Marjory Collins / Library of Congress
Okay, so the newspaper business isn’t exactly thriving; and the idea of casting a reporter as the hero in a movie seems quaint if not downright silly. But newspaper reporter is the Worst Job In America? Really? That’s what CareerCast, “the Internet’s premier career site,” says. Worse than lumberjack (No. 2); and oil-rig worker (No. 5); and meter reader (No. 7). And CareerCast doesn’t hesitate to kick us when we’re down, noting that: “[N]ewspaper reporters have fared poorly in the Jobs Rated report for years due to the job’s high stress and tight deadlines, low pay and requirement to work in all conditions to get the story.” But when you consider what CareerCast says is this year’s best job–actuary!–maybe life as a hack doesn’t seem so bad?
The Editors are the staffers of the Columbia Journalism Review.