The Star-Telegram sports section has three "correspondents" who are working for $22K a year freelance without benefits. All three have journalism degrees from good J schools, graduated within the past two years and are carrying at least two beats. Is this normal? Should more papers be doing this as an effective cost-cutting measure? Are these kids being exploited?
$22,000 a year is just a little above minimum wage. Don't know if these young correspondents are being exploited, maybe that is what the market is offering. But man, that sounds cheap.
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Is this happening at other McClatchy papers?
3 comments:
What is happening? At 22K they are still paying people with degrees in journalism way more than they are worth. That is why they are going broke.
At 22K they are still paying people with degrees in journalism way more than they are worth.
Hmm, I figure a bachelors is worth more than that, no matter what the field. Those kids are probably more in debt with loans that that. But, it's at a major paper so I imagine it's about as good as you can get right now.
Yes, it is happening/has happened at other McC papers. Some are called "correspondents," others are "clerks" sans benefits. I've heard Sacramento and Fresno have/have had them; Tacoma had one for two years.
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