Video:Day in the Life: Journalist

SHARE ON                

Transcript:Day in the Life: Journalist

Hi, my name is Ewa Kern-Jedrychowska. I'm a reporter for the Polish Daily News and today I'm going to show you what it's like to be a journalist.

Typical Day of Reporting

In a daily paper it's pretty intense. Most of the time, I have at least one story per day. I cover Metro section. And I cover whatever is happening in New York. Everything that could affect people's life. I wake up every day around 6:30. I start my day by checking my e-mails, my blackberry. Then I turn on the TV and I watch the news. Then I buy a bunch of newspapers like 4 or 5 newspapers. Then I read them on the train. After I get to work, I'm getting an assignment - I'm getting a story to write. This is a daily paper, so I have to write at least one story a day. Today I am going to cover a story about tenant's that were kicked out of the building in Greenpoint, where a lot of the members of our community live.

Preparing to Become a Journalist

I've been a journalist for the last 6 years. I have always liked to read and write. And back in my native, Poland, I worked as an editor and proof reader. And then when I came here, I thought I would like to get a similar job, so I got myself a job at the Polish Daily News. I became a reporter and I realized that being a reporter is just so much more interesting than being an editor, at least for me.

Qualities of a Journalist

You have to really get along well with people. You have to be very sociable because you are hanging out with people all of the time. Just listen patiently and try to structure the interview. It's a job that can not be boring. And what really attracted me to this job was this wonderful opportunity of being able to tell stories of people, ordinary people, who consider themselves ordinary, very often. But they have wonderful stories to tell. And that was a great feeling.

Steps to a Journalism Career

Typical path, for a journalist, was either to go to a journalism school for undergraduate studies or graduate studies, try to write for a college newspaper. And try to do as many internships in the local papers as possible. And then you would probably look for a job in a small newspaper, just a local community paper that would accept you as a person without experience. It really depends what you cover as well, because, if you cover politics your background in political science is really relevant.

The path really depends on what kind of experience you have and where you work. If you're starting at the small publications you probably would expect around 30 thousand dollars. If you go into a bigger publication, then probably, it would start around fifty – sixty thousand dollars.

There is print, there's radio, there's TV, and of course, always developing internet reporting. I'm definitely addicted to my job. It's even weird when I go for vacation. It feels like something is missing. Because I am so used to those tight deadlines. All the time, the pace is very high.

Thanks for watching. To learn more, visit us on the Web at About.com.