Journalism Career Paths for Industry Newcomers to Consider
Photo by Vlada Karpovich on Pexels.
As back-to-school season arrives, many students of all ages will begin, or continue, to pursue their education in journalism.
Some of them may have a specific dream journalism career in mind. Still, many others may love communications and storytelling but aren’t quite familiar with industry terminology and the various jobs available to them.
If you are a student in either group, having an idea of what journalism career path you’d like to take is beneficial for selecting classes that focus on different skills and industry specializations. It can also help you find internships and jobs that align with your goals and passions.
If you’re preparing to study journalism or enter the workforce this fall, here are a few career paths you may have already heard of, and some you might want to investigate further.
Field Reporter
If you’ve watched the news before, you’ve more than likely seen a field reporter. This branch of journalism requires you to be the on-the-ground, live reporter when news breaks.
Other responsibilities include gathering news leads, conducting interviews, analyzing data, writing news stories and working with different departments (photo and video journalists, producers and editors, for example) to ensure clear, accurate reporting.
Investigative Journalist
Investigative journalists play an important role in bringing corruption, wrongdoing, injustice and other significant issues to light. The research these journalists perform is extremely in-depth and can sometimes take months or years to complete.
Here are great examples of investigative journalism in 2023.
Beat Reporter
Beat reporters cover a specific industry or topic rather than reporting news from a wide variety of sectors.
Popular specialized topics or beats include business, sports, technology, politics, government, lifestyle and the environment.
Those are just a few examples. Try taking classes focused on something you’re passionate about if you’re considering this path. That way, you enter your career educated about the topic you plan to cover.
Photojournalist
A career path that brings another medium of creativity to communications is photojournalism. By integrating a visual element into your storytelling, you are reaching the audience in a way that engages their emotions and enhances text-only news stories.
Photojournalists often work alongside reporters and editors to determine which images best align with the story’s message.
Want to get inspired? Check out the winners of the 2024 Best of Photojournalism Awards (click the category to view the winning entries).
Other Communications-Related Roles
If journalism itself doesn’t end up being exactly the right fit, here are several roles that work with the media and journalists in a variety of ways.
Public Relations (PR) Specialist
A public relations specialist wears many hats, but their main role is maintaining a positive public image for their client or company. PR specialists can work in-house as part of a company’s internal team, in a PR agency contracted by outside companies or as a freelancer.
PR specialists write and distribute press releases and news to media and journalists, using distribution platforms like PR Newswire and utilizing direct outreach to build relationships with journalists and other internal and external stakeholders.
They also often work alongside various internal departments including marketing and social media, content creation and executive leadership to create communication strategies that reach and resonate with their target audience
Crisis Communications Manager
Before a crisis hits, crisis communication managers develop a plan to respond. They coordinate internal and external communications and ensure the proper strategy is prepared and tools are in place, ahead of the crisis, so that they’re ready when disaster strikes. In this role, you’d work to minimize the effects of the crisis and protect the organization’s reputation.
Want to learn more? Check out PR Newswire’s Crisis Communications Toolkit.
Do Your Research
The internet is full of resources to guide you to an interesting and fulfilling career. It’s also beneficial to take advantage of the career planning options that exist through your school or university.
Discuss your goals with a guidance counselor and join journalism on- or off-campus groups. These groups can help you build a community and give you access to individuals who can help you discover a path that you haven’t thought of yet!
When you’re ready to take the next step and start applying for positions, we have tips and best practices to set you up for success:
- Journalism School Grads: What’s Next?
- Journalism Jobs and Internships: Resources for Recent Grads
- From Classroom to Newsroom: 24 Essential Interview Tips for New Journalists
- Resume Tips for Journalists: What to Include (and What to Leave Out)
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Sydney is an Onboarding Specialist at Cision. She has a love for communication and relationship building and a strong background in client relations, the user experience and creative problem solving.
