"Glorified Clark Kent version of newspapers"

Posted: 8 July 2008 | By: Sara Gregory | No Comments »

Today’s a slow news day in Salisbury (the highlight so far was a report on the scanner of gunshots in a home … that turned out to be fireworks). The newsroom is basically empty - just education reporter Sarah, county government reporter Jessie and me.

Sarah came to the Post a few weeks before I did. Now, her old roommate is leaving the paper they worked at for a job (with a higher salary) in PR. This weekend, another friend (who is getting married and moving to Charlotte) announced her plan to leave newspapering for a PR job. Sarah’s a lot like me - hard news junkie - and says she’s in newspapering for the passion, not the money. But we like to eat and sleep under a roof, too.

Sarah: Jessie, have I told you how all my friends are leaving newspapers to go into PR?
Jessie: I would say that they’re smart.
Jessie goes on to explain that the “glorified Clark Kent version of newspapers” has gone by the wayside. Newspapers are like the mom-and-pop grocery stores that were drawn out of business by megastores, or “the giant sailing ships of 150 years ago.” But she doesn’t think news is going to go away. Her theory is that newspapers just need to commit to creating better products. That’s something I think we all agree on. Journalism has always been about providing the best, most thorough information possible, in whatever form it has taken.
Filed under: future, internships | Tags: ,
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