Profession: journalist: pros and cons, essence and relevance

When a child is asked about who he wants to become when he grows up, he usually answers: a doctor, writer, artist, firefighter, journalist. Many of these childhood expectations will never come true. Only a few manage to realize their childhood dreams. Today we want to tell you what the profession of journalist is. The pros and cons, all the burdens of work and joyful moments will be dedicated in this article.

How and where did the profession originate

For the first time in writing, news began to spread in ancient Rome. Then the information was passed from hand to hand on clay tablets.

But such ancestors of newspapers often fought, and their production was a rather troublesome affair. During the Renaissance, news was already circulated in the form of paper scrolls. But this method of transmitting information was also not convenient. The ancestors of the news media were handwritten, so it was very easy to falsify information. The first printed newspaper appeared in China. Already in the VIII century. residents of large cities could read state news and political decrees. Such newspapers were not printed, to the extent that modern man represents it. In the VIII century. there were no printing presses, people used primitive methods — they made prints.

The first handwritten newspaper in Russia appeared in 1621. Its circulation was very small, therefore it was distributed to a narrow circle of close associates of the king. But the newspaper "Vedomosti", which began to be published on a regular basis since 1702, was already truly printed. Today it is difficult to count the number of publications that exist in our country. 74,000 are officially registered, but not all of them are functioning and timely release their products.

What journalists do not write about

Many young people entering the institute want to write the truth and only the truth. But the profession of a journalist, the pros and cons of which we will consider below, is not work on the description of life without embellishment. This is primarily work on orders. In large newspapers, which are published in large circulation throughout the country, the customer is the government. This was the case before, even in the time of Peter I, who first published Vestnik. Of course, the media plays a huge role in shaping public opinion. Knowing this, journalists are always trying in their work in a veiled way to present the government in a favorable light (if this, of course, is a state publication).

But magazines and newspapers are not only political. The journalist knows all the pros and cons of the profession when he starts working for a commercial publication. Here you need to write interesting articles, but by strict magazine standards. And also do not forget that the print publication lives on through advertising, so that hidden PR partners in gloss can be found on almost every page.

Varieties of profession

A journalist is a vocation. But people in this profession can work not only in the print industry, but where else?

• At the publishers.
• On the radio.
• On TV.
• In the press services.
• In advertising agencies.

Each of these areas needs its own specialist. Of course, a journalist who has just graduated from the institute has a general idea of ​​the profession. The subtleties and nuances of the university are not taught. If the student is very lucky, then during practice he can get acquainted with various types of journalism. But this happens rarely. The advantage of all areas of this profession is that it will be easy to retrain from one to another.

What qualities you need to have in order to become a professional

A person who has decided to connect his life with journalism must first of all be very sociable. Many evaluate this ability by the number of friends. Defining in this way the skill of sociability is not worth it. A person working as a journalist does not make friends with everyone he interviews. He just needs to be able to win over people.

Any work has its pros and cons. The profession of journalist is no exception. Therefore, in addition to the ease of communication and the ability to win over people, a person must also be able to get into someone else's soul without demand. Not all people are eager to tell stories frankly, but without an honest story, a good article will not work. Therefore, arrogance, in the good sense of the word, should be the quality of any journalist. Naturally, if a person wants to talk about interesting things, he must have a broad outlook. It is impossible to write a good article about the oil industry, poorly imagining what oil is and where it is pumped from.

Is it hard to learn

A description of the profession of a journalist can be found in the brochure of almost any major university. But one thing is a beautiful article about learning, and quite another is the educational process. This is not to say that training for a journalist is difficult. But you need to understand that you will have to read a lot in the first place, and only then write. After all, before you sit down for an essay yourself, you need to find out the canons and rules for building any article. And also it is desirable to develop your own unique style. After all, it is precisely by his presence that a good journalist is distinguished from an amateur. Naturally, learning includes learning foreign languages.

Some institutes teach only English, while others teach 3 languages ​​at once. Of course, it is worthwhile to understand that without knowledge of at least one foreign language, one cannot go far up the career ladder.

The salary

Is the profession of journalist in demand? Of course, its popularity is growing every year. After all, today paper editions are slowly dying, and all media are moving into virtual space. How is the work of journalists paid? Of course, one does not have to wait for the golden mountains. Like any creative activity, journalism is not very profitable.

But if we take into account that a large number of printed materials are nevertheless designed not for high-quality creative work, but for the commercial sale of goods, then such work is estimated to be several times higher. This is a huge disadvantage of the profession of a journalist.

The average salary in the country ranges from 15,000 to 60,000 rubles. The specific figure will depend on the abilities, length of service and experience in a particular field.

Famous representatives

Best of all, people who work or have worked as a journalist can tell about their calling. The stories about his work by A. Malakhov are unusual. He graduated with honors from the Faculty of Journalism of Moscow State University. The red diploma confirmed the high level of knowledge of the young specialist. Andrei raised his skills in the USA, watching foreign professionals. Returning to his homeland, Malakhov conducted the broadcast "Style" on the radio. Andrei managed to become not only a popular journalist, but also a scandalous TV presenter. Currently, A. Malakhov transfers his knowledge about the basics of the profession to the younger generation within the walls of the Russian State Technical University.

Anna Politkovskaya is another well-known graduate of the journalism faculty of Moscow State University. Popularity came to the woman when she was actively writing articles about the conflict with Chechnya. Over her short life, Anna managed to work as a columnist in many newspapers, the most famous of them: Novaya Gazeta, Air Transport, Izvestia. The woman was distinguished by her original writing style and a rather bold choice of topics for articles.

pros

It’s interesting to work as a journalist, no matter what. It’s especially great that you can turn your hobby into a permanent source of income. Pros of the profession of a journalist:

• There is an opportunity to always be in the thick of things. Indeed, thanks to special privileges, journalists can even go where no VIP guests have access. Even if it will not be possible to illuminate the material seen, there is always something to tell friends to friends and relatives. And most importantly, thanks to such "excursions" life will definitely not be ordinary.
• Self-expression through articles. All people need to be creative in some way. Here are the journalists and find application for their abilities. They form their own unique style and write articles.
• Traveling is a unique opportunity to learn something new, get acquainted with the culture of other countries, and simply satisfy your own curiosity. Most people go on business trips or vacations once a year, but journalists can fly to other countries 5 times a month.

Meeting interesting people is another privilege of this profession. Movie and show business stars, writers, poets, directors and artists are all unique and have a lot to learn. But journalists have the opportunity not only to get to know these people better, but also to ask them all the questions that interest them.

Minuses

When choosing the profession of a journalist, of course, you need to know the other side of the coin. The main disadvantages of this work:

• An irregular working day is, of course, a big drawback. Often you have to stay up late, and sometimes even work at night. Sometimes it’s not even possible to go somewhere with your family for the weekend.
• Constant stress - work in the emergency mode, sometimes too expressive people with whom you have to talk can ruin your mood. Sometimes in this mode you have to work all week or even a month.
• Often there is not enough time for personal life - family and friends go by the wayside. Just like a hobby. Many evenings will be busy with work. Opportunities to read, go to the pool or have dinner with friends will be extremely rare.

Further prospects for the development of the profession

Journalism is an area that is becoming more popular year after year. The format of publications, popular topics is changing, but the essence of the profession of a journalist remains unchanged. Even despite the fact that now less than half the people in our country read books, flipping through a newspaper in the morning is a mandatory ritual for many. People love the news, and they want to receive it. That is why the duty of a journalist is to describe events as truthfully as possible so that ordinary people are aware of what is happening in our country.