WFYI's Samantha Horton interviews Lafayette-based Tactile Engineering CEO David Schleppenbach while on tour at the company's factory. Credit: Lizzy McGrevy/WFYI

WFYI newscaster and reporter Samantha Horton remembers how hard it was to establish her journalism career in Indiana. A former college athlete, she wasn’t daunted by the long hours, but says the low pay and sudden schedule changes were tough to manage.

“I lived with roommates and, at times, worked a second job to have enough to cover necessary costs and try to save,” she said. “That was a tough balance with irregular work hours and not disrupting the others I lived with.”

Horton landed her first job in Evansville in 2015. She said she was idealistic about working in radio, thinking she could avoid the sexism her colleagues faced in television. 

Now, with 11 years of experience under her belt and a job as a host and correspondent at WFYI, she’s considered a veteran in the industry. Horton is a bit of an exception. Locally, out of the dozens of young journalists who start entry-level jobs, few manage to hang on for 10 years. Many of them quit or end up laid off. 

In a 2024 report, the Center for Innovation and Sustainability in Local Media found among 600 current and former journalists surveyed, heavy workloads correlated with leaving the field. Professionals working 51-60 hours per week saw a 24% leaving rate compared to a 15% retention rate.

Horton even left journalism for a year and came back. 

How did she persevere when so many entry-level journalists leave the profession? Horton says she tapped into her own curiosity. She learned to be open to fair feedback on her work and to show up in the community, earning the trust of her peers and the audience. She leaned on her editors, who pushed her to refine her reporting and storytelling. As she improved, her desire to stay in the job grew.

“What has helped me survive the 10-year mark is the support systems I have made in the industry as well as those outside, in my personal life,” said Horton. “Being curious of the world with the desire to tell people’s stories and hold those in power accountable for their actions are what keep me wanting to come back each day.”

Getting a journalism job is easier than keeping it

Many reporters don’t make it to the 10-year mark in the profession before washing out. In addition to pressures of the work, they contend with a volatile industry: shrinking newsrooms, dwindling resources, and the possibility of news organizations shutting down altogether. Yet, the journalism school at Indiana University, the Media School, persists, enrolling a steady 225 students.

When I spoke to journalism educators about the future their graduates are facing, educators said many entry-level reporting positions are open to recent graduates but that the industry makes it hard for journalists to thrive deeper into their careers.

Editors and news directors told me that cub journalists need more support these days than they once did. Younger workers are more self-conscious about looking foolish. (And not without reason. It’s not unusual for a powerful person to publicly mock journalists for doing their jobs.)

These fledgling reporters are stepping into a world where social media and AI are transforming the journalism landscape. Has journalism education kept up with the times? What does it take for a reporter to land their first job in Indy? To thrive in the market?

IU professors described the journalism profession’s retention problem.

“What I’ve observed is that people enter journalism and they leave within five to ten years because of the lack of fair compensation, lack of leadership opportunities, the volatility of the industry,” said Suzannah Evans Comfort, associate professor at the Media School at IU. “So people are hiring, but they want to hire cheap. They rarely, in my observation, hire mid-career people. I think that’s pretty rare.”

It’s in local newsrooms that those who were journalism majors or in other disciplines find good entry-level opportunities, Evans Comfort told me. Entry-level journalists often arrive in newsrooms with rough edges on their storytelling and critical thinking skills. Cub reporters and producers receive a lot of feedback from their bosses and editors, which helps them improve, but once they’ve gotten some experience under their belts, it’s hard to find mid-career jobs that meet their needs.

CJ Hoyt, news director for FOX59 and CBS4, agrees that some new professionals leave in the first five years, but says it’s understandable.

“This is a stressful environment,” he said. “Frankly, it’s not for everyone. There are people who find out this business is not what they expected. I suppose that happens in most every industry. There are also people who develop skills in our industry that can apply in other industries where they might find more normal schedules or better pay.”

Tech skills are desirable, but fundamental journalism skills are more important.

Student journalists are already adept at navigating new technology, adapting to social media platforms and using AI. Professors teach journalism students the basics of accuracy, fairness, and neutrality as the first step in their education.

“We ensure that students have the basic elements of journalism first before they engage with technology of any kind,” Evans Comfort said. “That technology changes, but the fundamentals of journalism do not.” Evans Comfort instills in her students an understanding of the ethical issues new technology presents.

Taeyoung Lee, an assistant professor in IU’s Media School, encourages her students not to become overly dependent on platforms or constantly chase shortcuts, whether for social media or AI search.

“In my Social Media and Journalism course, I teach students how journalists and newsrooms can use social media effectively for news promotion, newsgathering, and audience engagement,” Lee said. “Social media offers enormous opportunities, but I also describe it as journalism’s ‘frenemy’ because of challenges such as misinformation, loss of control over news distribution, and growing distrust in news.”

Elaine Monaghan, professor of practice and program director for journalism at IU Bloomington, said it’s not a question of whether future journalists will use AI and other emerging technologies. “The question is whether they will understand those tools well enough to use them ethically, transparently, and in service of the public interest,” she said. “That’s where journalism education comes in.”

Students hone their skills with the fundamentals of journalism in class and at an array of student and other media, including the Indiana Daily Student and the on-campus television station. Through the Michael I. Arnolt Center for Investigative Journalism at IU, students work on stories with media partners like the Associated Press, Reuters, USA Today, and the Indiana Capital Chronicle. They learn how to make records requests at the state and local level and learn how to make FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) requests.

For instance, IU students partnered with Indiana Capital Chronicle staff to produce this investigative story on state spending for the “contentious technology park,” The Limitless Exploration/Advanced Pace (LEAP) Research and Innovation District in Boone County.

Evans Comfort calls the next generation “driven” and “inspirational” in their dogged pursuit of the profession, despite challenges. In 20 years, not much has changed in what students face; it’s only gotten more complicated, she said. Students must stand up to doubtful parents who urge them to pick more lucrative paths and must understand the industry’s rocky footing and uncertain future.

Getting practice 

Although some news outlets have reduced the number of interns they use, the Media School at IU creates opportunities for students to flex their classroom knowledge, Jill Bland, career services specialist for the Media School, told me.

“We’re super aware of the changing landscape and are trying to find innovative ways to help students get experiences,” Bland said. She makes sure students know how to market themselves for internships and prospective jobs by highlighting skills with social media, content creation, and other strengths.

This fall, IU added Indiana Newsroom, a grant-funded initiative designed to solve two problems at once: News organizations’ need for more local news and students’ need for practical experience. While student reporters aren’t paid a fee, their stories are published and circulated statewide by media partners. Max Jones, a 49-year veteran of the newspaper industry, is the instructor, editor and program director.

Recently, the university has placed students at the Herald Times, WISH-TV, Indianapolis Monthly and Hoosier Illustrated.

Horton found solid footing in the industry with a gap year and mentorship

WFYI’s Horton said the key to her endurance was landing a job in a newsroom that aligned with her personal values. “The industry isn’t for the faint of heart, and with layoffs becoming more common,” she said. “I think it’s okay to take some time away to reset.”

Horton stepped away from journalism in 2023, after a negative experience with an editor in another market. She said she was burnt out and needed time to process her experiences in the news industry before deciding whether she wanted to return. In her early years, she found the editing process brutal and said that there was a steep learning curve that felt overwhelming.

“Edits to my stories were tough,” Horton said. “You put so much time into writing something and then an editor tears it apart.”

She had to learn how to deal with factual and subjective critiques of her work. The factual criticism, such as getting a name or number wrong, she learned to accept and appreciate as helpful, although frustrating. The subjective critiques, about her word choices, voice or appearance, she found harder to endure.

“Receiving critiques can make it difficult to keep wanting to do this work,” Horton said. “Yet every so often, when you get an email, a call or a comment out in the field from someone thanking you for a story and what you do is what I have come to focus on and build my confidence to keep going.”

She finally landed at WFYI through connections she made in her first journalism job. Sarah Neal-Estes, WFYI’s news director, became familiar with Horton’s work and mentored her along the way.

“Her mentorship and the care she has for her newsroom made it easy for me to want to come work for her,” Horton said. “I like to believe my body of reporting and her knowing my work ethic and drive helped me land at WFYI in the role I am in today.”

If Horton could give advice to her younger self, or to new reporters, she’d recommend building a support system in the industry, being kind to yourself when long hours feel overwhelming and bleed into your personal life, and finding a newsroom that values your work and pays you fairly for it.

“I believe that mission can only go so far without having people you work with to support you and friends and family understand the demands the job can have with long hours and unexpected time working to cover breaking news,” she said. “Finding a newsroom where you are paid for your experience and are able to make a living is how the industry prevents losing more reporters who have to make tough decisions between living costs and their passion for news.”

Here is a list of the major internships and fellowships at Indy-area news outlets (applications for those listings without links open later this year):

Tracey Compton is Poynter’s Indianapolis Public Editor. You can send your questions about local media to her at indypubliceditor@poynter.org.

Mirror Indy publishes the Indianapolis public editor columns as part of a partnership with Poynter Institute to increase media literacy and trust in local journalism.

Local news delivered straight to your inbox

Mirror Indy's free newsletters are your daily dose of community-focused news stories.

By clicking Sign Up, you’re confirming that you agree with our Terms of Use.

Related Articles