How to Become a Journalist?

The world is full of news. There are big meetings between Presidents, Prime Ministers, and other envoys, and there are debates about moral issues, acts by citizens, decisions by governments, news about the latest movie, and admissions and results.

Every event in our day-to-day life is recorded and produced for us. These are a league of humans who have taken it upon themselves to bring news together, and by doing so inform, educate and influence society. These are journalists, who take every day of their life to reach out to the truth and put it in front of the eyes of the general public.

With the embrace of the digital platform, the importance of media has grown, along with the trend among youth toward journalism. Every day, thousands of new mediums of mass communication are emerging in the country. There are many opportunities for journalism in Newspapers, Magazines, Television, Radio, and Social Media platforms.

How to Become a Journalist in 2023? — How to Become a Journalist?

This article is being presented in view of the increasing passion among the youth for journalism. In this article, all the information is provided about the Scope, Career in Journalism, Opportunities in Journalism, Types of Journalism, the Top Journalism Institutes in India, etc.

Types of Journalism

News deals with Hard News and Soft News. These are based on the kinds of information provided for the particular news piece. Let us understand different types of journalism.

1. Investigative Journalism
2. Crime Journalism
3. Business Journalism
4. Political Journalism
5. Education Journalism
6. Lifestyle Journalism
7. Sports Journalism
8. Entertainment Journalism
9. Cultural Journalism
10. Travel Journalism
11. Environment Journalism
12. Defense Journalism
13. Fashion Journalism

Different mediums of Journalism

With the increase in the number of mediums of Journalism, there are varied forms of Journalism as well. It started out as Pamphlets and Newspapers, which helped a lot in many revolutions around the world.

Following this, Radio and Television and later on, the Internet Age pillared a totally new set of Journalists, where even the citizens can use their power.
Mainly, there are three mediums of Journalism, i.e.

Digital Journalism (Websites/Social Media)
Print Journalism (Newspapers/Magazines/Journals)
Broadcast Journalism (TV/Radio)

Who Should Become a Journalist?

If you have a burning passion to speak the truth, put and go after stories, you might have a good future in the field.

But to be a journalist in the real sense, you will have to follow a few steps, and decide on a few things that will help you understand if the path is best for you or not.

What journalism requires the most is; talents and skills to provide the masses with different perspectives about one specific topic.

By doing so, they have to let the public decide on the issue. Moreover, journalists will be exposed to situations that might play with their emotions. Many believe that one needs this basic instinct for emotions while many disagree.

What one must keep in the mind is that his/her voice will be what thousands will be listening to, so whatever decision they take, they need to do the right one.

A journalist will be facing riots, battles, wars, and many uncomfortable situations. If one has the courage to face such situations, then one should move ahead with their decision.

Skills Required to Become a Journalist

The first step will be to sharpen your writing and speaking skills. You will need them a lot throughout your journey.

You also need to focus on your Current Affair Knowledge as you will be presenting opinions and providing specifics of many events. If you plan to move ahead in such a career, you better start early. Other skills that are required to become a journalist are listed below:

Great Communication Skill
Excellent writing and speaking skills
Should have proper attention skills
Research skills
Knowledge of journalism
Deep news sense
Confidence
Perseverance
Interpersonal skills
Shorthand writing skill

What are the teps to Become a journalist?

In terms of Academics, you can take up Journalism Courses, irrespective of the stream you choose for your class 12th Board Examinations. Though many students go for Arts, as subjects like Literature, Political Science, and Economics, these subjects help in developing skills that will be useful later on.

You can opt for a Bachelor's or Undergraduate Course in Journalism and Mass Communication to study various theories of communication, understand the need and use of various media, and various techniques of reporting and editing.

If your interest in Journalism remains, then you can definitely go for a Master's course, where you will gain more knowledge and will get to know about various other areas that are related to Journalism like Advertising, Broadcasting, Public Relations, Media Studies, etc.

Also Read: Free Online Course On Advertising & Public Relations By Jamia Millia Islamia

Profession

You will learn the practicalities of Journalism once you are on the field and covering news. You will have to start as a trainee and do the basic work. You will move forward to become a Staff Reporter, a Principle Reporter, then a Senior Reporter, a Correspondent, a Chief Reporter, and a Special Representative.

As time goes you will find yourself climbing the ladder up to become a senior journalist. This will require a lot of experience and the work you have done in the past will also count.

The first step will be to sharpen up your writing and speaking skills. You will need them a lot through out your journey.

You also need to focus on your current affair knowledge as you will be presenting opinions and providing specifics of many events. If you plane to move ahead in such a career, you better start early.

Advertising: Career Opportunities and Scope Advertising: Career Opportunities and Scope

Career Opportunities as a Journalist

The most sought-after careers are being a reporter and finally an editor and a news anchor. But along with them, you can also take up the job of a Cameraman, Photojournalist, Foreign Correspondent, Social Media Journalist, and Broadcast Journalist. You can also take up the career of a designer, as layout designers for newspapers and graphic designers, for electronic media are always needed.

Looking For A Career in Photography? Here's All You Need To Know Looking For A Career in Photography? Here's All You Need To Know

Salary of an Indian Journalist?

The average salary that is offered to a journalist is Rs. 3,30,000 per year. This will move with the number of years one spends as a journalist and as the experience of a person increases, their pay scale will increase as well.

How much will it Cost to Study Journalism in India?

In India, there are many recognized universities, colleges, and institutions that provide full-time or part-time journalism courses. Undergraduate journalism courses in India will cost you around 50,000 to 5 lakhs for the duration of 3 years.

And for Post Graduation or Master's, you can expect a cost between INR 15,000 - 2,80,000 for the duration of 1 or 2 years.