In pursuit of journalism

I was not talented enough to be a novelist, not smart enough to be a lawyer; I didn’t have the patience to be a teacher so by coincidence I landed up being a journalist.

It was my first profession after graduating with a degree in Bachelors of Commerce. Attending talks and courses on journalism came in the later phrase but the most I learned was on the job. No news was always considered good news before no news is bad news in this line.

Working late hours, not able to socialise with old friends and less time for family is a package which comes with this profession and at times I feel like quitting this job. But every night when I sleep and recollect things I have done, gives me satisfaction and I guess that is what people call job satisfaction.

The old man abandoned at the hospital was taken away by his family after my write up. Making little differences in peoples’ lives is what encourages journalist to write more and better. In this process we lose out on our own lives concentrating on others. A friend once said, “Journalists are so much into others lives that you don’t realise that you own life is in a mess.”

In the process of taking the walk to journalism people think we leave our humanity behind because the moment we hear about an accident the first thing we ask is if someone died.

People sometimes forget that we are also simple human being just like them and what we do is our work. I was once scolded by the civil service secretary’s personal assistant for calling him directly on his mobile. And there are times when I get calls from people asking for some information. If I am of no help the words from most of them are similar, “being a reporter you don’t even know this.” I agree a journalist is generalist but we are not experts.

The profession has shown me different faces of people. Always under the shadow of my parents never saw the other face of people. Being a journalist and a woman is a challenge. Sources at times look at you not as a journalist by as a sex symbol and you have to tackle things carefully.

Running three years in this profession I still have doubts at times if I should be saving a person from committing suicide or reporting on it. So I still have miles to go...