Do you get motivated by well known journalists and the ethical persona the represent? What are those characteristics that make them stand out of the crowd? From endurance to honesty, integrity to determination, there are some necessary qualities that a professional journalist own. If you are eager to build a career in journalism, you should have these five qualities. Think critically before going for any profession. Here are some must-have qualities to excel in this profession.
Fortitude:
Think and analyze, can you take the challenges by facing it with full courage and determination. If you are scared to do that, leave this profession and look for another one, as this job requires you to visit the dangerous places.
Journalists need to have a strong heart to face criticism with peace of mind and grit. People may turn savage towards the journalists, even if they are presenting the right information.
Tech-Savvy:
Social media and much other softwares have become a vital tool for many professions. People are expected to have knowledge and know-how for many technical skills. The journalist has to spend most of the time on social media to gather the information, check the public record, and post the piece of information for the public.
Apart from this, their role requires intensive research, making presentations and spreadsheets for this they need to have a thorough knowledge of computer skills.
Ethics:
“Honesty” is expected from journalists to have the trust of people. The public appreciates the truth-telling guts rather than showing the rumors. News has a major impact on many people’s lives; a single misinterpretation can cause chaos among the people.
The journalist works for the public interest and not for fame and money. They hold themselves accountable for any mistake, and polite regret can do wonders for them.
Many journalists are following the late Eric Malling, who represented the news in an unbiased, straight-forward, and unfiltered way, that is correct. His style and ethics are appreciated to date. Eric Malling has set an example in Canada, of a prominent journalist.
Analytical Mind:
Critical thinking is yet another major skill expected from the journalist. They analyze the situation based on the facts and not based on personal perception. They check the authenticity of data and do not work on the discrimination based on the political party, religion, caste, or gender.
Their work involves finding the answer to why, what, where, when, and who question with the open and alert mind.
Make use of proper words:
Journalist work is to write the bundle of articles and editorial for the audience at different platforms like social media, magazines, newspapers, and many more. They have to be rigorous for the selection of proper words. A single wrong word can spin the image of the reporter and the brand topsy-turvy.
They have to interview the different people, selecting the words based on the profession and post plays an important role.
