"Journalism is dead." "You’ll never make a dime." "If you aren't born with a golden Rolodex, don't bother." If you’ve so much as whispered your interest in a newsroom career, you’ve probably been hit with these gloomy warnings. Usually, they come from well-meaning relatives or cynical ex-reporters who haven't updated their resumes since the late nineties. It is enough to make any aspiring storyteller want to pack it in before they’ve even bought their first notebook.
But before you start applying for that "safe" corporate job you’ll hate, let’s pull back the curtain. Yes, the media world has been turned upside down, but the core mission—poking the bear, informing the public, and holding power to account—is thriving. The industry isn't dying; it’s just shedding its old skin. As the legendary satirist H.L. Mencken once quipped, "The public has an insatiable curiosity to know everything, except what is worth knowing." Your job is to prove him wrong, and you can't do that if you're paralyzed by myths.
Myth 1: The "Dying Field" Fallacy
This is the big one. People see local papers thinning out and assume the whole profession is on life support. The reality? We are living through an explosion of storytelling. While traditional print has struggled, we’ve seen the rise of powerhouse non-profits like ProPublica, which wins Pulitzers by focusing solely on deep-dive investigative work that changes laws.
From specialized newsletters on Substack to massive data teams at The New York Times and The Guardian, the "newsroom" has simply moved. As media futurist Amy Webb often reminds us, the future isn’t about saving the physical paper—it’s about the evolution of the story itself. If you can tell a story people need to hear, there is a place for you.
Myth 2: You Have to Be the Next Hemingway
There’s a lingering idea that if you aren't a literary genius, you won't make it. In the modern newsroom, "brilliant writing" is just one tool in the kit. Editors are now just as hungry for "multimedia threats"—people who can crunch a spreadsheet of city budget data, record a clean interview for a podcast, or cut a compelling 60-second video for social media.
Some of the best journalists in the business aren't poets; they are relentless diggers. A veteran editor at Reuters once put it bluntly to a group of interns: "At the end of the day, it's about getting the story right and getting it out. Whether you do that with text, video, or a chart depends on what the audience needs."
Myth 3: It’s All About "Who You Know"
Does a connection help? Sure. But journalism is a results-based business. A "rich uncle" in the industry might get your email opened, but he won't keep you in the job if you can't hit a deadline or find a source.
Early in your career, "scrappiness" beats a handshake every time. A killer pitch or a blog where you’ve broken local news will get an editor’s attention faster than a vague referral. As a former Associated Press bureau chief once shared during a lecture, "Every great journalist I know got their start by being a nuisance—showing up, proving they could get the facts, and working harder than the person next to them."
Myth 4: The "Starving Artist" Label
You won't get rich overnight, but the idea that journalism is a one-way ticket to poverty is a tired trope. The secret today is specialization. Generalists may struggle, but reporters who understand cybersecurity, health policy, or climate tech are in high demand and command serious salaries.Financial journalist Felix Salmon famously noted that journalism isn't a "poverty trap"—it's a value proposition. If you provide unique, verified information that people can't get anywhere else, the market will find a way to pay you for it.
Conclusions
The media landscape is messy, loud, and constantly changing, but it is also endlessly exciting. Don’t let the ghosts of the "good old days" scare you off. The journalism career of 2025 doesn’t look like a 1940s movie with fedoras and cigarette smoke, and that’s a good thing. It’s digital, it’s diverse, and it is more essential to democracy than ever before.