It sucks to be ethical
Sometimes it just sucks to be an ethical journalist working for a supposedly ethical news organization. My boss just thumbed down the third overseas trip I was invited to. She said, no you can't go, it's against our editorial policy. You don't have to go to Hong Kong with that company to get that story in. She said the same thing when I asked about going to Singapore and Bangkok.
The hard part is... I understand her. It won't do well for me to take these free trips abroad from companies... free trips will eventually erode on my freedom and fairness as a journalist. I just want to rant, you know? My salary really isn't enough to cover trips abroad and goodness knows when I'll be able to travel again.
And I'm really not ready to sell out yet, and by sell out I mean move to a corporate setting which pays better but is not really journalism. I haven't learned enough from my job as a financial journalist, and I haven't made ANY mark in the industry yet. So, it's me and my morals and my low salary for until who knows when. And the only thing I'll look forward to will be times to rant, just like this.
In ethics related news... I've been awarded a writing fellowship with the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism. This is supposedly a "big thing," more so because they give the award to very few financial journalists. I just hope I get to finish that story they want me to produce, and still live to end the year without death threats. I've been pretty much uninspired lately, I hope this passes soon.
Also, I'm doing an article on access to clean water in Metro slums. This is something I'm at least a little bit excited about, but I dunno... blah.
Edit: Boss says she's sorry that she's had to thwart all these travel opportunities. Says she'll make it up to me by sending me to a five-week training program courtesy of the Southeast Asian Press Alliance in Bangkok next year. I'm holding her to her word!
The hard part is... I understand her. It won't do well for me to take these free trips abroad from companies... free trips will eventually erode on my freedom and fairness as a journalist. I just want to rant, you know? My salary really isn't enough to cover trips abroad and goodness knows when I'll be able to travel again.
And I'm really not ready to sell out yet, and by sell out I mean move to a corporate setting which pays better but is not really journalism. I haven't learned enough from my job as a financial journalist, and I haven't made ANY mark in the industry yet. So, it's me and my morals and my low salary for until who knows when. And the only thing I'll look forward to will be times to rant, just like this.
In ethics related news... I've been awarded a writing fellowship with the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism. This is supposedly a "big thing," more so because they give the award to very few financial journalists. I just hope I get to finish that story they want me to produce, and still live to end the year without death threats. I've been pretty much uninspired lately, I hope this passes soon.
Also, I'm doing an article on access to clean water in Metro slums. This is something I'm at least a little bit excited about, but I dunno... blah.
Edit: Boss says she's sorry that she's had to thwart all these travel opportunities. Says she'll make it up to me by sending me to a five-week training program courtesy of the Southeast Asian Press Alliance in Bangkok next year. I'm holding her to her word!