We're people too

Working as a Journalist is a really tough job, and I don't think a lot of people realize why. It is my job as a journalist to write unbiased pieces that present both sides of an argument, and are completely factual. Sounds easy, right?

It is, to a point, but journalists need certain skills that some don't have. I learned this yesterday, when we had a student for the day spend the afternoon at our office. She asked a million questions to my editor, Carrie and it made me realize that this is a specialized career choice, and it's not for everyone.

One of the toughest parts of the job is generally dealing with the people. I am sad to admit that in my job I have been treated unfairly more times than I can count by people I interview, those who read my stories, or people who don't read the whole thing but feel the need to comment. This hasn't happened to me as much at the Fitzhugh, but I felt I needed to write something to remind people that us journalists, we are people too.

I have learned quickly that there are different kinds of interviews, and you can generally pick out what your source is going to be in the first few minutes. This is why I prefer phone interviews to in-person ones. Recently I dealt with a man who talked down to me as if I were nothing. He told me what I should write my story about, where I should put it, and why it belonged on our front page. He was incorrect. This is one of those skills I was talking about. I have learned to pick out what is news. What belongs on the front page, and how to write the story with the most important facts first, followed by things to compliment your lead, or first sentence. It's called the inverted pyramid.

A quick way to draw the ire of a reporter is to tell them how they should be doing their job. As a journalist, it is not our job to instruct you on how to do whatever job or thing it is we're interviewing you about. We assume you respect our position the same way.

Another point to remember, is generally a reporter and other editorial staff does not have control over where something is placed in a newspaper. What has control is advertising. The editor is given what is called a dummy, which is a template that shows where the adds are placed. the editorial content wraps around the advertisements. The front page goes to the top story, and the rest of the paper is organized however that particular paper decides. Ours has the top story on the front, our editorial and letters page, a feature, then the rest of the content spills through the rest of the paper with a sports section and arts and culture. The point is, generally if you request a particular spot in the paper, it cannot be guaranteed.

I've been reemed out by many a parent bitter their kid's photo didn't make the paper. I have a delightfully cynical answer to this, but the bottom line is, as a photographer, I pick the images that are the best out of the shots I have taken. Sometimes that's not your kid. I have one girl at one of the elementary schools in Jasper that freaks out and screams PAPARAZZI at me everytime she sees me. She begs me everytime to put her in the paper, and poses for photos that I absolutely know I can't run. Most reputable photographers will go for a candid shot anyday, over a posed, obviously contrived one. I feel bad for this girl and would love to take a photo I could run of her, but I can't seem to go within 50 metres of the school without her finding me and going into a pose.

Another complaint is about mistakes. Yes, journalists do make mistakes once in awhile. We are human. If the mistake was our fault, we will print a retraction and apologize. Sometimes, however, our sources make the mistake. If a mistake is reported, we go back through our notes and make sure it wasn't our fault. If it is, retraction. If not, we invite the person with the complaint to write a letter in to smooth over the issue.

Anyway, what I'm getting at is we are human, and we receive complaints and negativity a lot. I have developed a thick skin doing this job. I have a great bunch of ladies I work with, and when someone takes something out on us, we are extremely supportive of each other. We laugh and giggle about it. Just know that journalists aren't like other people. We are witty and have a sense of humour that no one else shares, and stupid complaints do not go unnoticed.

I love my job, and there's nothing else in the world I want to do. I get to do the coolest things on a daily basis, and I am constantly learning. Not everyone can do this job, and I feel lucky I have the skills to do it. Be nice to your local journalists, because we're people too.

Love,
Annalee.