There are in every generations, people whose chief
pleasure. From as soon as they are able to write, is to express their ideas in
words. Boys and girls take out exercise books from their pockets and inscribe
stories, plays or poems in the style which, at that stage of their development,
most appeals to them. Later, their chief ambition is to see the works of their
pen in print, either in the school magazine or in the local paper. It is these
people who look forward with delight to journalism as a career.
Those who aspire to power could hardly find any
profession which would give their ambition more scope. Even the most influential
of statesmen is dependent on the support of the electorate. And if he is not
returned to power by his constituents, he can know nothing. But a journalist
can continue to sway men’s opinions h the power of the printed word for as long
as he can get a publisher or a newspaper editor to print what he writes.
Then again, journalism has an infinite number of’
facets; on car write on anything from philosophy to prize fighting, from nuclear
physics to nudism. There is always somebody who will be interested if you have
something original to say and can say t in persuasive terms.
The greatest difficulty in the career of journalism
lies in what is known as “getting a foot in.” I here are so many people who
think they have a flair for writing, and so few eiders who agree that their
flair is worth cultivating. Some young people concentrate on the news side of journalism.
They keep their eyes and ears open for anything that is likely to find a place
in the news of the day. And take care to be the first to inform the local newspaper.
They learn to develop a sixth sense which leads them to the scene of motor-
accidents or fires, or the. Return of longs lost heirs or the probable marriage
film starts. They cultivate a highly colored vocabulary. And learn to know the
set phrases by which the sensation seeking public expects to be informed. Soon,
they can turn out accuses of flower shows, prize giving, weddings and court cases
as swiftly as if they ‘‘ere turning the handle of a mincing machine. But, such glibness
though possibly gratifying at first, does not lead very far, and its possessor
finds himself doomed to permanent anonymity as “Our reporter”. No true
journalist would be content with this.
The second method of entry is far more difficult,
and very few aspirants finally reach success. It consists in careful and
exhaustive study of the subject in which they would be journalist is most
interested, and very stems training in writing. This study evolves years of
hard work, often at a university, and then the student attempts to join the
staff of a newspaper of good standing where his expert knowledge will be
appreciated.
This path into the world of writers is naturally
comparatively untrained, for only the best succeed in finding any place at all.
But for those who do there are great possibilities. Many of the most
influential men in the world today have begun their careers in this way. And
they can claim with the poets and music makers :
“We are the movers and shakers
Of the world for ever, it seems.”