Hi y'all,

I'm working on my first really long magazine piece. I've written pieces in the 2,000–3,000-word range before, but this one will probably be two or three times as long, with a looot of different scenes and people to weave together. Feeling a little out of my depth).

So: What are some of your favourite long-form magazine pieces/ ones that would be worth studying as a writer? Thanks in advance!

Edit: Lots of interesting suggestions already, thanks! One thing I should have mentioned: I'm doing foreign affairs reporting, so if anyone has recommendations specifically for long-form international reporting, particularly from conflict zones, I'd love to hear those too.

Sorry if I'll sound weird, English is not my native language.
Some of my younger coworkers got a raise and I asked my editor when the rest of us will get one.
She said “when we convince them we deserve it”.

I don't know what to do more than I do now. I've worked here the longest, I constantly bring new ideas, I help my coworkers, I have articles that were successful.

I know I do some trouble with the schedule because I have school some Saturdays but we had coworkers whe worked and studied during the week. And now I'm temporarily working from home because I have a young puppy but that's going to end in 2 weeks and I'll be back. Meanwhile one of my coworkers works mostly from home due to her mental health issues (I don't have a problem with that).

I don't know what more they want from me and honestly I don't even want to ask. I feel like my editors don't like me that much tbh and I have no idea when that changed.

I love this job, I love my coworkers but I'm tired to be working for such low pay and apparently I don't deserve more.

Do you have any advice? Ask why? Change jobs? Change my career?

Hey everyone, I’m a student in a tight spot. I have a school assignment due this Tuesday where I need to conduct a quick 3 minute interview with a media professional (journalist, editor, PR specialist, radio/podcast producer, social media manager, etc.).

I have a short list of just 4 questions ready to go. We can do it over a quick Zoom call, a phone call, or I can just DM/email you the questions and you can reply with text or a voice note—whatever is easiest for you!

If you have 4 minutes to spare today or tomorrow to save my grade, please comment below or DM me directly. Thank you so much!

I can’t believe those reporters were thrown out and accused of lying and trespassing at a public event!! Wtf is going on that this shit is so secretive they only allow their ‘own’ reporters. A sit-in protest is just what the doctor ordered, screw all you politicians you are all scum.

I am mystified as to why the Telegraph would update an article to introduce an enormous mathematical error into this news article, the error appears twice in title and body and has been online for 23 hours now and yet remains uncorrected as any attempts to alert them are paywall protected and flagging on the news system did not have tell publisher🤦‍♂️ option.

Hey everyone so im a young syrian and I've always loved Researching about anything and everything, im very obsessive in the way that i feel like i need to know everything about things that I dont fully understand yet,which leads directly to journalism since it encapsulates what I just wrote,but since I live in the middle east we are as you know not allowed to always shed light on things or even just simply ask. We are ment to accept it and move on, so i wanted to selfishly ask if an organisation needs someone on the ground that knows things only a local would and where I can share info ,events ongoing ,and how the public really feel about certain things,

I apologise if this counts as self promotion but unfortunately not everyone has the freedom to do as they please

I'm in my mid 20s and have worked as a reporter writing articles for several years. I've transitioned into doing more TV reporting, making live appearances, fronting video packages.

I know producers would only allow me to do this because they have faith in my abilities and can see I do well. They also have told me that I look good on camera, but i can't shake the anxiety that I don't look as pretty or attractive as other female reporters or presenters I see on TV.

I care about the work and the content more than anything, but I scrutinise my appearance heavily afterwards. I recently had to film on location so they captured more of me than just my face and upper body. I havent seen the full footage yet but I'm filled with anxiety and dread over how I'm going to look.

I love TV and being on video and want to do more, but I don't know how to get over this. I'm also a brown woman so I feel like I've had to work harder to prove myself on TV, but I know a pretty white girl the same age as me would have it easier.

In fact, I've heard one of the senior female producers say things about some of my white female colleagues who havent been on TV as much including how good they look on camera but she's never said the same thing about me. She tells me I look good, but she seems to be fawning over their appearance.

I’m an online entertainment journalist, and two recent stories have left me wondering what my beat is collectively accepting as fact verification?

Over the summer, I investigated the new operator behind the revival of L.A.’s historic Bruin Theatre. There was 15+ years’ worth of publicly available controversy surrounding his Toronto business, including allegations of discrimination, assault, and nonpayment, that hadn’t surfaced in any coverage of the reopening. Following up with sources and checking records revealed a substantially different story than the one the public was getting — but his past was searchable before then.

More recently, I reported on Danny Trejo’s involvement in “Pawn Shop,” the Daily Wire’s pro-ICE movie. His son, Gilbert, had discussed the situation in an Instagram Close Friends story, intending his fears for his dad reach a limited, personal audience. A screenshot somehow made its way into a local newspaper’s coverage and was subsequently picked up by digital outlets nationally. Gilbert told me that neither the local paper nor any of the outlets amplifying it had contacted him before publishing.

In both cases, I saw major details asserted without any apparent effort to establish the factual basis for the story or interrogate the sourcing. I totally understand understaffing and traffic pressure. But it’s also… unsettling(?) to follow a claim through several publications and realize the apparent corroboration is just repetition.

For people who’ve been covering Hollywood for a while: Has it always been this bad? Or have expectations meaningfully deteriorated? Is this specific to my coverage area or an issue across the internet?

Though I don't have 10+ years of experience in the job field (God I'm still a student journalist working on getting my bachelors) I feel like I need to get this off my chest.

I don't think it's doing any good putting down people who are striving or show curiosity towards this career. I understand the sentiment of wanting to be realistic about the actual job market and being straight up with people on what it looks like right now.

AI, the decline of jobs and more are obviously things that should ALWAYS be taken into consideration when it comes to not this job but every. single. other. job right now. Journalism isn't the only profession being hurt.

But the way I've been reading about it here is just not the way to be going about it. It's sad to read people coming to this subreddit for genuine advice and seeking help to be shut down by blunt, harsh answers on how they will be broke and never make a living.

It's so cynical and weird.

Instead of constantly echoing that people should NEVER EVER peruse a degree or even try to do anything remotely related to journalism because its "a complete waste of time and money", why don't just help lift people up who want to try? Why is it always have to be pushing people away rather than being there if they fail from trying?

Reading posts and comments full of negative mindsets are exhausting. I can't imagine how it would feel looking at this subreddit as someone who was thinking about trying journalism out.

Sometimes it will feel so so easy to succumb to any pressures because it is insanely scary. Then, I just look back at the people I have met in my classes/newsrooms, the articles I've wrote and the experiences I've had. I realize that it doesn't have to be scary because WE DON'T NEED TO DO THIS ALONE!

Everything I've gone through throughout my career has been at the side of so many inspiring people, I was hoping this subreddit would be like that too.

Fortunately, I'm in a space, mentally and financially, where this is something I completely think is worth trying. If this doesn't work out for me in 10 years, then I'll have another 10 more to try something else. THERE WILL ALWAYS BE TIME.

To those in the same boat as me, I believe being a journalist is something we need now more than ever. Our political climate, stuff with AI and society as a whole is getting worse, who will we have to report it if no one ever tries? Please don't think that theres no point anymore or that the chances of "making it" are zero to none. We will always need HUMAN voices in our media. How do people ever expect things to change if people like us don't make the steps to try?

I expect to probably get some backlash on this post. I've already addressed I'm young and probably don't even come close to the amount of experience others here have. But, I don't care. I think it's important to share my thoughts and sharing an opinion that isn't really voiced here.

But, that's what journalism is, isn't it? Giving a voice to the voiceless?

So for the love of god, be realistic but stop putting down other people just because it didn't work out for you. Be there for aspiring journalists and those down on their luck. Let people be optimistic, let people be hopeful for the future of journalism! You all already seem to know doing this job isn't easy, so why not take that knowledge and support others with it?

Hi! I'm studying journalism in university and soon we'll start applying for internships, it's a part of our studies. I was wondering what kind of CV would be the best for applying to these interships, since I have a good amount of work experience but none of it is from journalism, besides one story I wrote as a freelancer.

We've done all kinds of different stories in school so I have some stuff to put in my portfolio and I have some idea what I'm interested in as a journalist and what are some of my strengths and what I should work on more.

From my previous jobs, I think it would be the best to just mention the jobs and just some skills I learned from them that would be also useful in journalism (working in a group, working alone, dealing with angry people, working under pressure etc).

Then I think it would be good to gather a portfolio from the best stories I have done in school + the freelancer one to show what kind of writer I am etc, and then tell them my interests and strengths that I have found out I have as a journalist.

For context, the jobs are working together with our uni to get us these interships so they're not expecting everyone to have a lot of experience and we've been told that the stories we've done in school will work fine as a portfolio if you don't have any other experience.

So, does my plan sound okay and how would I make the most of what I've learned generally about working from my previous jobs + what I've learned about journalism in school?

Across the US, local news organizations have been struggling for decades. Now, Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed a new bill that will inject funds into California's newsrooms, including KCRW. Will it make a difference?

"This is a policy that injects much-needed oxygen into newsrooms that are gasping for air," says USC journalism professor Gabriel Kahn. "But it is not an end-all, be-all, fix-it."

KCRW's Zoha Malik reports.

I'm particularly interested in podcasts about local news ( esp rural) and new ideas re business models , revenue streams etc. UK too if possible.

I enjoy the below - does anyone have any further suggestions?

Thanks!

The Future of Media Expained

https://open.spotify.com/show/2xQ85CbSCDSH7jvlHMYOLe?si=YF7Fzll8T-urp8S63XkM3Q&utm_source=copy-link

Small Press, Big Ideas

https://open.spotify.com/show/7uGBDgFU7zaq8C12mfjXI3?si=4kqO8ipAQnGr0dtIuK34xg&utm_source=copy-link

What Works - The Future of Local News

https://open.spotify.com/show/6BgN76R6AUGszvkB5ReEwy?si=FJBQCovwQ4OIbc9jDTyb5w&utm_source=copy-link

Freelancing for Journalists

https://open.spotify.com/show/4W6UZMuYusf2OhTGWo9gbb?si=lKLhfjvpSqeVZy6I7kXjeA&utm_source=copy-link

Media Confidential

https://open.spotify.com/show/4W6UZMuYusf2OhTGWo9gbb?si=lKLhfjvpSqeVZy6I7kXjeA&utm_source=copy-link

I am 2 and a half years into journalism degree. I can edit, I can write, I can interview, I can film, I can even anchor. I tried like 4 times to get into an internship but no dice, none around me, one 2 hours away but its very small. I hear all the time that it's dying, im gonna be replaced by ai. My parents saved up for 20 years for me to go to college, and now i feel guilty like I have wasted their money. I feel ashamed.

I have a lot of passion for journalism and like working at my schools newspaper.

But if it's doomed, I can maybe switch my degree?

If all else fails, I would want to be a mechanic. I like that too, and while my heart will always be with journalism, I also like that, it's my number 2 passion.

I am a staff reporter at a teeny small-town paper in Western Pennsylvania. I know how hard it is to find a staff position, and I acknowledge that.

However, I am really looking to advance my career. I only have experience reporting in western Pennsylvania and I want to branch out more.

I am 24 and graduated from college in spring 2025. I feel like my portfolio is varied enough for me to move on.

Are there any national outlets that are a good stepping stone to dip your toes into national work? Pennsylvania state work would be good too.

I have a lot of experience in crime coverage, courtroom work, public safety, etc. I also can do classic community features and all sorts of government meetings. I’ve got a decent handle on FOIA requests and all that good hard news jazz as well.

It is hard to freelance while having a staff position, but my editor allows it and I fear it might be my only chance of moving away from small, local papers.