Dr. Cassy Burleson on the Future Journalist

OurBlook Interview with Dr. Cassy Burleson of Baylor University

Technology has impacted the journalism world, including redefining what it means to be a professional journalist. Can you give a modern day definition of journalist?

CB: Today’s journalists are convergent journalists. They can find the story on Twitter, write the story, shoot Flip video, post it on the Internet, upload it to the page ... then go live from the newsroom on the next newscast. And then dialogue with reader responses. We don’t have a 24-hour news cycle. We have to tell it as it happens. Not easy.

What traditional journalism skills should not be lost?

CB: Accuracy, objectivity, creative interviewing, writing and the ability to think on the fly. Journalists have analytical skills and think multi-dimensionally to sort information. Sort of like changing the wing on an airplane when it’s in the air. Story telling skills and an eye for details that lend themselves to the story. A broader world view that can put information into a bigger context.

They still need to know that putting some extra miles on the shoe leather ... both at the computer or out on the street ... is important. And they have to be fast AND good. Not just one or the other. What gets lost is the accuracy because of the speed with which all this has to happen now. Readers want it NOW, live from the scene.

What skills are essential for future journalists that traditional journalists don't have?

CB: Traditional journalists whom we admire had all the same skills really. The technology they used was just different and less complicated. Nelly Bly, Walter Cronkite, Edward R. Murrow, Dan Rather, Bob Woodward, Diane Sawyer, Ken Herman … everyone might have their own list of the greatest.

But there’s one thing different. What’s different is that the same person who used to do one or two jobs now has to be able to do the list I just mentioned ... be endowed with a repertoire of skills. Speaking as someone who started when we were using lead type (I was only 3), we’ve always had to be quick, flexible and have an intense curiosity. We’re backpack journalists now. No limos. No hour lunch.

Actually, I never had either of those. But I still have a backpack.

How does writing for the web, phones, etc. differ from writing a newspaper article?

CB: Well, the writing has to be even shorter and catchier on Twitter, which kind of lends itself more to being able to write advertising copy. So there’s another skill today’s journalists need. We have to grab readers by the hand and hold them. We have to get past the information glut. But since the Web is non-linear, we can have more depth than ever for details, details, details. Space is unlimited out there on the Web.

Do you think the focus on technology and other factors will change the personality or the type of person who is attracted to the journalism field?

CB: No. All good journalists are, at their core, progressive reformers. People who love to be there when history’s being made. Kind of Clark Kent, Lois Lane, Sherlock Holmes types – with a touch of Rambo if you’re a foreign correspondent these days, especially. Honorable journalists have always fought for freedom. Over 800 have been killed in the line of duty since 1992. In Iraq, 141 have been killed, 89 of those murdered, zero cases solved … 100 percent impunity rate.

On a lighter note, we’ve always been techies who just loved those magic de-coder rings and seeing behind the curtain ... and then telling the world so people can make informed decisions. We’re do-gooders at heart. Most people don’t see us that way, especially when we catch them doing something wrong.

Any web tools or sites that you have found to be essential or complimentary to reporting, or journalism in general?

CB: You’re probably going to laugh, but Facebook. And Nexis, which is a database Web tool. Twitter’s coming along. It’s getting there, and I love Google and tools like that if you know what sites are reliable.

One of the web tenets is that information wants to be free. We definitely have seen this come into play with citizen journalism. What advice would you give journalists who are having a hard time understanding web culture and are interested in harnessing the power of citizen journalism?

CB: Good luck with that. We have to find a way to get Web journalism to pay for itself. Citizen journalists seldom have the professional background to be credible. They give journalism a bad name ... and seldom are held accountable. Sadly, the general public doesn’t discern between citizen journalists and professional newsies. Heck, they don’t even know talk show hosts from legitimate news journalists. What a shame. And the fact that news staffs are being cut ... and that the press has lamented the loss of traditional newspapers instead of getting on board with the Web ... has hurt us.

Jobs .. that’s a whole other subject. Research suggests the jobs are there, just in a different place. Nevertheless, we’re going to have to rely on public relations people being legitimate, of which the best already are. That’s who’s supplying quite a lot of the “news.” When publishers gut the staff, you have to rely on news releases. And I teach PR now. Just for that reason. PR folks are going to have to step up to the plate to ensure democracy survives. I don’t know how realistic that is, but hey, long live Don Quixote!

(Dr. Cassy Burleson, a professor in the department of journalism at Baylor University, has degrees from Sam Houston State, Baylor University and the University of Texas, Austin. Her broad range of experiences include time as a newspaper and magazine reporter, photographer, co-author, editor, textbook and curriculum developer and a development officer.)

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Comments (1)

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written by Trista, July 03, 2010

Always believe that good things are possible, and remember that mistakes can be lessons that lead to discoveries. Take your fear and transform it into trust; learn to rise above anxiety and doubt. Turn your “worry hours” into “productive hours”. Take the energy that you have wasted and direct it toward every worthwhile effort that you can be involved in.

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