Professionally Speaking...
Earlier this week I wrote about how people are always moving in this business.
It's still just as true today as it was on that day, especially in the market I work in. The way the market system is set up for television newscasts makes this market ideal for a first job. The idea is to come here, work for a few years, grow as a reporter/producer/anchor and move on to the next big thing.
For the most part, that's how it works, but why does it have to be that way?
The way television markets work is so unfair. The number of eyes you have to watch you dictates your market size, i.e. the more eyeballs who have the ability to tune into your show = higher market number (and more money).
So what if more people decided to stay in markets like mine? It's not like those markets are going anywhere, and this whole idea that the only way to be a reputable or credible journalist is to work in a ginormous city is detrimental. What if people decided to settle down at a hometown market and make it better?
Last week my general manager challenged me to figure out where I want to be professionally in the next five years. Well, I think I've figured that out.
One day I would like to be in a position to help those people who come here but are only passing through to develop their skills and become better at what they do. That's what we're supposed to be about, but as it stands no one has taken on that role. The reporters I work with are good at what they do already, but they should be evolving instead of staying the same.
I want to be that person who doesn't move on. I want to be that person who has pride in her hometown station and wants to do everything in her power to make it better.
2 comments
I appreciate your new Gil Elvgren header, Ashton! Please visit my blog one week from today, January 27th, and you'll see some of my favorites on display.
ReplyDeleteI enjoy the roles of mentor and consultant. Some people are eager to learn and are grateful for my input while others reject it because they think they already know it all. Invariably it's the open minded, enthusiastic ones that go farther.
Some markets grow larger and more sophisticated over time, especially here in the south. When I arrived in the Tampa- St. Pete- Clearwater market early in 1984 it was the nation's 14th or 13th largest. Now it's 12th. If your goal is to stay in your home market and make it the best it can be then that is an empowering plan.
I'm looking forward to that post. I love old artwork like this!
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