Developing sources on a beat.

True. 'Course I'd never be lucky enough to have an editor or co-worker with that kind of perspective. Well-said.

And for the record, this was just one thing of a few that drove me away. I guess I could never compartmentalize hings like this.

 

ServeItUp, what are you doing now, if you don't mind me asking?

I feel a lot like you do about this, but I also realize I need to excel at beat reporting before I can track down a decent GA job.

 

The latter part of this is so true. A few years back, I came to be amazed by how much I had in common with the minor league manager though we were 25 years apart. Our longest conversations around the batting cages was always about amusements parks. When of the roving instructors came through town, we always talked about the NBA because he as a season ticket holder and we would talk about draft strategy. And then when I needed him for a story, he would always give me as much time as I needed and actually gave me his cell number without asking in case I needed a comment from him about any up and coming prospects. He turned out to be a very good source for me.

 

You're headed in the right direction and there's a lot of good advice on this thread. Just shoot the shit with people and you'll be amazed at what happens. And yes, you do need to really prove yourself on a beat (developing enterprise, producing mountains of copy for both Web and print, breaking news, all while dealing with the grind of a season) before you can move into a GA gig.

I'm on the desk. Like I said, my inability to cozy up to people with an ulterior motive was just one of many things that turned me away from reporting and writing.

 

First thing remember that if you are new to a beat, you're going to have people shooting you shit from all angles. Some of the shit is going to be good. Some will be bad. You're going to have to absorb and analyze it but it won't take you long to figure out who can help you and who can't.
Don't be aloof. That's the problem with many young journalists. They can talk to a computer but can't talk to an individual. And most of the time when they talk to someone, they don't know how to let their guard down.
Relax, enjoy and above all learn.

 

Boots, we find some common ground here. Our generation was brought up to hide behind e-mail and instant messages, it seems.

 

And that's the problem. You can see that here where younger people are quick to call a person a name or hide. They don't know how to stand up for themselves or articulate themselves without trying to get others involved.
You have to learn that people aren't computers. Every one is different. You treat people the way you would like to be treated. Just because you pound on a computer, you don't pound on a person. It doesn't work that way.
Communication is a two way street, not a one-way tunnel. To give information, you have to be willing to receive it. That's why so many younger writers fail to get the true meaning of a story.