Is Journalism Dead?

Not according to the panellists at the recent #Futurising conference. Tony Johnston, of the Press Association, believes that there has never been a more exciting time to go into journalism as a career. This was echoed by the panellists, especially Colette Hume, the Wales correspondent for BBC News. She said a TV news reporter now has to not simply report the news, but write copy for the web, perhaps even record a special version of the news bullet for the web page.

One thing that came over loud and clear to anyone seeking employment in this tough-to-break-into field was the message, "Be persistent". Work on a student newspaper. Write your own blog. Even offer to make the tea (in exchange for being given five minutes to pitch your story idea). Take the initiative.

A useful website mentioned by Tony is that of the National Council for the Training of Journalists, which features a results section so that you can compare the results achieved by students of particular courses in different institutions.

From left to right: Ryan Parry, Cara Simpson, Colette Hume, Tony Johnston