WHAT MAKES A GOOD JOURNALIST TICK?

a good journalist is a good person. they also know how to ask: who? what? when? why? how?

those words are the lenses of how we learn, understand, see meaning.

–horiwood.

words that define a good broadcaster-journalist too are (support news agency;s journalists @link): 

a gentleman (or gentlewoman) broadcaster. intelligence. insightfulness. never suffer fools. kindness. empathy. trailblazer. own style. friend. a true professional. pioneer. never shy from controversy. a fine sense of the ‘ordinary person.’ an uncanny understanding of the issues of the day. enthusiasm for one’s country. passionate. stand up for anyone willing to have a go. enjoy a robust debate. lucky. cheeky. funny. make time for people. extraordinary. unique. 100 per cent. just brilliant. emotional. can find criticism difficult (personally). you’re not everyone’s cup of tea. always upset ”bastards.” redefined current affairs. a leading light in the world of journalism. an incredible life force. a theatrical sense of outrage. occasionally outrageous behaviour. a life spirit that wasn’t easily quelled. at times incredible misjudgments. plenty of bounce back. a good stoush. amicable chat. mouth could run away on you. forgive yourself first. take things to the wire. a very good act. able to fuse challenge and humanity. incisive. intellectual. remarkable. don’t always agree. hugely talented. creative. hard-working. a rare breed who is modest enough to know that sometimes you win arguments, and other times you lose. able to be relevant and switch opinion in trying times.  able to challenge politicians in a way that makes interviews interesting to the viewer and listener. a focus on people listening and watching, not on making life easy for politicians. help shape political discourse through interviews. a media template. expect to be hated. sometimes a life driven by altruism and bugger-all pay. at times a genius. able to draw people in. able to be kind man. flaws and foibles normal too. able to show tremendous courage in the face of danger. admirable in a quest to serve others truth. able to demonstrate tremendous courage and honesty. able to be fun. uplifting. an ability to make news and current affairs accessible to everyone. reflective of good communication that everyone understood. abilities as a wonderful storyteller. able to entertain a crowd. able to capture historic memories. funny. off the wall. a knowledge that if you smile when you are talking, people can hear it. able to be an incredibly generous mentor to journalist friends. able to influence. dignity. at times you may feel like a fraud. an understanding of lascivious humor. able to walk a compassionate line. the best sort of mad. try anything. push the boundaries. not afraid to make a dick of yourself. without being mad you don’t make a difference. a good brain, reflecting a sense of history, good ability with the language. able to be a benchmark of laughter. gifted in an ability to relate to whoever you are speaking to: old, young, rich, poor, across cultures. an amazing ability to connect and communicate with people. able to interact and connect on many levels. not afraid to show emotion. able to do a hard-nosed interview. colourful language. rich in wit, energy, diligence and willingness to go to the very edge. an ability to say what most people are thinking. most of all a willingness to laugh at your own nothing flash self. at times jealous. at times able to be no.1 yet able to share too. always have something to say. the face or voice or words of steep learning curves. masterful at reading the times. able to see the human side. opinions facilitator. able to do the best impersonations with a straight face. having tenacity. a teacher, a mentor, a friend. able to depict the art of humility in media formats. able to love people, ordinary people, stand up for and help make a difference. good journalism must be about people, people, people, people. able to be the people’s broadcaster. able to write how people talk. able to be truly remarkable, edgy and a watchable broadcaster. able to set the standard. able to be a giant. able to speak out, ask questions that need asking. able to not be just another of the group think press pack.

what i think a good broadcaster, journalist is: a good journalist is a good person. they also know how to ask: who? what? when? why? how? in the right (or wrong way) for the right (or wrong reasons that are right) to present different sides of truth on any given matter. a good broadcaster is someone who is able to do a 360 on any given issue. is able to tell a story, whether getting paid to or not in order to make a difference. a good journalist is a compass in the middle of dark storms, where no can see, yet somehow light comes to the journalist in order to uphold the common good of a people (or audience) that they care about. It does not matter if that audience is one or 1 billion, a good journalist still tells the story of how it is. a good journalist is a diamond in a nation’s crown reflecting the hearts of people of that nation, in varying ways. a good journalist is a gift to a people, whether the people are conscious of that or not. a good journalist is history’ss author, shaping opinion in ways that present the best options to an audience of what truth could be and what options they are able to choose for themselves. A good journalist tries to maintain a spirit of democracy, no matter what the cost. a good journalist is freedom’s voice or a pleasant distraction at best too.

Journalists are architects of culture, shapers of history, influencers of reality’s perceptions, directors of economic flows, and revealers of hearts and minds. Journalists attract an audience for sponsors and advertisers. Today, journalists can also be the planet’s friend.

Journalists are stars and they create stars too.

Journalists are coaches, artists, highly creative people.

A good broadcaster is only as strong as their support team and technical support.

A good journalist has amazing producers realising that the word ‘angel’ means “messanger of a message.”

A good journalist tries to be a good angel more so than a rotten one. :)

Peace.

[one of my favorite journalists, is probably larry king... in his day].

~Posted by Horiwoodblog, Aotearoa New Zealand, Polynesia Asia-Pacific. 1.2.13~