Preface to the second edition

So You Want to Be a Journalist? Unplugged is an unashamedly ‘old-school’ journalism textbook for a number of reasons. Importantly, we wanted to honour the spirit and retain the voice of Bruce’s first edition, published in 2007. His wealth of knowledge and years of experience on the frontlines of news and in the news classroom make him a formidable forebear.

Perhaps of equal importance to the brief we had was our belief – echoing Bruce – that the ‘basics’ of good reporting and writing of news are the foundation for both an education and a career in journalism. Furthermore – again like Bruce – we are lifelong believers in the historic and ongoing role of the news media in our democratic life and processes. Without good journalism there is no good news.

We are not, however, rosy-eyed optimists or backward-looking golden ageists. Despite our collective 130 years-plus in journalism and perhaps almost as long as journalism educators, we remain attuned to the changing world around us. Wanna-be reporters and those studying journalism out of interest must also be across the vital public discussions about the future of news and the news industry. A good journalist – or even a critical news consumer – needs a situational awareness of the news process. We enter this discussion in the last section of the book by asking readers to consider the meaning of ‘professionalism’ in today’s fractured news environment in which news professionals are competing with a wide and growing range of amateur voices. User-generated news-like content and ‘citizen journalism’ are crowding the stage. How should we all react?