Struggling break into journalism, music, TV or book publishing? Graduate Fog explains why there are so few jobs in media right now – and how you can tweak your plan to boost your chances.
You always knew that breaking into media would be tough – but are you wondering why is it turning out to be downright impossible in 2010? It’s because the industry isn’t just competitive – is really, seriously struggling right now.
Let’s get one thing straight – Graduate Fog is not about to profile every industry out there. However, the popularity of media as a career (and perhaps the fact that Tanya is a magazine journalist by trade) means the question “How do I get into media?” is one of the most commonly asked by job-seeking graduates. And since Graduate Fog prides itself on answering the questions graduates are actually asking – however awkward they are – we figure we can’t ignore this subject.
‘What’s happening in media?’
There is no delicate way to put this – these are tough times for the traditional media industry. If it isn’t dying, it’s certainly pretty sick – and nobody can say when it’s going to get better. This is partly down to the recession but also the so-called ‘digital revolution’. The Internet has turned media upside down and shaken it until all the change falls out of its pockets. We still read news – but we do it online, where we aren’t prepared to pay for it. We still listen to music – but we download it for nothing. We want it all for free – yet it costs money to produce.
The industry is racking its brains to find new ways to make money – because the old ‘business models’ are broken. Music, TV, film, journalism and book publishing are all businesses expensive to run – and right now, the maths just isn’t adding up. Which is a large part of the reason you’re finding it so hard to get in.
NEXT: “WILL THINGS IMPROVE?” AND “SHOULD I GIVE UP MY DREAM?”
Hello,
I just wanted to say how helpful your advice pages are on journalism. They are also reinforcing what other people in the industry keep advising me- that the internet and digital media are the way forwards.
Also, I’d be grateful for your advice and opinion. I graduated in 2009 (not in media), and have since done various internships working in a press office of a political party, writing news pieces for a charity website, and am now writing a few news stories for a hyper-local news website. All either unpaid or very low paid internships. I’ve done a social media course and my next plan is to start a blog on food and farming, as this is my personal and academic background. I’ve got lots of contacts in the related industries and am going to seek their advice on whether they think there is a gap for the type of things I would write about. Then I plan to intergrate it with facebook and twitter and hopefully try to market it well. The idea is that at the very least it will give me further experience in interview technique, writing for blogs, and generally working in social media. Do you think this is a good way forwards? If no one else will publish me, I will publish myself!
Also, the idea of writing for online media is relatively new to me and I wondered if it involved mainly working from home with no colleagues or interaction with people and just regurgitating stories that the ‘real’ journalists are researchinga nd interviewing for? I don’t want to get myself stuck into sitting at a computer non-stop for 10 hours a day with no social interaction!
Many thanks- you’re website is great!
@Jez
Thanks for your kind words about Graduate Fog : )
I’m afraid I can’t get into giving one-to-one advice on GF (or I’d never have any time to do anything else) – but as I suspect your query is one that a lot of journalism grads are asking themselves, I thought I’d give a brief response on this occasion (plus I’m putting off doing some other work – can you tell?!)
Right, it sounds to me like you are a classic ‘serial intern‘ – and to me your situation is a perfect illustration of why this internships madness has got to stop. Yes, there is a risk that enforcing the NMW laws might slightly reduce the number of internships available – but the current situation is far worse. Too many graduates are in exactly your position, doing endless placements, gaining experience, but guess what? Several internships later you still feel as if you are no closer to a real job – because there aren’t any junior jobs – just more unpaid / low-paid internships!
It is typical to get to a certain point and think ‘Do I need to give up – or change tack?’ so well done for acknowledging that your are now at this point (I agree that you are). You are right to realise that you can’t endlessly go on doing unpaid internships, as tempting as it is to believe that if you do this for long enough something will eventually ‘break’ for you. It might, but it might not. There are no guarantees – and thanks to the number of universities that have cashed in by flogging far too many places on easy-to-sell media-related courses, there is an insane amount of competition.
You say that you had not really familiar with online journalism. That worries me a bit. Does that mean you saw a life-long career for yourself in print journalism? Frankly it makes me furious that universities are still peddling the myth that this is a possibility. IMO the Internet has been a total game-changer. That’s one of the reasons why I started Graduate Fog – because I can feel that the tide has already turned against print and that the future is online.
As for your blog, I think you need to be realistic about the chances of making money from it. I’ve been running GF for over a year now, and it has earned me less than £1,000. Although that’s more than I’ve spent on it (hurrah! – not many websites can say that!) it has taken a huge amount of work, none of which I have been paid for. I don’t mind this because a) I LOVE my subject area b) I love seeing GF growing and c) I think it will not be long before I can make some money from this website. But that is my judgment, after taking a lot of good advice from experts that really understand the online game.
What should you do next? Well, that depends on what you really believe you’ve best at – and what drives you. I think you might need to have another think about this – as it’s not clear from your comment what your passion is, or what exactly it is about journalism that you’re passionate about. Do you love the actual writing? Or is it reporting / uncovering stories that interests you? Or are you just in love with the IDEA of being a journalist? (Sorry but i have you ask – you’d be amazed how many grads this applies to). Journalists are brilliant at presenting what they do as the most fun, sexy job in the world – but the reality is very different. Most journalists (esp those starting out now) are extremely low paid, and a lot of the people they work with (on newspapers particularly) are not lovely sorts. All publications are looking at cutting their costs – and junior positions and salaries are the first place they look. I think that alone says a lot about the industry – it is one that does not value its young talent – in fact, they are prepared to squeeze and squeeze their young until only those with private incomes can afford to stick with it. Are you sure you want to work in an industry like that? As for the low pay once you get a job, most 21-year-olds say you don’t care because you’ll be doing what you love. But believe me, when you get to 30 and you’re earning a fraction of what all your friends in proper professions are earning, you will care a LOT more. They will start buying houses and having children, and you won’t be able to afford to do either of those things comfortably.
Which ever aspect of journalism you feel most appeals to you, I would urge you to see how this skill / passion is applicable ONLINE. IMO (and remember it’s only MY opinion), trying to START a print journalism career in 2011 is like running into a burning building. I would also look at growing companies that are at the forefront of social media and its applications to the business world. A friend of mine has been the online community manager for Orange and now Cadbury’s. She gets paid FAR better than I do – and her expertise has a future!
I hope this is helpful in some way -
I’m sorry it’s not better news but as you know GF doesn’t do phoney…
: )
Tanya
Very tough times, my friend is a qualified journo who has been trying to get into a position for umpteen years – he is still working as an English teacher in London and has offered his services for free ven!
Rather educational appreciate it, It looks like your current followers might just want a lot more articles like that continue the good content.