It’s a good thing that I don’t really like money. As a
budding college writer, if I were to pursue any plans of becoming a
professional journalist, my future would not exactly guarantee a six-figure
salary and a cushy 401(k).

As the Internet continues to flourish, offering the average
person access to information that 20 years ago was available only via magazines
and daily newspapers, the future of print media is in question.

Last week I had the great opportunity to have lunch with
Evan Thomas, the managing editor of Newsweek, and was able to pick his brain on
the upcoming presidential election, the current state of American politics and,
most applicable to me, his thoughts and advice to the next generation of
journalists.

Speaking to a crowd of a few hundred people the night before
in Price Center Ballroom, Thomas addressed the issue of declining subscription
rates for his magazine and the dynamic role that online news outlets have
played.

He spoke to the fact that online advertising is much cheaper
than it is through print media, which has caused Newsweek to see many of its
traditional sponsors pull the plug. According to a report of the State of the
News Media, the three biggest newsweeklies — Time, Newsweek and U.S. News &
World Report — lost a combined one million subscribers over the last 15 years.

As one of the top men at Newsweek, Thomas seemed a bit
dejected when discussing the bleak future of print media and the troubles it
poses for his publication. But as an accomplished journalist, he will not bear
the burden of journalism’s future — he will be long retired by the time
technology finally twists the knife into print media.

So between forkfuls of my spinach salad and mango
cheesecake, I made a point to ask him what he thought I, as a starry-eyed,
optimistic college student, should do about any urges to join the journalism
workforce. Being careful to avoid turning me off to the career, he chuckled
slightly to himself before giving me some advice that seemed stressed and
cautious.

“Find yourself a small newspaper that will allow you to
write what you are passionate about; make sure it’s something that you really
care about,” he said.

That’s it? Here’s one of the most celebrated journalists in
the entire nation, and he tells me essentially the same thing that my
kindergarten teacher told me when I told her that I wanted to be a pro baseball
player: Follow your heart.

I don’t know if I was expecting him to offer some piece of sage wisdom that
would show me how to be a successful journalist, but I had hoped that any
advice from such a prominent writer would contain something a little more
concrete.

After the lunch was over, I kept thinking about what he had
said about the perils of print media as well as his advice to me as a
journalist, and I realized that the two things are perfectly intertwined.
Writers of previous generations were never assured lucrative careers, but they
were safe knowing they held a basic monopoly on news, and that if they worked
hard enough they could eventually earn a decent living.

With less job security, aspiring writers are now forced to
follow Thomas’ seemingly vague, but very crucial, advice and should only
venture into the field of journalism if it is truly what their hearts tell
them.

Taking the chance of major financial gain out of the
profession will create a pure breed of writers who are writing only because
they honestly believe that a virtuous and dedicated media is a fundamental
component of a working democracy.

If journalists can attain the same standing in society as
teachers — very noble yet underpaid — a more informed American public will be
created. My mother has been a public school teacher for almost 30 years now,
and my father apparently took Thomas’ advice decades before it was ever given,
dedicating his life to working as a journalist and political activist covering
grassroots social justice movements.

Although both are unbelievably smart and capable people, my
parents chose to follow their hearts and took on careers that directly made the
world a better place. My parents will be proud of me no matter what I choose to
do, but I feel a lot better knowing that being a part of a new generation of
journalists would serve a truly positive role in the world.

Maybe Thomas was just giving me a cliche answer, and maybe
he was just blowing me off to hurry on to a more important meeting — or maybe
his advice actually was sincere.

Nobody is in a better place to understand the magnitude of
the threat to print media and journalism than he is, and maybe he just wants to
make sure that his beloved profession is continued by people whose hearts are
in the right place.