How should news organizations credit interns?

Posted by Gida Hammami on July 22, 2009 at 3:01 PM

It's not news that in order to break into the news industry, one must take it upon themselves to complete an internship. Trouble is, journalism is somewhat of a financially exclusive profession to enter. A UK government report, published yesterday, called Unleashing Aspirations suggests that media companies provide grants and loans for interns who come from lower socio-economic classes. Many of today's less well-off young people cannot accept unpaid internships because of the cost factor or living in cities such as New York or London which are very dense with media associations.

The NUJ (National Union of Journalists) told the panel that a Journalism Training Forum poll in 2002 revealed that fewer than 10 per cent of new entrants to journalism came from a working class background and just three per cent came from homes headed by semi-skilled or unskilled workers.

Alan Milburn who chairs The Panel on Fair Access to Professions has recommended that in order to raise standards for internships, it would be beneficial to institute a Kitemark Award and a code of best practice.

The journalism industry is highlighted in the report as failing to meet acceptable standards of internships, most significantly in its use of interns as a cheap replacement for full-time staff members. In the Journalism Training poll, over 150 out of the 640 polled stated the news organization where they interned would not be able to survive without its interns. This problem of relaying heavily on interns is not limited to media entities in the UK or for that matter, exclusively to newspapers.

For example, of Mediaite's slim staff of nine - including its publisher Dan Abrams - three are interns. It has been made public that Abrams hopes his columnists will contribute articles in exchange for recognition, but their interns receive either academic credit or some form of monetary compensation, as noted in an email from Managing Editor, Colby Hall. Of the half-dozen editors on board at Gawker's female-oriented Jezebel, only one is an intern. At both online publications, the interns' names make the masthead, making for a good argument that these interns are indeed invaluable to the company.

At larger, more well-known organizations such is not the case. The AP hires (meaning employs and pays) all of its interns (usually up to 22), but the member-supported National Public Radio, does not even though its interns are expected to work 20 to 40 hours a week for 8-10 weeks. The NPR exchange for academic course credit is a major plus for students, meaning savings on up to a semester's worth of tuition. Back in London, an internship or "work-placement" opportunity tends to be more condensed such opportunities being brief stints. For example, work-experience placement or a traineeship at the Guardian.co.uk lasts no more than two weeks.

What else can newspaper associations offer to incoming interns other than just the company's official stamp on their resumes/CVs, salary, and/or academic credit? It seems like "experience" is the most obvious and the primary motive for intern-seekers to settle on non-paid gigs, but some news organizations are failing to provide a quality educational experience. Interns who arrive in exchange for free labor are eager to learn and to be deeply engaged in a company's happening and structure. Media organizations should remember to nurture an intern's curiousity.

NUJ general secretary Jeremy Dear said, "Genuine work experience is vital to anyone coming in to the profession, but all too often these placements are of very low quality. Too many employers see internships as a way of getting work done for free, without any thought towards their responsibilities to provide would-be journalists with a learning opportunity."

Source: Press Gazette, NPR, Guardian.co.uk, Mediaite, AP