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Preparing
Health, Medical and Science Journalists for the Future |
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2005 | 2004 | 2003
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Preparing for the Field: Career Advice from Media Professionals
How to best prepare for journalism careers in the print and
electronic news media as specialists in health, medical and
science coverage; strategies for getting practical experience
through internships and field work; tips on applying for jobs,
and opportunities in the emerging newer media, especially in
the world of cyberspace and the Internet, received prime attention
during the first three years of the seminars. The following
are some of the highlights drawn from various program participants.
Dan Rutz of CNN, when hiring, looks for a well-rounded
individual with a television background, and urges applicants
to write a good letter free of spelling errors or any off-putting,
inappropriate tone, while at the same time not being afraid
to market their skills and experience.
Be persistent but realistic in followup calls; provide updated
phone numbers in case jobs develop further into the future,
and be sure the work portfolio illustrates full potential. Rutz
has never forgotten his own experience of breaking into CNN,
and tries to answer all applicants and give them prompt and
candid responses. His own previous medical reporting experience
was a factor in his initial CNN hire, as well as personal contacts
(generated by names through his wife's alumnae journalism school
newsletter).
Seek out entry level jobs at smaller television stations to
get experience in editing, writing, reporting and even camera
experience. Emphasize medical/health reporting skills and background
but realize that most smaller stations need general assignment
staff, although they might be interested in your doing some
health/medical coverage as part of other job duties over time.
Think out whether you can put aside the health specialty interests
and be satisfied with general reporting in the first stages.
Be careful not to jump too soon from job to job because employers
are wary of candidates with a record of short stays, and worry
the applicant might have a problem holding on to a job.
Realize there are many new local shows at television stations
morning, noon and night, which may provide opportunities, and
also consider cable outlets and interactive news ventures where
a reporter with writing and editing skills may increasingly
sit at his or her desk, report, write and edit in a world of
digital video that is emerging.
There was a spurt of hiring at CNN, he said, to fill online
service startup ventures with staff able to handle tight deadlines,
use research libraries and get stories out in a hurry. The same
happened when CNN started a new financial news venture.
Rutz said there are few entry level jobs at CNN, though there
may be some "gofer" jobs. Consider doing local internships,
but look for positions that provide practical experience and
not just filing papers. He draws from a strong internal talent
pool at CNN and, especially in a time of tight budgets, preferred
to hire production assistants who could grow into producer positions.
Dr. Bob Arnot, formerly of CBS, said those with experience
in print journalism and who can write well have an advantage
in seeking a broadcast position. But these people must also
master how the medium of television, with its pictures and graphics
potential, can tell a major story in a short time span. He writes
his own copy, designs his own graphics and is a proponent of
interactive media in which computers and the Internet are part
of the future candidate's job skills.
He predicts a whole new universe of science journalism careers
and urges journalism schools to train their graduates to create
multimedia packages with text, video and sound-"it completely
changes the way you write and report." He also wants to see
the candidates come in with a strong background in health/medical
statistics and methodology, and favors journalists who specialize
in the health field, rather than general assignment reporters.
Develop strong journalism skills as well as studies in broader
liberal arts majors and learn biostatistics; research methods;
how to get information from primary sources, and very importantly-write
everyday: notes, scripts, articles whatever. It was a humbling
experience for him to move from the medical profession into
the demands of a fulltime correspondent, but the journalism
skills can be mastered with diligence.
Lane Venardos, the CBS Vice President for news and special
projects, says, "Writing for television is a skill that is resting
somewhere in the Incas, and not being passed down from generation
to generation. But more and more, the people I see would like
to be on television or produce for television, but don't have
a clue about serious writing for television.
"And I think this art which is about to be lost needs to be
regenerated somehow-just the capacity for creating simple declarative
sentences that tell the who, what, where, when and why: the
classic journalism schooling. You need to know that these things
are not getting through like they should get through, and I
think that the premium is being put on something other than
writing."
Christine Gorman of Time magazine urges students
to get as much science as possible while preparing for journalism
careers in science or medicine, hone their writing skills and
purge the writing of scientific jargon. "Trust your instincts
about future careers and pay your dues in apprenticeships,"
she says, "but be creative if you can about how you pay your
dues."
Jobs in the future will include the traditional print and broadcast
ones, but she also suggests considering things such as targeted
newsletters, electronic bulletin boards, and online services.
She favors study programs with an interdisciplinary focus of
journalism schools working with science and medical programs
at the universities.
Students should study in library science programs to better
understand research procedures, and uses of databases and search
strategies to acquire the needed information. She urges students
to do community work to get a better sense of their future readership
or audiences.
Hiring is tight, and she advises the students to be flexible
and master a wide variety of journalistic skills, and even if
focused on print as a career, get additional experience in the
wire services, television or radio.
She began as a high school science teacher, but a train ride
to Washington brought her in contact with a Johns Hopkins faculty
member who steered her toward a science writing program at his
university. When she went to Time magazine, she prepared
for her science writing job by analyzing every science and medical
story in the magazine, every pharmaceutical story in the business
section, and soon found editors coming to her for her expertise.
Eventually, she wrote science stories herself, revelling in
the chance to interact with great scientific minds and Nobel
prize winners.
During a visit to Time magazine, an impromptu discussion
began among other Time staffers who stopped by to talk with
the student winners and visiting faculty. Charles Alexander,
Time's Science Editor, said major science growth areas
are in health, computers and cyberspace, and that science writing
often generates some of the most popular covers that Time magazine
runs. When he is hiring staff, Alexander looks for someone who
is a good writer, but not necessarily over-specialized in science
and able "to take what the scientists have learned, and make
it accessible, interesting and really exciting to the reader."
Alexander said he once taught science in high school and is
glad he has the grounding in it, "but the important thing is
how well you write and communicate and if you understand it
totally. That helps you writing the story because you have to
explain it to yourself and figure it out. It makes you better
able to explain it to readers."
Alexander turned to Professor Kenneth Goldstein of Columbia
University and said the good thing about Goldstein's course
is that you don't need a science background to take it, "You
just have to have an interest. And one of the things his course
does is to give you a sense of the excitement of science, and
another is it requires you do a lot of writing."
One of Time magazine's finest science writers who took
Goldstein's course is Michael D. Lemonick, who told the
students that when he started out he asked people how to break
into science and was frustrated when they said there was no
clear path. Now that he is in it, he confirms amusedly, there
is, in fact, no clear single pathway. He does know that he delights
in writing about science: it is the subject that most motivates
his desire to understand and explain things to others, and it
is invaluable that scientists willingly cooperate with him and
explain their work to him. He does not feel he needed a science
degree to do what he does.
Lemonick said to push your job application to the top of the
pile, get experience writing for professional publications even
as a student. He started as a freelance stringer at a newspaper
of 60,000, covering school board meetings, then talked the Sunday
magazine editor into giving him feature assignments. Lemonick
made a job contact through Goldstein's science writing class.
Janice Castro, a science writer at Time magazine
who covered health care reform and also wrote a book about it,
headed up Time's "Pathfinder" online experiment. After
the students saw a demonstration of the online system, she provided
career advice. It is important to keep asking questions until
you understand the subject, and to keep the writing clear and
understandable. She advises students to get reporting experience
before moving to online media careers. |
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