senior journalists and most importantly had fun.
With that said, I was fortunate enough to be recognized by the newspaper for my ongoing dedication and writing. This however didn't just give me confidence, it opened many doors. In that time I have established my school's first ever newspaper, been a guest writer within the main journalism role, been accepted in my state's youth parliament and much more.
After working with the newspaper for a while now I am now able to apply for a full-time cadetship with the newspaper and scholarship to my local university, which happens to be one of the most prestigious in the state. With a cadetship I will work with the newspaper as a full-time journalist working on real life stories and traveling. Not only has this program been such an inspiration, it has paved my pathway to a successful career within the journalism workforce.
I encourage anyone who has a REAL passion for journalism or writing to find anything that you can send articles into such as local newspapers, the Whyville Times, other Internet writing sites and so forth. This has just been an amazing opportunity for me and I hope you, aspiring writers out there, find something like I did that can set you up for your future career.
Being in the field for awhile now, I have received a lot of advice and writing tips, so I thought I might share them with you all.
Accuracy is the watchword. The most important aspect of an article is accuracy. Make sure names are spelled correctly; double check the spelling even if it's the most blindly obvious spelling of the name. Always ask your interviewees the correct spelling of their name on arrival and when you leave so you always have a back up.
Never rely on Wikipedia as the only reliable source for information or facts as anyone can change the content on the website. Make sure you have several copies of the fact/information so you can reassure that it is accurate.
The WHO, WHAT, WHEN, WHERE and HOWs are the foundation of an article. Make sure that all of these five aspects are included within your article. Also, if you're interviewing someone be sure to ask some personal questions like family, age, background and so forth as these questions just might result in a very interesting article.
Keep a sharp eye out for clues for questions and tips. In an interview look around at the surroundings like the interviewee's office or if you're at a specific location in relation to them as a person or their job. Look for photos, books, writing, etc., as this can make keen conversation and lead to some great questions that can relate back to your article.
Always listen to the news, read a paper, and be up-to-date with recent activity as this just may lead you to an idea for an article.
As a real life journalist, you're asked to interview some strange, boring, exciting, fun and interesting people. Though, never be afraid to ask the hard hitting questions. Dig for a story, as everyone has a story to tell. Find out all possible information you can get out of the time you have with them.
The task of a journalist is to uncover interesting threads running through peoples' lives, those that will make a great storyline. At a young age (as most of you are) newspapers aren't expecting juicy gossip or embarrassing exposes, they want a story of interest that will hopefully amaze or gladden the hearts of the readers.
When writing an article, don't worry about getting a wonderful introduction immediately. Just get the bare bones of that story down first and a theme will come to light very quickly. Firstly think about names, happenings and the essential building blocks of the story. After that you can add backgrounds and descriptions. Come back and polish the introduction later and don't forget it is the hook into the story. Try to write your story so that you want to be led, as a reader, to the next paragraph . . . all the way to the end. Also, sprinkle a few quotes through your story. Alternate with paraphrasing to make it more descriptive and interesting.
Tips for quotes:
Introduce your speaker first in the story before quoting them directly.
For example:
Presidential Candidate John McCain has interests outside of his work in politics. He is a keen golf player and a reading addict. "I enjoy playing golf in my spare time. It is an interesting way to keep myself fit and I love doing it," said John. "I always get the thrill of doing something that I love."
It seems that this keen reader and golfer is still a true politician at heart.
"Oh, yes, It's great walking around meeting all my supporters and thanking them for such amazing support, not only has politics showed me how to interact with people it has showed me that supports are the main force driving your campaign within government," he said.
Pick up the rest of the story with more quotes if possible. Don't forget, quotes bring stories to life.
Not only the information in the article must be correct, the grammar and syntax also has to be accurate.
The journalism business is mass communication, so you should always use simple, contemporary and popular language. But even the simplest expression is built on foundations of grammar and syntax, and as professional communication it is essential you understand the basic rules of print journalism. While it is true that knowledge of grammar does not make a good writer, good writing depends on good grammar.
Printed journalism is divided up in many sections, all of which make up a newspaper. All sections of journalism are run by the basic structure of which I have lightly outlined in this article. Though all sections have their own structure which is placed in conjunction with the basic structure. Whether it's Sport, Reviews, Gossip, Features, Community, Police, Gaming, Television, Local and so on.
I hope you; the aspiring writer, have learned something through reading this and have gained more passion for the job. This article has outlined real-life workforce journalism, which may differ from the Whyville Times. Thank-you for letting me share my personal story and I hope it has given you all some form of motivation to pick up a pen and note pad and getting writing! Though remember that a true journalist feels it from the heart, it's not just a job it's a passion.
My journey all started by a simple quote which I read from a book a few years back, "You know what you are going to be if you wake up and the first thing you think about is what YOU want to do and be. If you wake up and think about singing then that's what you want to be. If you wake up and all you want to do is write, then you are a writer. Feel the passion and live for the better of life"
-Jank03
Author's Note: Information in this article was supplied purely by my own personal experiences and knowledge. If you have any further questions about journalism or how to break through into the career, please do not hesitate to y-mail me or post your question via the BBS. Thanks.
