There are many types of journalists – defined by the specific task that they do. There are news reporters, feature writers, investigative journalists, editors, and photojournalists. They may either work in a team of staff of a local, national, or international news organization, or work freelance and write or report on a per project basis.
Journalist Salary
How much do journalists make? The annual average journalist salary reported is $43,490, which is equivalent to $20.91 per hour of work. This means that journalists in the United States more or less earn this amount of income. The estimated number of working journalists is 50,400.
The journalists’ job is very fast paced, with many of them working nights, weekends, and even holidays. Given the nature of the profession, most journalists have tight deadlines and are often running after news stories to produce the latest breaking news.
Some journalists work freelance, which means their schedules are very flexible. Most feature writers are freelancers while news reporters work full time. Writers who work freelance may or may not provide their own fees while full-time writers have a fixed salary.
A journalist starting salary depends on the type of work he/she does, the organization he/she is working for, his/her educational attainment, experience, and level of skill.
Top 5 Paying States
| Flag | State | Employment per 1000 Jobs | Hourly mean wage | Annual mean wage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | New York | 3.29 | $30.50 | $63,450 |
 | Rhode Island | 0.42 | $27.61 | $57,430 |
 | Georgia | 0.29 | $26.46 | $55,030 |
 | Massachusetts | 0.32 | $26.00 | $54,080 |
 | Louisiana | 0.27 | $25.89 | $53,860 |
Top Paying Industries
| Industry | Percent of industry employment | Hourly mean wage | Annual mean wage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Professional, Political, and Similar Organizations | 0.01 | $36.64 | $76,210 |
| Social Advocacy Organizations | 0.07 | $35.91 | $74,680 |
| Independent Artists, Writers, and Performers | 0.14 | $32.04 | $66,640 |
| Cable and Other Subscription Programming | 0.51 | $30.66 | $63,780 |
| Other Information Services | 1.83 | $30.42 | $63,270 |
Journalist Job Description
What do a journalists do? Basically, a journalist gathers information through a number of means such as observation, interview, and background research, and presents this information to readers or audiences through different forms of mass media.
Because just about anyone can present information through a media platform such as social media, professional journalists are defined as having employment that presents information as news and stories to readers and audiences of newspapers, magazines, TV, radio, and news organizations on the internet.
Among the duties of a journalist include researching stories through observation, interview, and background research; writing news and stories that are timely; shoot photographs and videos; editing stories to improve the work of others, correcting grammar errors, writing headlines, and making sure stories pertain to the publication or organization’s tone and style; checking facts, planning issues, and laying out pages.
Among the different types of journalists include:
Reporters – These journalists gather information and present them in writing or spoken form in news stories. Reporters can include feature writers who write long stories about a particular topic. News reporters present information in a timely manner to present the latest happenings in a locality, in a national, or international level. Feature writers’ stories do not need to be timely and can focus on a special niche such as reporting about lifestyle, personalities, and fashion.
Photojournalists – These journalists take photos with a reporter, take photos to support a story, or go to events on their own and take pictures to illustrate a story.
Editors – These journalists are the ones making the final decisions about what is included in the newspaper, radio, online publication, or TV show.
Investigative Journalists – These journalists are the ones that dig deeper into stories. They search for information that may be concealed or hidden, to present facts and stories that may have otherwise been buried or obscured.
Journalists Job Outlook
Because of the proliferation of mobile electronic devices that have easy access to the internet, more and more people aren’t buying hard copies of magazines and newspapers. In the next decade, it is projected that employment in the field of journalism is set to decline at 13%, with a total loss of jobs totaling to 7,200.
A continuing decrease in advertising revenue in radio, magazine, and newspaper publications will force news organizations to downsize, needing less journalists to work on stories. Advertising is the primary source of income for these organizations and with less and less of it, employment in the journalism profession will continue to decline.
However, journalists who are equipped with the skills in the latest technologies will have an advantage and enjoy better job prospects. Multimedia journalism experience such as website designing and coding is seen to be valuable in the next decade.
Journalist Salary by State
| Flag | State | Employment per 1000 Jobs | Hourly mean wage | Annual mean wage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Alabama | 0.258 | $17.05 | $35,470 |
 | Alaska | 0.324 | $22.42 | $46,630 |
 | Arizona | 0.306 | $20.45 | $42,530 |
 | Arkansas | 0.321 | $14.57 | $30,300 |
 | California | 0.285 | $23.77 | $49,430 |
 | Colorado | 0.305 | $21.63 | $45,000 |
 | Connecticut | 0.243 | $18.47 | $38,410 |
 | Delaware | – | – | |
 | Florida | 0.312 | $20.47 | $42,570 |
| Georgia | 0.317 | $26.46 | $55,030 |
 | Hawaii | 0.219 | $24.09 | $50,110 |
 | Idaho | 0.536 | $17.77 | $36,950 |
 | Illinois | 0.285 | $22.25 | $46,280 |
 | Indiana | 0.297 | $19.23 | $40,000 |
 | Iowa | 0.644 | $14.82 | $30,830 |
 | Kansas | 0.343 | $19.55 | $40,660 |
 | Kentucky | 0.282 | $18.67 | $38,830 |
| Louisiana | 0.278 | $25.89 | $53,860 |
 | Maine | 0.497 | $16.14 | $33,560 |
 | Maryland | 0.242 | $23.05 | $47,950 |
| Massachusetts | 0.346 | $26.00 | $54,080 |
 | Michigan | 0.254 | $19.51 | $40,570 |
 | Minnesota | 0.259 | $19.00 | $39,510 |
 | Mississippi | 0.25 | $16.41 | $34,120 |
 | Missouri | 0.266 | $16.24 | $33,770 |
 | Montana | 0.544 | $15.33 | $31,890 |
 | Nebraska | 0.435 | $15.36 | $31,940 |
 | Nevada | 0.242 | $24.91 | $51,820 |
 | New Hampshire | 0.441 | $20.48 | $42,590 |
 | New Jersey | 0.258 | $22.48 | $46,760 |
 | New Mexico | 0.289 | $19.85 | $41,290 |
| New York | 0.422 | $30.50 | $63,450 |
 | North Carolina | 0.275 | $18.61 | $38,710 |
 | North Dakota | 0.684 | $13.24 | $27,530 |
 | Ohio | 0.318 | $18.04 | $37,530 |
 | Oklahoma | 0.335 | $16.63 | $34,590 |
 | Oregon | 0.27 | $20.31 | $42,240 |
 | Pennsylvania | 0.246 | $18.18 | $37,800 |
| Rhode Island | 0.286 | $27.61 | $57,430 |
 | South Carolina | 0.243 | $18.65 | $38,800 |
 | South Dakota | 0.729 | $14.14 | $29,400 |
 | Tennessee | 0.253 | $16.76 | $34,850 |
 | Texas | 0.19 | $20.80 | $43,260 |
 | Utah | 0.57 | $22.04 | $45,850 |
 | Vermont | 0.645 | $18.07 | $37,580 |
 | Virginia | – | $22.46 | $46,710 |
 | Washington | 0.254 | $19.05 | $39,610 |
 | West Virginia | 0.439 | $14.71 | $30,600 |
 | Wisconsin | 0.311 | $16.72 | $34,780 |
 | Wyoming | 0.633 | $14.21 | $29,550 |
Top paying metropolitan areas
| Area | Employment per 1000 jobs | Hourly mean wage | Annual mean wage |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York / White Plains / Wayne, – NY/NJ – Metropolitan Division | 0.51 | $34.41 | $71,580 |
| Washington / Arlington / Alexandria, – DC/VA/MD/WV – Metropolitan Division | 1.08 | $34.02 | $70,760 |
| Atlanta / Sandy Springs / Marietta, – GA | 0.36 | $31.67 | $65,870 |
| Las Vegas / Paradise, – NV | 0.21 | $29.70 | $61,780 |
| Boston / Cambridge / Quincy, – MA – NECTA Division | 0.39 | $29.18 | $60,700 |
Top paying nonmetropolitan areas
| Area | Employment per 1000 jobs | Hourly mean wage | Annual mean wage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Northeast Maine – nonmetropolitan area | 0.80 | $17.84 | $37,110 |
| Kansas – nonmetropolitan area | 0.45 | $17.67 | $36,750 |
| South Florida – nonmetropolitan area | 0.45 | $17.44 | $36,290 |
| Northern Mountains – Region of California – nonmetropolitan area | 0.55 | $17.44 | $36,280 |
| West Central Pennsylvania – nonmetropolitan area | 0.47 | $16.40 | $34,110 |
