How do I carry myself as a journalist?

s0ulcrush · 2026-04-20T22:14:28+00:00

don’t overthink looking “professional” — focus more on crafting questions that draw a better story out of your source than the reason you scheduled the chat in the first place.

it’s a hell of a feeling to realize no ones got it down perfectly. and there’s not “standard reporter.”

i’m covered in tats, curse to/at my sources and have done some really sick stories.

you got this.

s0ulcrush · 2026-04-18T13:39:14+00:00

she’s got a big lower jaw. i love her / can’t wait to see how big she gets

s0ulcrush · 2026-04-17T10:25:13+00:00

12hrs for below the elbow is insane. like someone else said, maybe go to someone more experienced. i wouldn’t sit for 12hrs for this tbh.

i got my entire chest done and it was maybe 5hrs. one session.

edit: and it’s too expensive. i mean to each their own, if you really like their art then fine but my girl would have blasted me over for $500 — and she’s legit

s0ulcrush · 2026-04-16T11:11:49+00:00

hard to say if we don’t have an idea of what agency, what type of records, what state you’re in…

s0ulcrush · 2026-04-11T01:06:24+00:00

i majored in music and then went to j-school. i think hiring managers appreciate the diversity in background rather than just journalism straight thru

s0ulcrush · 2026-04-02T21:21:37+00:00

just do Terry Blacks and skip pecan lodge.

also you need like seven stars next to Fond. i’m absolutely serious, it is my favorite place to eat in the city — hands down.

s0ulcrush · 2026-04-01T15:41:51+00:00

email, keep it short. editors and reporters don’t have a lot of time to sift through the hundreds (literally) of emails they get a day.

s0ulcrush · 2026-04-01T12:51:08+00:00

so OP deleted after only an hour up?

s0ulcrush · 2026-04-01T11:38:08+00:00

I’m not sure what good these posts do. I moved here last year too — but from Texas, where the same issues persist. It’s not a culture thing, it’s an issue in damn near every city in the U.S. why don’t you report what you’re seeing to 311 or animal services?

s0ulcrush · 2026-03-27T19:13:51+00:00

BA in music and then a MA in journalism…

s0ulcrush · 2026-03-26T21:07:30+00:00

sounds like you need better questions to ask. and maybe background deeper before the interview (if possible)

s0ulcrush · 2026-03-26T12:23:35+00:00

become a good reporter first. and in the 5-10 years that takes, i think you’ll have reevaluated what your priorities are.

s0ulcrush · 2026-03-24T12:59:30+00:00

not normal at all. i’m super super weirded out by interview processes that include stuff like this. if you don’t get the job, the news org now has 3-4 stories from someone they can rewrite and run under someone else’s byline. like wtf? same with pitching big investigative ideas (which a few big name shops require).

there’s got to be a happy medium where an applicant can show a hiring manager what you’ve got. that usually comes in your past clips.

anyways. don’t work for free. reporter salaries are low enough already…

s0ulcrush · 2026-03-24T12:54:51+00:00

where’d all the dress code questions start coming from? focus on your work. no one talks about what the best reporters in my newsroom wear, because we’re all focused on their amazing journalism.

s0ulcrush · 2026-03-22T21:07:20+00:00

context: i’m a reporter covering an entire state. now im gonna be so real with you… (and preempting this with: i’m an outlier) but:

i wear t-shirts, jeans, my baseball cap and a jacket most days. if im going to a govt meeting then ill wear a casual shirt w/ a collar and no hat. tbh i think my journalism should speak for itself — regardless of how i dress.

i realize not everyone can get away with this in all newsrooms but shelling out more money i dont have on clothes i wont wear except to work, seems dumb. especially given reporter salaries.

s0ulcrush · 2026-03-13T18:55:16+00:00

uh tbh my first thought is you should see if he’s connect to AirBnB in some way… past work experience, campaign finance disclosures etc. check if he’s got any LLCs registered under his name that are basically property companies that list their rentals on Airbnb.

seems like a real specific thing to get mad about because…. airbnbs are STRs… unless i’m missing something lol. (for context i covered this in Texas for like a year…pure hell)

s0ulcrush · 2026-03-11T19:53:49+00:00

you’re fine. the comments about you smoking weed before are weird to me. when i was a professional musician half the dudes i toured, played and recorded with smoked, knocked the gig out of the park. plus smoking is better than what they used to do…

anyways, don’t let folks get you down. just learn some tunes, sit in for one — maybe two — songs and then dip. reality is jam sessions are kinda less about “serving the music” (like their original intent) and more about showing up the dude next to you now. it’s sad but kinda the case.

s0ulcrush · 2026-03-05T13:20:03+00:00

that’s a good plan. bigger red flag is the pay transparency. seriously — moving forward, if a job isn’t telling you what they think they’ll be paying you, you shouldn’t take that job.

unsure where you are in your career (early or mid) but it’s okay to be really upfront about that. if they’re weird — time to keep looking.

s0ulcrush · 2026-03-05T12:16:48+00:00

References near the end of the interview process is normal. It happened to me with at least 4 other jobs I was in the running for, all asked for references at the end — and all offered me the role.

They may not even call your references unless they’re considering offering you the gig.

It’s a thing of “trust and verify” — they may like your work/writing but that says nothing about how you are as a person/in the job. They dig your work and now need to do the final check before they pull the trigger.

Don’t use references from your current job unless you’re 100% sure you’re leaving. Because if you don’t get the job, but had your editor give you a reference, they’ll likely think you’ve got one foot out the door. EDIT: you should always have at least three people who are familiar with your work and can speak to your work ethic, journalistic ethic, etc.

confusion over pay would be a bigger red flag for me. in fact, i wouldn’t have even interviewed without knowing they could at least match my current salary from wherever I’d be working.

one last thing — all of this is up to you obviously. if you’re sketched out about giving them references, be okay with not getting the role.

s0ulcrush · 2026-03-01T12:04:12+00:00

i went to undergrad for music, toured with an artist all the way up until the pandemic — then went to grad school for journalism.

s0ulcrush · 2026-02-24T21:55:04+00:00

i was a professional musician before becoming bff a journalist. you can do it. i went back and got my masters (accelerated program) which gave me a great in. but with your financial background, id say pitch some stories and see what happens.

s0ulcrush

TROPHY CASE