Versatility is key

The first thing to understand about the broadcasting industry is that no one can afford to only know one aspect of the business. "If I were coming out of school today and wanted to get into TV news, I would focus on being very versatile," says Kevin Keeshan, vice president and news director at KGO. "I think somewhere down the line there's going to be a place for what is called a one-man band, where they go out and shoot, edit, write and produce everything." Students working toward a journalism degree should focus on getting experience in everything from producing to writing and editing scripts to operating a camera — and this all before they search for their first job.

Dan Rosenheim, vice president of news for KPIX-CBS, agrees that knowing a single craft very well no longer cuts it in broadcasting, partially because of financial strains on the industry. "Journalists that are multi-skilled are in high demand, and people are expected to perform a broader range of tasks than has been the case in the past," he says. "And school is a good way to learn that, and to get a foot in the door by getting internships."

Internships are indispensable

Keeshan encourages journalism students to seek out as many internships as possible to get experience in how different news organizations work. "That's how you start your track record," he says. "You develop a reputation for coming early, for staying late, for asking good questions, being committed. That's invaluable when that first employer is looking for anything to show them you're someone they should take a chance on."

In the Bay Area, TV stations currently offering internships include NBC Bay Area, KPIX, KOFY-TV, KDTV-TV, KGO-TV/ABC7, KRON-TV, KTVU-TV and KTXL-TV. Most stations offer internships only to college students, so getting a degree is especially critical. Both Rosenheim and Keeshan express skepticism at the likelihood of getting into the broadcasting industry without a college degree in journalism or a related field.

Start in a small market

Broadcasting hopefuls can expect a fairly nomadic existence for the first few years of their careers, since most will begin in a small market like Eureka or Chico for a low salary before moving up to the big leagues. "The typical career path, they'll go to work at midnight and get off at 8 a.m., and they'll do that for a year before getting a better time slot," says Keeshan. From there, they'll progress to better time slots and better markets, but the move upward takes a long time. "For a producer, you can be in a big market like San Francisco in five years," he says. "For a reporter, maybe seven to 10 years."

As a rule in broadcasting, the larger the market, the larger the salary. The initial salary for new hires in all broadcasting fields tends to be in the low $20,000s. An experienced news director averages about $90,000 in salary, but the news directors of the top 10 markets have a median of $150,000. A reporter averages about $30,000 across the board, but in the top 10 markets that number is more like $60,000-70,000. Those with the skills to keep climbing the ladder will definitely see their hard work pay off.

It's a difficult career track, but Keeshan is quick to note that putting in those dues means increased job security and staying power. "Those who have the drive to endure small markets for low pay and grueling working conditions, they're the ones who'll keep moving up," he says. "There's just no substitute for time in the saddle."

Think dynamically

Students hoping to position themselves above and beyond their peers should focus on new innovations in online and digital media. "We don't know what form journalism will take five years from now," Rosenheim admits. "This is a dynamic craft. Even as we need to preserve fundamental news values of timeliness and accuracy and honesty and accessibility and partiality, we have to be open to non-traditional ways of distributing the information we gather." Those with solid Internet skills have a huge advantage, as broadcasting turns toward online outlets to produce segments and keep viewer interest without padding their bottom line. "We envision the demand for news increasing, so the question is how to do more news without increasing our costs," Keeshan says.

It's still about people

Those with an interest in broadcasting may need to know how to do everything themselves, but people skills are still a huge part of success in the industry. "You've got to be somebody who understands teamwork and can be a team player, because it is such a collaborative effort every day," explains Keeshan. One underestimated asset in broadcasting is sales skills. "You have to sell yourself to sources and contacts that you're somebody they can trust, that you're somebody who does their homework, does everything they can to get a story right," he says.

Rosenheim notes that empathy is also a huge part of broadcasting. "Curiosity, tenacity and empathy," he says. "You need to not be cavalier about this business, you have the ability to affect a lot of people, and you can hurt people very badly." That power to affect people's lives also works in the other direction. "Knowing that when you do stories that shine a light, that spark a debate of public interest that results in effecting change for the better, there's nothing really quite like it," says Keeshan. "There's no other business where you can feel on a day-to-day basis that that's possible."

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