So what exactly is a journalist? Do you simply wake up, power up your Mac (or PC) and start reporting the news of the day? Or is the field a little more complicated, requiring years of schooling, nonpaid internships or early morning coffee runs to earn the prestigious title?
With the wave of the Internet creating platforms for individuals not affiliated with media organizations to voice their perspective and desire to write, a shift in the world of words has begun.
The verdict is still out in determining whether blogs help or hurt the industry. Nowadays it doesn’t take a degree−it takes passion, practice and a WordPress, Tumblr or Blogspot login. The open forum of blogs creates opportunities for untrained writers to develop a niche, an audience and even a paycheck.
Depending on whom you speak with, blogging and journalism are NOT one in the same. Actually, they are viewed as two very distinct entities. A journalist produces articles filled with facts and verified sources leaving the consumer to develop a personal opinion. While blogs, on the other hand, combine fact and opinion mixed with passion.
Media industries do take note on the popularity growth of bloggers. It’s become a trend for powerhouse media corporations to buyout highly reputable blog sites or employ citizen journalists to become content curators for their websites.
Whatever side of the fence you may land, the supreme role of a writer, not just a journalist or just a blogger, is producing content that can empower and inform individuals.