I don't have the means to go back to school, but I have been working to create opportunities for myself in the field. I am the host of a public-access news magazine show, I freelance for local papers, and I take on local hosting jobs to build my skills.
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I have tried networking, but I feel like all the opportunities are only available to either students or seasoned journalists. Can you help point me in the right direction?
Lysa-naomi
Schools and workplaces are ideal for networking, but there are several opportunities open to you, too.
Professional associations: Almost every aspect of journalism has an association for the people who practice it. There also are groups for journalists who share connections by geography or ethnicity. I suggest you check out some organizations, join one and, most importantly, become active in it and contribute your time and energies to help the organization's members. Some of them will become part of your network. The
American Journalism Review has
a pretty good list of them. Many associations have annual conferences that are excellent networking opportunities. Don't overlook state press associations -- there's probably one near you -- that can help you make some contacts.
Online networking: Check out
Sree Sreenivasan's
Poynter article about
LinkedIn, a networking site for professionals. It is free to join. I joined, having read Sree's article, and I am finding that it is leading me to people I had never heard of.
Take a class: I understand you can't invest in a whole journalism degree, but a much smaller investment, in a three-day workshop, can expose you to instructors and classmates who can quickly become part of your network. We are just coming up on half a dozen very affordable workshops being held in different regions. They are the
National Writers Workshops. Investigative Reporters and Editors also does a lot of
training that individuals can afford.
Coming Wednesday: Wildly negative behavior in her newsroom discourages her, but she is being told it's normal.
