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In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. Friedrich Nietzsche

Politics

The Most Essential Skills That Every Political Journalist Should Have

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The current political climate is an intense one, and as such, if you are a fan of structured debate, engaging conversation, and writing, a career in political journalism may well be the one for you.

Of course, this is a fairly competitive area of work, and as such, if you wish to stand out from the crowd, it is a good idea to have an understanding of the skills that political journalists require. This article will break down in a bit more detail the essential skills that every political journalist should have to succeed in the industry.

Firstly, You Are Going to Need Constant Access to Information

Before getting  the skills you require, it is worth noting that you are going to need to be set up to access information regardless of where you are. You may need this to check something you have previously written, edit work based on real-world developments, or fact-check someone.

You are going to need to work using the cloud, which means that you are going to have access to previous items that you have written, and you will be able to edit documents if that becomes necessary. If you are worried about others accessing to your documents, seek out Microsoft 365 Solutions that make using cloud-based software incredibly straightforward and secure.

You Will Need to Be Able to Speak to People

A lot of your job is going to involve conducting interviews regularly, and as such, you are going to need to feel comfortable speaking to people, even if this means asking them questions that they may not feel comfortable answering. Interviews are incredibly useful when it comes to:

  • Collecting information that you can cite in your writing.
  • Checking information that has been provided by other sources.
  • Trying to understand different people’s perspectives on a topic.

You will need to practice your interview technique to get it right, but as a piece of advice, rather than writing a specific number of questions, you should instead set yourself a goal. If you go into the interview with a goal of what you want to find out, this will translate to writing much better than if you just ask a run of questions that may not have any connection with one another.

Be Able to Write Factually and in an Unbiased Way

Of course, one of the fundamental features that every journalist needs to possess is that of being able to write well. This doesn’t mean being able to paint a picture with words or use a description that reads like a novel; it means cutting down to the facts and being able to present them in a way that everyone reading, regardless of their political leaning, will be able to learn from.

As the bare bones, you should understand grammar and punctuation, be able to write complete sentences, and be able to convey information in a way that is easy to understand.