When I was in college, telling people my major was in broadcast communications garnered one of two reactions:

“Oh wow! So you’re trying to be the next Oprah?” or “News? That’s a dying industry!”

To the first reaction, I’d always have to explain how I was a behind-the-scenes type of person who was more interested in producing and putting together the show than anchoring it. (Although I did have my own editorial column, titled “Hoprah,” in the high school newspaper.)

To the second reaction, usually given by “old heads” in the journalism game, I’d start probing a bit more. They’d name a slew of reasons to not give news a chance. They told me the game has changed for the worse, ethics are out the window, the Cronkite golden years are over, pay is miserable, etc.

But I couldn’t just take someone else’s word for it. I needed to experience the television news industry for myself. No regrets, right?

I’m glad I did. I absolutely loved my time in news. 

Sure, I was getting paid peanuts, but who cares when you’re in your 20s living in a very modest apartment. Plus, since you usually start in a smaller television market and work your way up, the cost of living was low.

Fun fact: When I calculated my salary by the hour in my first job as a producer, I realized that Target cashiers got paid more than me. Yeah, adulthood!

Holidays and breaks were few and far between, but I was living it up.

News was fast-paced. I strived to be the best at what I did, so that meant being in the know about all the news happening throughout the day at my station, at competing stations and regionally.

I got to the point where I was literally watching news all day. Every day—even on my off days.

Scratch that. 

There were no off days because the days I didn’t go into the station meant that I was watching and taking notes from home. Even on the weekend, I recorded all of the newscasts from my station and all of our competitors to prepare for the following week.

To make matters worse, my executive producer at the time had me producing both of the evening shows while she straight chilled “supervised.” Needless to say, the workload was pretty heavy.

I don’t run from hard work, so I kept pressing on. I had my shows down to a science. Breaking news would spice things a bit, but I was in my rhythm.

That was sort of the problem, though. Because of my work ethic and work load, my emotions were in a disengaged autopilot.

Fire? Cool. Family displaced? Even better. There were children severely injured from it? Now, we’re talking. Add a missing pet, and we have a solid top story!

How do you even look at yourself in the mirror, girl?

I knew I was at an all-time low when I was actually excited that a person went missing in the lake on an extremely slow news day.

“Ayyyye! I think we have a story! Let’s go live and try to interview some witnesses.” 

With the different stories we covered—crimes, fires, deaths, drownings, natural disasters, and everything in between—I grew callous.

We absolutely had positive stories and features that restored hope in humanity; but to keep my news shows running like a well-oiled machine, I couldn’t think about the bad. I couldn’t stop to think about the people affected by the bad.

Did the murdered man leave behind children? Will this displaced family pick up the pieces? What will happen to that child who was taken by CPS?

Nope. I had to subconsciously block it out. I didn’t like that feeling. I didn’t like not feeling, so I knew my days in a traditional newsroom were numbered.

And did I mention how I barely had time for anything else? I could barely squeeze in my boyfriend at the time (who is now my husband). We were in a long-distance relationship, and time and communication were slowly slipping away from us. Not good.

Thankfully, he was still in school, so we were both occupied. But what would happen when he graduated? This cycle of busyness was no life for a family.

So, I decided to take my skills to the other side of news—the public relations side. (News people joke around and call it “the dark side.”)

In my new line of work, things are still relatively fast paced and unexpected. More importantly, I still get to use my communication skills to tell stories. (For any newsie reading this, the other perks include real days off, observed holidays, and decent pay.)

I do not regret my time in news at all. I loved it, and I’d still encourage any person interested in television news to do it. It’s not for the faint of heart, but you’ll gain knowledge and relationships that will last a lifetime. 

I’ll dive more into life as a producer and the moment I knew God was telling me to move on in this week’s podcast. Speaking of… are you all caught up on my podcasts? If not, watch these and then stay tuned for Friday.