I’ve never had the chance to address a group of journalism graduates, but on the off chance you happen to be graduating this spring with a journalism degree and you’re in need of some career advice, you’ve come to the right place.
You probably got here the same way I did — at some point or another you read “All The President’s Men,” or saw the movie with Robert Redford and thought, “hey, this looks like a pretty cool gig.”
Trust me, it is.
Almost inevitably your first job will likely be at a newspaper that will resemble the Newton Daily News, the newspaper of record for the City of Newton. There are bigger jobs and brighter lights to be sure, but this is a good place to get started. Here, we cover whatever comes in the door, and when nothing’s coming in we get out and find some news. The dirty little secret behind those 24-hour cable news networks is that there’s always something happening, you’ve just gotta keep digging.
I hope you have a good car, because you’ll be spending a lot of time inside of it. Despite their name, small town papers cover a large area, but the only traffic jams you’ll run into out here are farmers in slow moving tractors. Your car will likely become a defacto second office for you, a quiet place to make phone calls, type notes from the meeting you just attended or eat your lunch.
The meals you don’t eat in your car you’ll probably eat sitting at your desk. When I moved into my current desk, my predecessor was thoughtful enough to leave me a stack of take out menus, he even highlighted his favorite entrées.
It gets pretty cold here in the winter, and sometimes it even snows, so make sure you own a good coat. You’ll spend more time outside than you ever realized, talking to sources, attending local events and knocking on doors. Buy hand warmers instead of gloves, it’s too hard to operate the controls on your camera while you’re wearing gloves. A good set of hand warmers will last you most of an afternoon and on the really cold days you might as well tuck a pair into your boots.
Always bring a coat. A former co-worker told me once you could always take your coat off if you got hot, but you can’t put on the coat you don’t have. Double your value by bringing a coat that’s also waterproof. More often than not, the game will go on, even if your shoes squish every time you take a step.
Get used to seeing the folks you cover because in a small town they’re everywhere. The city council member you wrote something negative about is likely to be your table mate at the church soup supper. Don’t be surprised when many of those same people criticize you or shout claims of “fake news” when you write something they don’t agree with.
Only write what you know to be true. Firsthand accounts are the best, but if you’ve done your research, and talked to enough folks you’ll have a pretty good picture of what happened. Like Joe Hardy, stick to the facts, they’ll speak louder than sensationalism and hyperbole ever can.
Talk to everyone you meet. Every person has a story, and there’s a time and place to tell that story. With enough time, you’ll figure out when the right time is. Return every phone call, you never know when a long shot will pay off.
Be willing to accept criticism but always stick to the facts. People are relying on you to be their eyes and ears, don’t let them down. Hold onto your integrity, it’s what they’re paying you for.
Work hard and appreciate every opportunity, there’s a lot of folks out there counting on you.
Contact David Dolmage at
ddolmage@newtondailynews.com