I finally got a reasonably enjoyable and well-paying job in my field!

[Adam Strange]

I’m employed! I interviewed for a section editor position at a paper in Houston and got the call yesterday! I’m moving to the state that leads the nation in oil production, cattle ranching and chainsaw massacres!

The paper is good, the staff is almost entirely under 30 and the atmosphere is incredibly laidback. “Interviewing” at this place apparently consists of taking the candidate to a multitude of bars on the company charge card. My roommate thought I was crazy for not wearing a tie. Everyone in the office was in cut-offs, T-shirts and flip-flops. I would have been safe without pants.

Plus, they took me on the Republican Scandals Tour of Houston. “There’s Tom DeLay’s office.” “There’s the former Enron building.” “There’s Halliburton’s headquarters.”

This softens many of my QLC issues, including finding a good job in my field and earning a decent wage. There is some apprehension. I’m concerned about moving to a new city, especially one so far away from my family. Plus, it’s not exactly what I want to do. I’m mostly writing and editing small arts and entertainment blurbs. In other words, expect to continue to see me on these boards, occasionally bitching ;-)

But, after moving back to Pittsburgh and resigning myself to waiting tables and trolling for freelance work, I’ll take it. Plus, there is the opportunity to write news on the side and the possibility of moving up.

[astronaut83]

Congratulations! I know how you feel right now. I just got a job offer yesterday and I start Monday. So now I'll be complaining about my job instead of my job search. :p

[wordsmith]

Cool!! Congrats!!

One of the things I love most about newspapers is the lack of dress code (I'm in in a tank top, capris, and flip flops today).

I'd personally WAY rather write and edit arts and entertainment blurbs than hard news, but to each his own. At least you DO get to write. The only thing about a traditional editor gig (as opposed to the one I have, which is catch-all) that doesn't appeal to me is the not getting to write. I know I'd miss writing features, etc. if I were solely in an editing role.

[Deavan]

Congrats! That is great news!

[sparky88]

Hey, that's awesome! Nice job!

[sundaycomics]

Woohoo and yay!

[Adam Strange]

Thanks for the congrats, everyone. I’m feeling better than I have in months.

One of the things I love most about newspapers is the lack of dress code (I'm in in a tank top, capris, and flip flops today).

I always felt overdressed when I walked into a newsroom for an interview, but this was extreme. One of my future co-workers wore sandals, cut-offs and a Flaming Lips t-shirt. I thought maybe there was a beach party after work. It should be fun working there

I'd personally WAY rather write and edit arts and entertainment blurbs than hard news, but to each his own.

I do have to admit that my current position is much preferable than covering cops and courts for a small daily. But, like you, I am waiting for the chance to write the longer, more noteworthy feature stories.

But my new job, writing half-snarkily and half-seriously about what’s happening in one of the US’s largest cities, is a pretty cool gig as well.

[wordsmith]

Yeah, I have no interest in cops and courts. But I love writing features the most. When I freelance, that's what it will be for.

[TinyDancer]

I love Houston! It's warmish :rolleyes: this time of year, but I really liked the city. I'll have to send you a PM recommending weird stuff to see there and my favorite restaurants. . . mmmmmm. . . steak fajitas. :)

Happy to hear that everything is working out so well!

[Adam Strange]

Yeah, I have no interest in cops and courts.

Yesterday, my friend was sent to cover a story in which a 4-year-old girl found her mother dead. As soon as she showed-up and identified herself, a relative covered the girl up with a blanket (despite the fact that my friend did not have a camera) and the cop lectured her and sent her away.

She returned to her office and the editor was pissed. His suggestion? My friend should have fake-cried and then the police would have given her more information.

After hearing that, I thought, “I will never work for a daily.” Even though scorning all daily papers because of the atmosphere at the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review is a lot like scorning all retail jobs because of the atmosphere at Wal-Mart. Still. Still, that made me glad my new job is in alternative journalism.

I'll have to send you a PM recommending weird stuff to see there and my favorite restaurants.

Please do!

[Illuminous]

Oh that's awesome.

I've heard good things about working for Alt-weeklies. I've acutally applied to some, but my experience does'nt quite lend itself to the snarkiness of the alt-weeklies.

Congrats!

[PenforPrez]

Congratulations! Do us all proud, will you? :)

Paul

[wordsmith]

Yesterday, my friend was sent to cover a story in which a 4-year-old girl found her mother dead. As soon as she showed-up and identified herself, a relative covered the girl up with a blanket (despite the fact that my friend did not have a camera) and the cop lectured her and sent her away.

She returned to her office and the editor was pissed. His suggestion? My friend should have fake-cried and then the police would have given her more information.

After hearing that, I thought, “I will never work for a daily.” Even though scorning all daily papers because of the atmosphere at the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review is a lot like scorning all retail jobs because of the atmosphere at Wal-Mart. Still. Still, that made me glad my new job is in alternative journalism.


I am with you. I'm not really a hard news reporter at heart, and I would last exactly three seconds in an environment where I had somebody jumping my shit about stuff like that. Some people are built for it, I'm just not.

I'm a features writer, really. I loathe covering accidents and fires, I'm decidedly NOT your go-to "If it bleeds it leads" chick. And I'm perfectly fine with that, and I do work for a family of papers that tends to NOT subscribe to that philosophy, anyway. We actually make a point NOT to run gory pictures of fatal accidents, because it's insensitive to the family. So I don't get chewed out over it.

Plus, it's a lose-lose situation. Every fire and accident I've (unfortunately) been at, I've gotten my ass REAMED by the cops and EMS personnel just for being there, even though I am VERY conscious of keeping out of the way of people doing their work, 'cause, guess what, we ALL have jobs to do. BUT, even so, if I DON'T cover something, that gets critized, too. I had a firefighter come up to me in a bar one night, while I was out socially, and say, "Aren't you the newspaper girl?" (Uh, yes, while you're at it, why don't you tell me I look 'right purty for bein' the new schoolmarm,' jackass?) Then he said, "Why don't you run more on the things we do? Don't you think we do good work? Why does the paper have such a hard time giving us a little recognition?" Well, pal, because every time I attempt to cover something, YOUR boss (and the police) like to jump all over my shit and tell me that I have no business even being there. So that's how it goes. You can't have it both ways.

I was once told by a cop in a situation where they were talking a jumper down from an interstate overpass that, "You know, your being here could make that guy jump...I hope you can deal with having that on your head." My boss busted some heads over that comment, thankfully.

[pisces2473]

Whooooo hoooooo!!! Congrats!!!! :razz:

[Adam Strange]

…it's a lose-lose situation. Every fire and accident I've (unfortunately) been at, I've gotten my ass REAMED by the cops and EMS personnel just for being there, even though I am VERY conscious of keeping out of the way of people doing their work, 'cause, guess what, we ALL have jobs to do. BUT, even so, if I DON'T cover something, that gets critized, too.

In college, I learned about something called the “hostile media bias,” the perception that “the media” has some an agenda undermining one’s own. I didn’t learn about it in a journalism or communications class (even though maybe I should have) but in a social psychology course.

Everyone is cynical about “the media.” The American news media is both full of leftist propagandists and is co-responsible for the Iraq War for its lack of investigative bravado. Al Jazeera, the first powerhouse news service for the Arab World, has been called “the mouthpiece of Osama Bin Laden” by President Bush and “American Propaganda” by former Iraqi information minister Muhammad Saeed al-Sahhaf.

That’s not to say that there aren’t biased news organizations out there – and Al Jazeera certainly has an Arab nationalism slant – but in many cases it’s the viewers who are biased and thus a fair and objective news item is going to seem skewed to them because it may not conform to their view.

People call National Public Radio liberal. The truth is NPR employs a slew of worldly and hyper-educated people and has bureaus all over the globe. It’s the average American who is conservative when compared to the average Earthling.

I think you’ll find a microcosm affecting local media too. It’s not an excuse to stop trying, but you’re right: it’s a lose-lose situation.

I had a firefighter come up to me in a bar one night, while I was out socially, and say, "Aren't you the newspaper girl?" (Uh, yes, while you're at it, why don't you tell me I look 'right purty for bein' the new schoolmarm,' jackass?)

LOL! :razz:

[yankeeyosh]

Congrats Adam! :) I sure wish there wasn't a dress code where I work...90+ tomorrow but the suit 'n' tie lives on... :googly:

[wordsmith]

Everyone is cynical about “the media.” The American news media is both full of leftist propagandists and is co-responsible for the Iraq War for its lack of investigative bravado. Al Jazeera, the first powerhouse news service for the Arab World, has been called “the mouthpiece of Osama Bin Laden” by President Bush and “American Propaganda” by former Iraqi information minister Muhammad Saeed al-Sahhaf.

That’s not to say that there aren’t biased news organizations out there – and Al Jazeera certainly has an Arab nationalism slant – but in many cases it’s the viewers who are biased and thus a fair and objective news item is going to seem skewed to them because it may not conform to their view.

So very, very, very true. Much of the time, the terms "skewed" and "biased" are simply euphemisms for "I'm disgruntled and don't agree with you, and that's not the way I'd do it if it were me writing for newspapers/broadcasting news/etc." For many people, "biased" means, "You're not reflecting MY bias." Ironic. Good observation, Adam.

People call National Public Radio liberal. The truth is NPR employs a slew of worldly and hyper-educated people and has bureaus all over the globe. It’s the average American who is conservative when compared to the average Earthling.

Totally agree.

[sundaycomics]

In college, I learned about something called the “hostile media bias,” the perception that “the media” has some an agenda undermining one’s own. I didn’t learn about it in a journalism or communications class (even though maybe I should have) but in a social psychology course.

Everyone is cynical about “the media.” The American news media is both full of leftist propagandists and is co-responsible for the Iraq War for its lack of investigative bravado. Al Jazeera, the first powerhouse news service for the Arab World, has been called “the mouthpiece of Osama Bin Laden” by President Bush and “American Propaganda” by former Iraqi information minister Muhammad Saeed al-Sahhaf.



Amen brother.

This is one of the main reasons I hate it when people say "the media is." Fox News is different from CNN which is different from the New York Times which is different from the paper I work for. Etc.

[wordsmith]

Yeah, the idea that my paper is like ANY paper that springs to people's minds when they talk about "the evil media" is truly laughable.