Reporter Gives Warning, Encouragement to AU Grad Students

Rachel Wulff shares portions of her station's Web site with journalism students at American University

I would imagine that at least some of my classmates have decided on a career in journalism for one of the same reasons I have – because we hope of becoming the next Woodward or Bernstein. Rachel Wulff, an I-Team reporter at WDSU in New Orleans, gave us a harsh, though necessary, reality check.

While some may think that a career in journalism would be glamorous (or at least constantly exciting), Wulff’s experience proves that it, just like any other career, has its ups and downs. After graduating from American’s weekend journalism program, Wulff started working at a television station in Salisbury, MD, where she earned just $19,000 per year. In order to make ends meet, she had to wait tables at a restaurant in Georgetown on her days off.

“I would just say to all of you, if you really want to be in broadcasting, in journalism, be prepared to make very little or no money,” she warned. “And if you go into broadcasting thinking it’s really great being on TV, well, that facade and that dream will probably burst.”

Despite early difficulties in her career, Wulff has taken advantage of technology in her position at the New Orleans television station. In addition to using social networking sites like Facebook and My Space (she says the potential for tips through these sites is fantastic if reporters are willing to actually use it), Wulff has set up a portion of the station’s Web site where residents can post complaints about abandoned homes in their area.

During her talk, Wulff emphasized the skills new journalists will need in order to get jobs in the industry.

Wulff advised AU’s newest crop of journalism graduate students to get their own Web sites and prove that they can use the technology and create the stories – in otherwise, she reminded, “it’s about shameless self-promotion.”

After listening to Wulff’s talk, I realized that, as hard as I think getting my foot in the door in this profession will be, reality will probably prove to be much more challenging. At the same time, she also gave me an example to follow.

When times get tough, I’ll remember her secret to success: “It’s gotta be a passion; it’s gotta be something you really wanna do,” Wulff said about succeeding in journalism. “It takes a tremendous amount of drive and determination.”

The Associated Press: How Old Journalism Can Meet New Demands

After visiting Politico, a news publication that launched with the idea of becoming a presence online, we made our way to the Associated Press’ Washington, DC offices and were able to see an operation that is making the transition from print to accepting new media.

Despite the fact that the Associated Press started out as a way for newspapers to pool their resources, the wire service has expanded to provide audio and video as well as print. Like many other traditional news sources, the AP has expanded to incorporate online resources. Denise Vance, director for video training and development, explained the need for including new technology in news coverage.

It seems like I am constantly hearing about how the journalism industry is failing, but the fact that the AP is working to take advantage of new technology rather than lamenting the inevitable changes it brings is proof that there is still hope for traditional print media outlets, provided they take a similar course of action.

While there are many benefits with the expansion of the media used in news coverage, both for the viewer and the AP, the Internet in particular has created many ethical dilemmas as well. Ed Tobias, manager of business continuity and disaster planning read a letter from Tom Kent, the new AP standards editor and deputy managing editor in charge of the  Standards Center, regarding the question of what is appropriate to show and what is not.

With easy access comes the question of how to protect intellectual property. The most recent case involves the AP and Shepard Fairey, the man who created the iconic red, white and blue Obama change poster. The conundrum of how far is too far when it comes to allowing use of copyrighted material is not unique to the Associated Press. Ian Shapira of the Washington Post raises the question in a story published today. With the increasing popularity of blogs, this is a question that will continue to be a problem for journalists and bloggers alike.

Politico and the Changing Face of News

While most of the older, established media outlets are struggling to keep up with the changing technology pervading the industry, Politico, which was launched in 2007 at the height of election season, has embraced new ways of telling stories.

David Mark, a senior editor at Politico attributed the notice that the publication has received in its 2 and a half years in existence to its newness. He explained that since Politico “doesn’t have some of the legacies and the baggage” of older publications like the New York Times or the Washington Post, it “leads to a lot of creativity.” The reporters are not limited by what was done in the past and have the ability to take a story and run with it.

This lack of legacy has also enabled Politico to focus on what Mark said he thinks is the future of journalism — specialized news sources. When it comes to consuming news, Mark explained that many consumers are turning away from traditional general interest news sources and are relying on Web sites that deal specifically with a specialized topic. For example, rather than reading the sports page in a newspaper, sports fans will go to espn.com or related sites instead.

While Mark discussed the journalism industry and Politico’s place in it, Pia Catton advised us on what it takes to be a successful reporter. She described it as a balancing act between making our bosses happy, giving the editors what they want, all the while giving our readers what they want and expect.

Catton also described the process that went into a story about President Barack Obama’s upcoming birthday in order to exemplify how much advance planning is needed for some stories.

Mark and Catton gave us an informative overview of not just what is happening in the industry at large, but also what to expect when we are hired for our first jobs. While Mark focused on how journalism is changing, Catton’s talk also reminded us that the traditional values of hard work and a willingness to do the leg work are still just as important in new media as they were in the old.