5 Journalism: Occupation or Skillset?

By Dave Bostwick

FROM RODEO PHOTOGRAPHER TO OER WRITER

I began my career as a small-town newspaper reporter. My primary role was in sports, but I also did some general news reporting, editing, photography and page design. Occasionally, I even had to write stock-market updates and deliver printed newspapers.

I was thrilled with the occasional opportunities to cover major college football games in Texas and Oklahoma. However, most of my duties were much more local, including rodeos, dirt-track car racing, and lots of high school sports. I was required to wear cowboy boots and a cowboy hat before I was allowed to take pictures in some rodeo arenas.

Today, my journalistic passion is to compile Open Educational Resources such as this one, and I am decades removed from my early days as a newspaper reporter. Like me, many of you will expect a smooth, straight path as you begin your professional journey, only to encounter winding roads or bumpy detours as your career progresses.

OCCUPATION OR SKILLSET?

When they hear the word journalism, people may think of reporters covering important events, or political analysts dissecting daily news. However, jobs in traditional journalistic realms, especially print newspapers, have been dwindling for more than a decade.

As a result, companies and organizations often produce their own feature stories, videos, social media posts and other content. Job opportunities have increased in a variety of areas that emphasize providing consumers with timely, accurate information beyond traditional news.

This leads to a key question. Is journalism an occupation or a skillset? For example, within the Society of Professional Journalists, some members have advocated for an official name change to the Society for Professional Journalism.

Journalistic skills, especially the ability to communicate clearly and concisely, can be helpful in almost any occupation.

For the purposes of this chapter, we’ll treat journalism as a skillset and explore jobs beyond traditional newsrooms. These jobs still require journalistic skills that are covered in the presentation below.

Study the following presentation slides by using the forward button or clicking on sections of the control bar. To enlarge any interactive presentation in this book, click on the lower-right full-screen option (arrows). 

Colleges are responding to this change. For example, in 2022 the School of Journalism and Strategic Media at the University of Arkansas launched a new major concentration called Multimedia Storytelling and Production. It falls under the umbrella of journalism, but it is geared toward students who don’t picture themselves working as traditional news reporters.

FORECASTS

The Occupational Outlook Handbook, published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, provides the following overall projection for media and communication jobs.

Overall employment in media and communication occupations is projected to grow about as fast as the average for all occupations from 2022 to 2032. About 114,300 openings are projected each year, on average, in these occupations due to employment growth and the need to replace workers who leave the occupations permanently.

In 2023, the media annual pay for media and communication workers was $66,320.

The brief presentation below provides data for few specific jobs that typically require a bachelor’s degree:

Study the following presentation slides by using the forward button or clicking on sections of the control bar. To enlarge any interactive presentation in this book, click on the lower-right full-screen option (arrows). 

ONE PROFESSOR’S PERSPECTIVE

Cindy Royal, the director of the Media Innovation Lab at Texas State University, wrote for Harvard’s Nieman Lab that most journalism graduates “probably aren’t going to work as reporters and editors.”

“The good news is that there are jobs (journalism graduates) can fill. Important jobs. Jobs that influence storytelling and affect democratic ideals. These are jobs across industries that rely on the conception, development, and maintenance of digital products. And these products aren’t going to manage themselves!”

Echoing the earlier chapter presentation about journalistic skills. Royal added that employers are looking for the following:

“ … people who can integrate the rigor of strong communication skills and ethics with technology savvy to develop digital products.”

“ … people who can understand audience needs and the ways in which the elements of digital products affect information dissemination, audience engagement, and civic participation.”

“ … people who can influence the direction of digital products and platforms in all industries, hopefully for the greater good.”

THE JOBS LANDSCAPE

If journalism, including strategic media, is among your career considerations, it’s a good idea to check employment sites such as Indeed every month to familiarize yourself with job descriptions and availability. That can help you assess skills you need to develop and prepare you for the day you actually enter the job market.

Indeed has also compiled specific career advice about journalistic skills.

• Which Journalism Skills Are in Demand? – Indeed

I recently checked Indeed jobs in a large Midwestern city and found lots of interesting openings:

• content editors at a non-profit hospital
• communications strategist for a medical association
• senior writer for a research group
• web specialist for a department store chain.

And here’s a sample of job titles for positions outside of traditional newsrooms:

• digital content producer
• communications coordinator
• social media manager
• motion designer
• video producer
• documentary filmmaker

It’s also appropriate to mention the impact of AI-generated text on the media job market. Tools that use large language models such as ChatGPT are like digital parrots. They process and repeat words and phrases, but they can’t interpret or understand the meaning of the messages. With that in mind, professional judgment about appropriate use of AI content likely will become a hirable skill.

If you seek a media-related career, your professional path probably won’t be a smooth, straight road. That doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy the journey.