So, You Want to Be a Journalist?
Standing out in the ever-changing landscape of online journalism
The internet has a seemingly endless amount of content and information, all of which we can access with a quick search. For new online journalists entering the field, the amount of internet content may be overwhelming–what content is left for new journalists to make?
Since large news outlets have monopolized breaking news and can reach their audiences with hard news at lightning speed, most independent journalists have turned to explainer journalism. David Roberts explains how “explainer journalism” was born in response to a need for, well, explanations.
“Especially as information and incremental developments explode in quantity, there is increasing public hunger for understanding—not so much what happened, but what it means.”
That is the kind of content we continue to need every day–content that helps us understand what all of this news means and offers new perspectives on old issues. A writer’s perspective can take a tired writing topic and shine a new light on it, showing readers something new and different.
New journalists are now tasked with learning how to explain information with a unique voice that stands apart from other explainer journalism. Using a unique perspective along with a personal tone and style is a skill that new journalists have to master to succeed in this vast space of content that is the internet.
Asking the Right Questions
The growth of online journalism has only made the job market harder to navigate for journalists. Jobs in hard news and investigative journalism are fewer and harder to get, so many journalists work online as explainer journalists. As the job market seems to keep shrinking and the internet keeps growing, journalists have to find a way to stand out among other creators.
David Roberts gives advice for aspiring explainer journalists in his article on Vox. Admittedly with no advice on who to contact and where to search to find journalism jobs, he describes how to make your journalism valuable and different from that of others.
Rather than trying to find new information and publishing it faster than other big news outlets, Roberts suggests taking a different perspective and points out that explainer journalism is not about finding the who, what, and where, but is instead about understanding the how and the why.
“What’s the deal with that? How does it work? . . . People want to know how the world works. They want to know why the things that are happening are happening. They don’t stop wanting to learn when they get out of school.”
Instead of racing (and eventually losing) against the major news outlets to get new information to audiences first, new journalists can focus on finding their niche and take the time to be knowledgeable about what they're writing about. In an age where digital content is drowning us in information, we need explainer journalists to help us make sense of it all.
If explainer journalists put in the extra time and work to really understand an area of knowledge, they can produce quality content that attracts readers. No one is an expert in everything after all.
Freelance Journalism: Taking the Reigns
Working as freelance journalists can help new journalists develop their own voices and areas of expertise. Jacqueline Marino conducted a survey on the trend of journalism students starting their careers in freelance work, wondering why these students turned down other entry-level jobs. Marino explains how the creative freedom and flexibility of freelance have helped new journalists define themselves as unique journalists.
“Professors should encourage their students to develop their individual areas of expertise . . . The more distinctive they can be in the marketplace, the more valuable they’ll be to consumers and employers,” said Marino’s interviewee Jeremy Caplan, director of teaching and learning at City University of New York’s Newmark Graduate School of Journalism.
When journalists can put their time and energy into developing their own writing style and perspective on topics that interest them, they will become stronger journalists whose content stands out from the vat of existing internet content.
The journalism job market is unstable and hard to navigate, but we have never stopped needing journalists. If the internet's overwhelming amount of content has taught us anything, it’s that people value quality content, and for that, we need quality journalism. Quality takes work, but it’s worth it.
And for you aspiring journalists: find your style, find your niche, and hone your individual craft. Make content that you enjoy, and when you find what makes your journalism special, run with it.