Attention journalists. The newspaper reporting and editing jobs you’ve been laid off from aren’t coming back anytime soon, at least not in the form you left them. You probably already know that. So what’s next? You could go to law school, switch to PR or dig up dirt on public companies for a corporate investigator.
But if you want to stay in journalism, you’ll have to change with the times, and that means looking beyond the traditional newsroom walls for different venues in which to practice the reporting trade.
That’s the basic take away from a Webinar called “Now What? Rethinking Your Future” on journalism’s new directions that I listened in on last week. The training session was sponsored by Webbmedia Group, a new media training consultant run by a group of ex-reporters and editors turned Web 2.0 journalism specialists.
During the session, Webbmedia founder Amy Webb and her colleagues presented recently laid-off reporters and other writers – including a few of us long-time freelancers – with a variety of options for continue to pursue old-fashioned journalism in new settings. Without giving out too many of the details – which I promised I wouldn’t, they are running a business after all – here are some of the suggestions for actions ex-newspaper reporters can take presented in the session, along with some of my own observations:
Figure out how what you do best – And what type of work you like the most. That could be writing straight news, arts criticism, computer-assisted research, whatever. Then think about how to do that in a new way.
Team up with other journalists. Form a mini-syndicate writing on a single or related topics with multiple tiers of content, including paid subscriptions for the most in-depth stuff.
Start a blog. Get over whatever hangups you have about blogging, Webb says, it’s just a platform. It’s a way to dip a toe into the water of Web 2.0. Experiment. Write about the same beat you used to cover, or pick a new one. What you write is secondary to learning how to do it, at least at first.
Start a neighborhood news blog. Webb calls them hyper-local Websites, other people call them community blogs or microblogs. These ultra-niche blogs can cover a town, a neighborhood or a particular slice of life in a city or other area. Webb pointed to examples such as Broad Street Review, a Philadelphia arts scene blog edited by Dan Rottenberg. Others: the SealBeachDaily, an online newspaper for the coastal Orange County, California, town, and NewzJunky, a Watertown, NY, town blog started by a local photographer turned community news reporter.
Have fun with numbers. If you’ve done computer-assisted reporting or just geek out over numbers, consider aggregating some kind of public records into a database and using it as the cornerstone of a Website. Charge for access and write related content. Voila, instant business.
Go mobile. “It’s what’s next,” says Webb. Pair up with a developer who knows mobile apps and build a business around travel tips, product reviews or other content that could fit on the screen of an iPhone. One example: GoodGuide, a Website that tracks green products, which has created a special version of its site for the iPhone.
Work for a tech company. Reporters might balk at the suggestion that they go to work for a company – too much like PR. Get over it, Webb says. Pick a company, agency, union or other organization you admire or one that could really use help with its Internet presence. Approach them with suggestions for how they could beef up the information on their Website, user interface, content management platform, etc.
Have a biz plan. Think about what you want to do and how you’ll get there. But since online and digital media trends happen so fast, don’t plan too far into the future. Stay flexible. Keep up on trends by reading pubs like ReadWriteWeb and TechCrunch.
Build a network. Use LinkedIn,Twitter and Facebook, but don’t forget to network in person too.
Have your affairs in order. If you’re still gainfully employed in a newsroom congratulations! But just in case, make sure you have copies of your business contacts, clips, etc., in digital form stored somewhere other than your work computer so they’re handy should you need them.
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Digital is no longer the “under dog” of the marketing world, campaigns and strategies are now built around digital media with digital media becoming the centre piece of any activity,
so a digital agency really needs to work at that strategic level with their clients.
Found your blog via an entry in another one. What you posted is very good advice in times like these.
I always suggest journos to dig deeper into their skills and determine the underlying value. Once they think beyond “communications,” more opportunities emerge.
For example, advanced interviewing skills can benefit an exec recruiting company, a VC firm (due diligence) or, as in my case, private investigation and corporate risk management organizations.
Great post. The neighbourhood news blog idea is intriguing and has given me food for thought. Thanks!
Thanks Walter. It will be interesting to see which of these new business models will actually turn into ventures that journalists can support themselves from.
Bill: Excellent advice. Reporters have a lot of crossover skills they could use in different professions, as you point out. Early in my career I was approached by an investment industry analyst who wanted to take me on as an associate – I’d written extensively about the particular industry she covered but didn’t have a finance background so I would have had to get an MBA. At that time in my career I wasn’t interested in leaving journalism so I turned her down. Today, I probably would consider it.
Thanks Russell. Keep reading WordCount – I’ll be doing a Q&A with a couple of ex-reporters turned publishers of a neighborhood news blog in the near future.
Michelle