Post ARMmUvIOE8vwTQtgP2 by dannyjpalmer@infosec.exchange
(DIR) More posts by dannyjpalmer@infosec.exchange
(DIR) Post #ARMZYxqDPE347gJbyy by dannyjpalmer@infosec.exchange
2023-01-06T09:59:27Z
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Just seen a 'journalists are bad and should feel bad' style post on here for the first time.I guess some negative things have carried over from the other place. 😬​It's fascinating to me how the public perspective of who a journalist is and what they do is so out of sync with what actually happens.Do people look at high salary TV news anchors or newspaper editors and think that anyone who is a journalist or reporter is part of some elite club, when for most, the industry is notorious for being underpaid?Because I can tell you, when I was in my first job on 15k a year and permanently in my overdraft, I definitely wasn't feeling elite!
(DIR) Post #ARMZYyOxK3pzrQZM8G by zleap@qoto.org
2023-01-06T10:11:36Z
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@dannyjpalmer I feel the Fediverse could be an opportunity to promote Journalism properly, what do you do? and how? what makes good journalism? (probably similar to good science). If people know what makes something 'good' or ideally' 'excellent' then they can start to challenge and recognise bad journalism.Perhaps we need to get back to basics, forget university courses, if you want to be a journalist, you get a job at a low level in a news paper office and shadow people and learn on the job and in the field. You earn credentials and respect by actually writing good, well referenced articles.
(DIR) Post #ARMavBmuKiDvhcvhp2 by dannyjpalmer@infosec.exchange
2023-01-06T10:26:46Z
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@zleap While a good idea in theory, on the low level shadowing thing, that kind of leaves journalism only open to people who can afford to take the hit of not earning for a long time - in an industry that at at least when it comes to the mainstream and national press already has an issue with feeling like it's only accessible to posh people! I prefer taking the time out to write in-depth, well-researched features, they're my favorite thing to write!
(DIR) Post #ARMb0BFdktoFUDkW0W by EddieMcCabe@mastodon.world
2023-01-06T10:27:43Z
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@zleap @dannyjpalmer I agree it would be good to get an insight into what makes good journalism, and how journalists develop.I'm less convinced that people will feel empowered to challenge any kind of journalism. I think this is partially at the root of much recent stupidity. Journalists (in theory) have this public platform to espouse positions, there is no equivalent for people to pushback with the same public profile. I am not equivalent to the Daily Mail in reach for example.
(DIR) Post #ARMmUupJyDgJ1HIT5s by HauntedOwlbear@eldritch.cafe
2023-01-06T12:01:32Z
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@dannyjpalmer @zleap the answer there is a living wage for juniors.I'm biased because I started with a livable entry level position rather than having a degree, but it's been my observation that limiting the trade to only those who have a professional qualification has gone hand in hand with increased class stratification, particularly among staffers.It's not causal, nor the fault of those being hired, but the double whammy of a working culture that wants degrees and then internships on top feels more exclusionary than most of the alternatives.
(DIR) Post #ARMmUvIOE8vwTQtgP2 by dannyjpalmer@infosec.exchange
2023-01-06T12:07:53Z
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@HauntedOwlbear @zleap I honestly don't know how I would have got started down this career path if I was doing it now.And even in 2023, it's not unusual to see job postings which want 'experienced' journalists for roles in London which barely scrape over 20k.When I was on 25k in London 10 years ago it was a struggle, let alone how it would be now on even less.
(DIR) Post #ARMmUvyvfyxebMnei0 by zleap@qoto.org
2023-01-06T12:36:32Z
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@dannyjpalmer @HauntedOwlbear Expecting people to have a degree, years of experience for low salary seems to be quite common (gets commented on LinkedIn) we need to change how we recruit people, the employers who are sensible will get the best, the rest with unrealisic want lists will hopefully continue to struggle and eventually fall out of existance.
(DIR) Post #ARMnd4ZRj5g1VjKDHU by HauntedOwlbear@eldritch.cafe
2023-01-06T12:39:55Z
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@dannyjpalmer @zleap ikr?Both wages and commissioned rates for the rank and file of the industry have remained static since the mid-90s.Not even static allowing for the inflation. Just... static.It's really pronounced in the UK, but I work across several countries, and it's a global issue.It's one of the long list of reasons that I'm doing less journalism and more stuff in development and other writing trades.Say what you like about the video games industry, but at least they don't ghost you if you quote adequate compensation for the actual time involved in a job.
(DIR) Post #ARMnd58BdvSxFTZxQm by zleap@qoto.org
2023-01-06T12:49:12Z
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@HauntedOwlbear @dannyjpalmer Socia media seems to have a huge impact on journalism and the compensation people get for their work. People don't like paywalls but perhaps what needs to happen is transparency as to how much the journalist (who is out there facing danger in some cases) is actually compensated.I think recent course cases have started to highlight the problem, with the games industry games are quite expensive, but the work needed to produce games is also highly skilled (as is journalism).The difference is a news paper costs <£2 a game will cost you more than >£20 for example, so the income from 1 game is huge based on millions of sales. I think we are starting to see people demanding not only a wage that allows them to live but also a reflection of their skill level, taking into account how hard it is find people with the right skills.Perhaps this is the start of a fight against capitalism, where the owners make billions when the people doing the work stuggle to make ends meet.
(DIR) Post #ARMnoRvTETC18C3FzM by HauntedOwlbear@eldritch.cafe
2023-01-06T12:51:16Z
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@zleap @dannyjpalmer sigh Since we appear to be on the descent towards a quasi-feudal iteration of parasitic capitalism, it seems sadly unlikely, though.The job situation in journalism as an industry, like many others, spinning on an axis strung between bullshit jobs (c.f. Graeber) and the reserve army of labour (see Marx, building upon the work of Engels).The job spec and conditions are patterned to make individual workers as replaceable as possible, and ensure that they're aware of it.The role of workers within the fourth (and indeed fifth) estate is further thrown into sharp relief by the relative (vast) social heft of the companies that employ them.