Interview with a journalist

Channel 5 in Ohio is the station that I often visited in the summer to learn as much as I could about the world of Broadcast journalism.  My friend Brandon Hamilton works at the station as a reporter and anchor.  As a favor to me he let me pick his brain and answer some question about the world of journalism.  When asked how to def

ine "good journalism" he said, "good journalism is when you follow Thourougness, Accuracy, Fairness, and Transparency.  

You have to be very open minded in journalism and try to not take a side unless you are on a certain network that allows it.  Journalism is story telling, so you have to able to tell a the story in a way that is understandable and interesting."  I was then curious about what he would say when asked if he thinks the news should be biased.  He answer was perfect I thought. He said, "I think having biased news on certain networks is a good thing.  Everyone has their own opinions and they want to hear information that helps support thei

r opinions, or information that goes against their opinion, just to see what the competition is.  Biased news takes you deeper into the situation rather than working on the surface." The economy is always something on everyones minds these days and luckily Brandon's job hasn't been on the line but he says that, "When it comes to citizen journalism, I feel it is a good way for people to express their opinions, but the audience will never have complete trust or confidence in those individuals there for I think viewers will still turn to a credible source for their news.  As far as ratings go, yes they are dropping, but I think it is good for all journalist because it makes you work so much harder in hopes to pull those v

iewers back in."  Thankfully, I was just accepted into the Broadcast program so I asked him for some advice, and what I should expect going into the world of broadcast, "experience, experience, and experience.  It is so crucial to have working experience in order to go far in this business.  Having a degree is great, but employers are looking for your experience!  Work at a college station, or get a job at a local television station in your area doing anything possible.  Just being in the environment will help.  Also, go into it expecting hard work. This is not an easy job, and it will be very stressful at times!"

Thank you thank you Brandon for all your help!