By Tony DeMars, Texas A&M University-Commerce
The mission of the AEJMC Internships and Careers Interest Group is to research and discuss how JMC educators can help college students get into media and media-related careers after graduation. In tough economic times, this may be even more problematic than usual. Even worse, as we struggle through a tough economy, we also struggle with what mass media has become and will become.
How are media companies and job options changing? We all know legacy media are undergoing significant changes. Newspapers continue to struggle, in part because of how citizens access news and in part because of a loss of traditional revenue sources. Local market TV stations are likewise finding competition and technology issues eroding their audience. A recent college graduate’s experience is one good example of today’s realities. This student completed a degree in broadcast journalism about three years ago and was hired into a reporting position in a medium/small market, then moved within just over a year to a medium market, then to a Top 10 market. This upward movement within such a short period of time represents how much faster good TV news talent can move up today. She now sees an even more drastic reality, reporting that her station has laid off several good people in recent months. Further, while she has never had to one-man band herself, the last three reporters hired at her station are all one man band reporters—making one-third of her salary—and are much younger. The newest hire had just recently graduated from college. Again, this is in a Top 10 TV market.
In recent years, mass communication programs have been trying to redesign their curriculum to deal with ‘convergence.’ The focus was on how traditional media were working with each other and with Internet sites for new partnerships in newsgathering and distribution. Now, it has become obvious that there is much more going on than that. We have moved from the ‘audience’ using the media in a ‘lean back’ style to having ‘users’ involved in a ‘lean forward’ style. News or entertainment content creators no longer need traditional media outlets to get content to an audience. Educators and administrators in journalism and mass communication programs know this. What we may not know, here in the middle of the paradigm change, is how to adjust what we teach and how we advise our students toward getting into internships and careers.
The reality is, there still are plenty of internships and media jobs available, but the skills expected of graduating students and the places where they might be working are evolving. Media managers note that new hires need to be able to handle a wide variety of tasks and be very technology and computer savvy. Yet, these same managers also remind us that the basics are important. We should still be emphasizing good writing in mass communication programs. We should still help students understand the importance of networking and paying their dues. Managers still expect employees who are self-motivated and have a good attitude. In a time where there is a sense among educators that students coming into college sometimes expect a fun, easy job that makes a lot of money, media jobs are looking for people who can easily manage a variety of duties and put in a productive workday. The starting jobs may not be at a lower level than in the past in smaller markets, but salaries are clearly declining in larger markets, and work expectations are become more demanding. Maybe the concern should not be how many people can get jobs. Maybe the concern should be how many good students will want to do more work for less pay.
Tony Demars is an Associate Professor & Director, Radio & Television Division at Texas A&M University-Commerce.