Ticking the box
Recently I had the good fortune of talking to a panel of journalists, who were there to offer some advice to people attempting to break into the industry – most of whom were in the final stages of their uni degree or were recent graduates. I’m the latter. Events such as these are invaluable for aspiring journalists and we were all happy to get some face time with experienced reporters. There was the usual advice like ‘make sure to network’ and ‘be prepared to work hard’. Good, true advice which is always welcome.
However, what really struck me was the musings of a TV reporter who seemed totally unaware of the implications of his words: “Journalism Degrees Are Just There To Tick A Box, Employers Don’t Really Care About Them”. He then went on to say: “In Fact, Results Don’t Really Matter Either, Which Is A Relief”. What he was trying to convey was the fact that prospective employers want to know what practical experience you have, which is a fair point to make. As students we get told to chase up internships at newspapers and should be contributing to the uni mag to build up a portfolio. What our lecturers don’t tell us (for obvious reasons) is that these days it seems more important to be familiar with social networking websites than having a university degree.
David Higgins, editor of news.com.au, was recently quoted in the Walkley Magazine declaring “if someone sat down for an interview and had 500 Twitter followers and 600 Facebook friends…that would be looked upon very favourably”. He also made some other compelling points, but this one certainly piqued my interest. I bet that if I went on Facebook and added two thousand people almost half would accept me. I could then go to Twitter and start ‘following’ another two thousand, of which perhaps a quarter would ‘follow’ me in return. Does this make me a better journalist? If I had 1,200 Facebook friends and 1,000 Twitter followers, does this mean I am twice as likely to get a job as a journalist?
I understand that the industry is changing, and that young, aspiring journos need to have practical work experience and be familiar with new media. It makes sense. But to discount university degrees and claim that having online friends makes you a more employable journalist paints a very bleak future for an already struggling industry.
