Is being a journalist hard to achieve?

[Aaron]

I am in secondary school at the moment. I realise that careers are quite a way away but I just have two questions. How hard is it to be a journalist and is there anything I can do now that would aid me on the path to becoming a journalist?

Thanks to those who answer. Constructively.

[AM]

It's never too soon to think about what you want to do professionally. If you want to investigate being a journalist there are some things you must consider. 1) Do you like to write and are you good at it? 2) Do you have a curious mind and an investigative personality. 3) Can you meet deadlines. You can begin here and you may end up being a doctor, but it's all worth pursuing--one thing informs the other. For example, there's a doctor on TV (I know his last name is Gupta, can't remember his first, but he's quite famous here in the states and his ethnicity is east Indian). Anyway, he's always on television, giving reports about medical phenomena and explaining health questions. So he is a medical correspondent. My point...Anyone who writes well, can meet deadlines and can get to the bottom of a mystery or complex event, can be a journalist.

Write for your school paper or start your own. My mom always had the idea to start her own neighborhood newspaper. She thought she would just talk to neighbors and report good news. Another thing you have to do to be a good journalist is to read. Journalist are usually very astute when it comes to current events, political and social issues, etc. They also study the arts-music, dance, visual arts, because these are areas that could help a journalist gain special insight into a story. Also, you should know that there are many different types of journalism. There's radio, television and print media, all related to journalism. Magazines are another outlet for a writer/journalist. If you like to talk, radio and television are a good place to try to volunteer or get an internship. And finally, if you like to talk to people, practice doing interviews. When you gather information then write a story about what you've learned. You could start by interviewing the oldest members of your family and asking them about the family's history. Of course your story should be about the good things, unless you want to start a family squabble or a scandal. Best of luck in your pursuits.