Advice for America's future journalists?

On Thursday I'm going to be a guest speaker for a journalism class at the University of San Diego. I'll be talking about my best stories, biggest mistakes and the most exciting event I've covered. I'll share interviewing techniques, reporting tools and a few handy life tips. (Here's a freebie: If you're ever operating a vintage hot water heater that requires lighting a pilot, be sure your hair is at least two feet away before lowering the match. That's how I acquired a crispy new hairstyle I had not bargained for. Moving on...)

Some people would warn aspiring journalists to find another career path. When I was in college, law was the main threat; many of my colleagues from the college paper ended up as lawyers. And that was before the Great Newsroom Implosion. Yes, it's a different profession from how it was 20 or even 10 years ago. This blog is a perfect example of these changes. But a lot of the changes are exciting -- for example: telling stories with multimedia, having a treasure trove of data available at our web-surfing fingertips, communicating with readers quickly and directly, and more.

So, on the topic of career paths and readers and journalism, I have three questions for anyone who cares to write back:

What's the best piece of advice you have to share with this year's college grads?

As a news reader, what makes an article worth your time and attention?

What skills and values do you hope the next generation of journalists will have?

I will take your answers and share them with the students. I'll also write a follow-up blog post after my classroom visit.


