Favourites: Add | View

Newspaper Journalist

Newspaper journalists find, research and write stories for publication in local, regional and national press. As a junior reporter you are allocated work from the news desk and submit your story to the news editor who passes it on to a team of copy tasters and sub editors.

On smaller papers, some functions may merge into one and it is likely that during the course of a career in journalism you may move between functions.

Reporters cover all sorts of topics: news; items of cultural, sporting or scientific interest; local and national events; entertainment, lifestyle and human interest stories - in short anything that sells!

Typical work activities

There is no such thing as a 'typical' day in newspapers, but as a junior reporter you may find yourself involved in the following:

building contacts to maintain a steady flow of news, eg the police and emergency services, local council, community organisations, health trusts;
interviewing people affected by or involved in making political decisions, eg school closures, hospital reorganisation;
reporting on business developments or events of cultural interest in the community;
interviewing people experiencing distress, trauma or celebrity success, eg bereaved relatives, 'triumph over tragedy' survivors, lottery winners;
attending press conferences;
attending local meetings, court proceedings and events, eg council meetings, the magistrates' court, football matches;
recording interviews and meetings using shorthand or recording equipment;
producing copy to deadlines - on a daily paper there may be several each day;
writing 'fillers' or articles to entertain;
researching and writing longer feature articles;
working with photographers and editors to produce copy to the publication house style.

Your job is to ask 'why?', even if you risk making yourself look a fool, or, to quote John Humphreys, to 'challenge authority, find some answers and pass them on'.

The starting salary for a trainee reporter on a local/regional paper may be as low as £10,000, but you can expect rises of £2,000 - £3,000 as you progress through the training period. Starting salaries for postgraduate trainees on a national paper are higher and range upwards from £14,000. The average salary for all journalists is £22,500, but there is wide variation. The average salary for staff on national newspapers is £40,000 and for regional papers £17,500 (salary data collected May 04)

Salaries for senior reporters, feature writers and sub-editors on local/regional papers can range from £15,000 – £40,000, although salary levels are linked to the size and type of paper rather than level of the post. The range of salaries for senior editors on regional daily papers is £50,000 - £80,000. On the national papers, salaries can be even higher. Share options and bonuses, reflecting the paper's performance, can bolster salaries (salary data collected May 04).

Journalism has a 'long hours' image, although the survey 'Journalists at Work' quotes the average working week as 41.6 hours, with 85% describing their hours as 'reasonable'. Flexibility is important. Early in your career you are likely to work an early or late shift pattern, but you will need to be flexible to accommodate breaking news and deadlines.
Offices are usually open plan and may be noisy. You will spend much of your time working on a PC and on the phone, but may travel to meet people or cover events.
Many journalists spend part of their career working on a freelance basis. Demand for experienced freelancers is high, especially for feature writing and design. At the other end of the spectrum, young journalists often work freelance to build up experience and contacts. The National Union of Journalists (NUJ) issues a guide to freelance fees in their NUJ Freelance Fees Guide.
There is roughly a 50/50 gender balance with more men working on the national papers. The profession is predominantly white but efforts are being made to recruit from ethnic minority backgrounds. Career breaks may be possible with returners sometimes moving back into the profession via sub editing or freelance work. Women are increasingly represented at senior level.
Opportunities on regional papers exist throughout the UK but 70% of journalists on national papers are based in London. Scottish titles employ a further 10% of journalists on the nationals. Geographical mobility is important, especially at the beginning of a career in journalism.
Journalism is a 'young' profession: 70% are aged under 40 and 35% under 35. Dissatisfaction with pay is often offset by enthusiasm for the job. Social life and working life may be intertwined.

Information taken from Prospects www.prospects.ac.uk for more information

Courses

View all 24 courses.

Or click on one of the links below to view the specific courses your are interested in.

College
University College Falmouth (3)
Exeter College (3)
Cornwall College St Austell (2)
University of Exeter (2)
East Devon College (2)
Cornwall College Camborne (2)
Penwith College (1)
Yeovil College (1)
Weymouth College (1)
Plymouth College of Art and Design (1)
College of St Mark and St John (Marjon) (1)
Cornwall College, Newquay (1)
Bournemouth University Media School (1)
University of Plymouth (1)
Bridgwater College (1)
Truro College (1)

Qualification
BA (Hons) (7)
Other (5)
AS (5)
Foundation Degree (5)
A Level (5)
Access to HE (1)

Subject
Media (23)
Art (1)
Film (1)