What Is It Like to Be a Journalist?

Joey does a “teaser” before his segment on FOX 32’s Good Day Chicago, a morning news program. A teaser gives viewers a glimpse of what’s coming up next.

Many people dream about going on television to talk with thousands, or perhaps even millions, of viewers. If you’re a TV news anchor or reporter, you do that every day. The role of journalists is to report news to the rest of the country.

Recently, I spoke with two journalists at Fox 32 Chicago, a local TV station. I was able to ask about their experiences as reporters and get advice for young people who may want to pursue a career in journalism.

“BE A GOOD LISTENER”

Scott Schneider is an anchor on Fox’s Good Day Chicago, a morning news program.

“This job requires you to deal with a wide range of people on a daily basis,” he said. “To be a journalist, you have to be able to talk to people, and you have to be a good listener. Reporting is all about connections, connecting to the person you are interviewing, but also connecting to the audience in general.”

Joey interviews morning anchor Scott Schneider about his experiences in journalism.

EACH DAY IS DIFFERENT

A career in journalism is often exciting because journalists’ jobs are always changing. Each day, reporters have to quickly learn the facts of the top stories and relay the details to viewers. 

As Good Day Chicago producer Nick Mitrovich put it: “The neat thing about being a journalist is, you never live the same day twice. When you come into work, you never know what’s going to happen. All eyes are on the reporters.”

Joey on the set with FOX 32 reporters

BE CURIOUS

News organizations operate around the clock, and many reporters are awake before dawn. Schnieder said that he gets up at 3 a.m. in order to make it to the studio on time for the morning show.

After growing up in Los Angeles, Schneider took his first reporting job at a TV station in West Virginia. He reported on many issues that were new to him. “You have to be prepared to take on new challenges, work very hard, be positive, be smart, read a lot, watch the news a lot,” he said, “and be interested in people, in humanity, and what’s going on in the world around us.”

Mitrovich stressed how important it is for journalists to take advantage of opportunities that arise. “If you’re young and upcoming,” he said, “do something that is going to put you on the map. Don’t pigeonhole yourself into one activity. When it comes to journalism, you have to be a jack of all trades.”