by Stanley Teater

Created on: May 24, 2008

A career in broadcast journalism can be fulfilling and well-compensated. It can also be frustrating and poorly paid. It WILL be hard work. During my 35 year career in broadcasting I was never a journalist; my job was not creating newscasts but promoting them. I have worked with literally hundreds of journalists. Some were happy in their jobs. Some were miserable and disillusioned. Most were like the rest of us, just trying to earn a living and keep out of trouble. Here's a brief overview of the kinds of jobs that are available in broadcast journalism today. I'll look just at television, not only because it's what I know best but also because radio journalism is, except for public broadcasting, practically non-existent.

Let's start at the top with the boss, the News Director. The News Director is responsible for everything that happens in the newsroom. When ratings are good they smile a lot. When they're bad they spend a lot of their time justifying their decisions to upper management. They do virtually all the hiring and firing in the newsroom. That makes it a powerful position. But it's also highly stressful. Some of the unhappiest people I knew during my career were news directors who were under the gun, constantly being second guessed and prodded for higher and higher ratings. It's not a job for anyone who's thin-skinned or afraid of conflict. Conflict with the staff, the public and their bosses is a regular part of their day.

Next in line in the pecking order are news anchors. These are the people with perfect hair, straight teeth and, in some instances, high salaries. Chances are the front line anchors (the 6 and 11pm newscasts) make more money than their bosses the news directors. Usually, they have very little to say about what's covered or how it's covered. Their job is to look good, read well and appear friendly yet authoritative. Walter Cronkite called them "news readers". Although some I've worked with were talented journalists most were not. The downside for anchors is that they live and die with ratings and research. If ratings dip their contracts won't be renewed. If the ratings go through the roof then, like star athletes, the power is all theirs when it comes time to negotiate a new contract.

The busiest people in the newsroom are the reporters. Their lives are action packed and often frustrating. Very often they won't know what they'll be covering until they get to work and see the assignment board. They then have to get on the phone and line-up

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