What I have learned about journalism this semester

Before enrolling in JOUR 420, among a few other journalism classes, this semester, I had the naive idea that journalism is all about being a good writer. And boy, was I wrong. Granted, a journalist must be a good writer, but I have learned there is so much more to journalism than just being a 'good writer.' These days, a journalist must know how to tell a story visually, the difference between online and paper stories, how to make an ethical decision, and yes - how to do math!

I will never forget the day I realized that people really don't read an entire story in a newspaper. All this time in high school, I had this assumption that people read a story thinking about how the writer built the introduction and body, as well as the vocabulary used. But, no. People want the main idea of the story and then move on. They want visuals that help tell the story in a compelling way.

As far as editing goes, an editor must be able to make quick decisions and be ready to defend it. After learning about headlines and cutlines, I realized that headline must be carefully constructed. For example, I had always thought of "Man bites dog" as a headline - simple and easy to write. But there is so much more to take into consideration. It must be short and to the point, but must also tell the story. In addition, online stories must be taken into consideration when writing a headline. The editor must think about what most people would seach for in a search engine to ensure easy access to the story.

Yes, I have learned not only how to be a better writer and how to hone my grammar skills, but I have also learned that journalists must be a 'jack of all trades.' It's a little differernt from what they show in the movies.