Everything I know about journalism in 395 words

by Margaret Sullivan

On Wednesday night, I taught my last class of the semester at the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism and my last class there, at least for now.

Margaret Sullivan, NYT’s Public Editor (NYT)

So I decided to tell my students, who are graduating this month and emerging into the wild world of journalism in 2015, what I'd learned over the past three decades since I was in their position. Since the course was called 'Audience and Engagement,' which has to do with journalism on social platforms, there's a social-media section at the top.

As it turned out, I needed fewer than 400 words. That may be a sad commentary on how little I've learned or may just be confirmation of my lifelong habit of writing short. (And I'm still making mistakes, and still learning.)Although this topic is not strictly in keeping with my role as public editor, I thought it might be of some interest to readers. Also on this general subject, see Felix Salmon on why old-fashioned journalistic skills remain valuable, and Jim Romenesko's blog on how CareerCast ranks newspaper reporter as the worst job.(For the record, I beg to differ: News reporting is still the most fun you can have as a grown-up, and while print newspapers are undeniably fading, I know a lot of young journalists who are thriving. For many reasons, I still think it's a great thing to do with your life.)

Here's what I told my students

1. About social media

• No road rage: Walk away from the keyboard.

• Be useful.

• Be responsive.

• Be willing to correct and acknowledge errors immediately.

• Show restraint: Remember that you are posting to The World.

Forever.

• Try for a mix of 20 percent fun and 80 percent hard information.

• Read every link before re-tweeting or re-posting.

• It's a tool, not an end in itself.

2. About journalism

• Don't cut corners. Do the actual work.

• If you 'borrow,' always credit with a link and a specific mention,

and always write in your own words.

• You can lose your reputation and your career in an instant.

• Despite that, don't be timid. Be brave: Just don't be brave and stupid.

• Ask for advice from smart people.

• Do the work that improves the world, even in a small way.

• Don't sink to least-common-denominator journalism.

• A little snark goes a long way.

• Think more about fairness than objectivity.

• Think about how close you can get to the truth.

• Put yourself in the place of the people who will be affected

by your work. That doesn't mean to pull your punches.

• Be rigorous. Go the extra mile. If you think you should interview

five people, interview 10. Fact-check with a vengeance.

• Be aggressive - a passive journalist isn't really a journalist.

• Get to be really good at one or two things. And get to be

decently good at a whole bunch of things.

• If you screw up, apologize fully and move on.

• Try to work for someone great.

• Whatever help you've received in your career, pay it forward.

• Be idealistic. Resist cynicism.

• Never be boring - be engaging and clear, especially when the subject is complicated or hard to understand. If you're writing blurry stuff, maybe you don't understand the subject yet. Pity the readers (or viewers) and consider their attention span. (E.B. White on clarity, referring to his teacher William Strunk: "Will felt that the reader was in serious trouble most of the time, a man floundering in a swamp, and that it was the duty of anyone attempting to write English to drain this swamp quickly and get his man up on dry ground, or at least throw him a rope.")

• You are not in this business for the money, so what are you in it for? Do that work.

- nytimes.com