One Reporter's Take

The worth of my words...

2008-08-01T06:09:00.000-07:00

Several years ago when I was in college studying Pre-Veterinary Medicine my father suggested that I would be a very good journalist. Our relationship had grown tumultuous by that time and I shot back at him that he didn't know me very well if that was his opinion. What about my personality, I countered, could possibly suggest I would be good at such a profession?! His list of traits in response included that I was outspoken, inquisitive-to-the-point-of-downright-nosy, extraordinarily driven, and had the ability, as a fortune cookie reinforced, "to distinguish the significant from the mundane".

Interesting that a journalist is exactly what I've turned out to be, at least for the moment. Just how long that moment will last is the subject of much of my insecurity and doubt lately.

I have been working for six years now to try to become a better reporter, and while I recognize that this process can take decades, I am at present trying to decide if I have what it takes to dedicate myself fully to this field. That effort will require many more long hard years of personal and financial sacrifice, not to mention a gnawing fear that looking back in 50 years I might not feel like it was worth that.

I've always thought that Americans value their right to the free press which provides the invaluable services of informing them about their world and holding power accountable, to name a couple among many. I'm sure you can imagine that it is difficult to see and hear "the media" assailed en masse when you tirelessly dedicate your days and nights to a process that yields you profoundly disproportionate monetary compensation. The older I get, and the further into my journalism career I push, the more difficult it is to hold up the other forms of compensation that come from this work as trade-offs for not being able to save any money toward my hopes of seeing the world, buying a home, and preparing to start a family.

More than 4 years ago a manager at a major NPR member station where I was about to start work told me, "you'll never be on our air." Not only did I prove him wrong inside of a year and a half, but I have since produced body of reporting work that I try daily to remind myself I should be proud of.

Recently I have started exploring another, more potentially-monetarily rewarding form of professional storytelling, at considerable financial risk, in order to fulfill a longtime personal goal. It would seem that I am going to have to become even poorer than I am now if I am to fully dedicate myself to this craft. In the meantime my work in journalism is what will have to sustain me, and that's looking like it will be more difficult than ever. Bad timing, you see, considering my aforementioned doubts about the profession, and the worth of my contributions to it thus far.

I wonder if any of my colleagues are feeling the same way?

I know I'm one of billions who've been through this; I say all of it in the context of having made very picky choices, after a few years of paying my dues, about what I would and would not do in this profession, and where I would and would not go. I also know that money does not buy happiness, and that I must work harder to find a sense of satisfaction and self-worth from within. When things get tough, I have my family - my mother and sister in particular - to remind me of my place in the world and to keep perspective. I am infinitely fortunate, as well, to have the people I love and who love me to give me easy silence, peaceful quiet and keep the world at bay, as the Dixie Chicks so eloquently put it.

Bravery

2008-07-01T21:59:00.000-07:00

A wise man I've heard much about, and hope to meet soon, once said to his child, if nothing else, "be useful, be brave."

Bravery can be hard to come by, and in my business, harder than outsiders might think or insiders care to admit.

You see, a lot of people in important positions with big titles in my field are scared stiff about what's happening to the "news business" as they knew/know it. Too many are clinging to the old ways of doing news. Too few are too slowly getting a clue and sprinting awkwardly and haphazardly to catch up.

In this climate it takes bravery to decide that one is going to run one's news organization differently, bravely even, and call out problems as one sees them, then take steps to remedy those problems... unpaid bills and unsatisfied egos be darned.

I saw this done today. And then, as a direct result of said brave decision, in yet another, and arguably more profound show of bravery, I watched as a friend and colleague's employment situation went from unsettled to uncertain, and rather than cower in self-pity this person rejoiced in the opportunity this decision presented for said news organization, recognized the potential inherent in this introspective change, and even offered up her own flaws for scrutiny in this process.

And soon thereafter my colleague praised the important big-titled people for their vision and candor.

How useful, how brave...
How inspiring.

"Bifurcation" of the News: A Perfect Storm?

2008-06-22T06:34:00.000-07:00

Good Sunday morning...

I missed it, but this past week the AP sparked a debate about who pays for news, and as a freelance reporter this hit home, especially as I watched a story I reported for NPR hit the internet and then get picked up by NECN... and so on.

Case in point: if people can get their news for free, how long will they continue to pay for it?

This article on the Wired blog discusses the consequences for people like me of what it calls "the bifurcation of publishing and news-gathering". In other words, I gathered the news and it was published by NPR, thereby fanning out to NPR's member stations around the country, people's blogs, and so on.

There might be "a hidden subsidy" for NPR as all these outlets redirect traffic to my story on NPR.org, but there is no further compensation coming to me.

Blogs (including mine) play an increasing role in disseminating news, but I agree with Wired that they also pose a threat to the enterprise of journalism, especially public radio and its listener-dependent business model. How long will we keep meeting our goals during on-air fundraisers with the argument that we can't do what we do without "you, our listeners"?!

If/when people stop buying that, who is going to pay the bills, and in turn, compensate me for my hard work as a reporter?

Maybe Wired's John Abell is right in saying, "There is a storm coming. It just might be The Perfect Storm."

Misogyny and the Media

2008-06-08T06:21:00.000-07:00

It's the morning after Hillary Clinton suspended/ended her historic bid for the presidency, and as a woman and a member of "the media" I am compelled to look back on many months of election coverage and consider allegations that misogyny toward her candidacy was perpetuated by the press.

I was prepared to expound on the subject today but I've come across the following Letter to the Editor in today's Boston Globe, which I feel is a concise, articulate and powerful missive that couldn't be better put:

Assessing sexism
In response to Brendan Diamond's letter to the editor ("Charges of sexism sound like a whine," June 2), in which he reacted to Geraldine Ferraro's May 30 op-ed: The issue isn't a comparison of racism vs. sexism as much as it is about the responses to those attitudes. Sexism isn't the outright cause of Hillary Clinton's loss to Barack Obama, but to ignore it as a contributing factor is to be ignorant. Sexism is more subtle than racism.
The media and general public have nearly zero tolerance for racism, but sexism is laughed off or ignored. "Iron My Shirt" is funny, but you had better believe "Shine My Shoes" would be outrageous - when both should be repudiated.
Plenty of voters may simply like Obama more than Clinton, but many others have been vocal about how Clinton reminds them of their mothers, and that is why they aren't voting for her. That is misogynistic and sexist - and short-sighted, because no doubt they didn't become the great people they think they are without their mothers.

There is sexism everywhere - in the Democratic Party, the Republican Party, and across America. Only a fool would suggest otherwise. CAROLINE CONWAY, Boston

Much food for thought here, I think.

Should this reporter blog?

2008-06-06T08:19:00.000-07:00

A veteran foreign correspondent-turned-web-guru told me yesterday that he thinks I should be writing a blog. He said there's no reason not to; a lot of reporters are doing it.

Typically I don't put myself into my stories, so it's not an intuitive thing to register my reflections as I'm reporting. Still, if those reflections might interest people and enlighten some on the process by which your news is compiled and produced, to that end I'm interested in giving it a shot.

I'm on deadline today, though, so a lengthier entry will have to wait.

Until then...