Meet a Journalist

A journalist's profile, stories and career in the field of journalism. Know a journalist who should be profiled here? Send an e-mail to Janet E. Bardon

August, 2003
Wayne Thibodeau
Political Reporter, Charlottetown Guardian
Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island
wthibodeau@theguardian.pe.ca

Why did you choose journalism?

I've always known that I wanted to be a reporter. I remember as a kid playing cops and robbers I was always the reporter covering the crime. It would drive my friends crazy.

Even in high school and beyond some of my friends didn't know what they wanted to do, but I always did. I really don't know what attracted me to journalism. I just remember watching the news every night with my parents, and being attracted at a very early age to the news. It didn't take long for me to decide that that's what I wanted to do.

I got my chance before I even left high school. I received a call from the bureau manager at the local daily newspaper who knew I did some writing for the high school newspaper. He asked if I could help him out with some freelance work and the rest, as they say, is history.

What was your second career choice?

Because I always knew what I wanted to do, I really didn't think much about a second career choice. However, I did toil with the idea of becoming a teacher. That was short-lived, especially after speaking to some of my older friends who were in the teaching field.

Where did you complete post-secondary education?

As I mentioned, I was already in the business before I left high school. I did complete a short program at a local community college and then returned to a weekly newspaper where I worked as a reporter, photographer and later editor.

I did leave the newspaper business for a year to study marketing however I missed reporting about a month after I left. I completed my college program, received my diploma, and quickly returned to the news biz.

I was lucky enough to be able to join the staff at the provincial newspaper, as one of their political reporters.

What experience best prepared you for the job of journalist?

I would have to say working in the field. I was lucky enough to be able to work closely with the late Jim MacNeill, publisher of the Eastern and West Prince Graphics. The opportunity to work in a small newsroom like The Graphic has made me the journalist that I am today. You get a chance to do everything write, report, and edit at the grass roots.

You are also able to get in touch with the community, to care about small details and small issues, to know the people first-hand who are reading your copy, which I believe has served me well throughout my career.

Jim MacNeill was also a man who pushed his reporters to dig deeper, to never accept the status quo, and to have a whole lot of fun while doing it. That's something I try to do everyday, and something I try to instill in other reporters I meet.

Tell us about a highlight of your career, a story you have covered or an interview you have conducted.

There have been so many highlights in the past decade; I wouldn't know where to start.

However, my fondest memories are rarely of something exhilarating that I've done or some celebrity that I've met but are of the ordinary people.

I had a chance to cover a small community and its battle to save its community hospital, which the government had threatened to close.

It wasn't one story but a series of stories; it wasn't one person but a series of people.

But what stood out for me is how the community came together in the face of adversity, how the community refused to accept the status quo.

I never worked harder on a story, but what I remember is not the protests, the meetings or the anger but the passion the people of that community showed in their fight a fight they ultimately won.

Who was/is your mentor?

While there are many people I look up to in this business, I have to say my mentor is the late Jim MacNeill. We didn't always see eye-to-eye. In fact, we had some of the most spectacular fights you would ever believe however at the end of the day I always respected his decision, his passion, and his dedication not only to his paper but also to his people. I remember his adage, 'Comfort the afflicted, afflict the comfortable.' Not a bad adage to live by.

What do you recommend to young people considering a career in journalism?

Get out there and get published. That's the most important message I could get out to somebody interested in getting into this business. Journalism schools are great to get you in the door but the only way you're going to excel in this business is by doing it.

As newsrooms get smaller, newspapers and radio and television stations are always looking for good people who can help out. Get a hold of somebody and tell them that you're available to do some freelance work and then keep banging on doors until somebody hands you a pay cheque every week.

I would caution anybody interested in journalism to take a long, hard look at why they want to become a journalist. You have to have a passion for this business. Most reporters don't make a lot of money, they work long and unusual hours, and they take a lot of grief. If, after all that, you still want to do it then you'll have a bright future ahead of you.

What do you consider the biggest challenge facing journalists today?

My greatest fear about the future of journalism is the almighty dollar. I see newsrooms across the country getting smaller as corporations try to cut costs.

Newspapers are going with less people, radio stations have all but abandoned news, and television stations are relying more and more on feed from CNN than generating their own news.

My fear is that soon nobody will be doing local news.

I believe consumers are starting to notice and they will be the ones that will make a difference. If they start demanding more, the media owners are going to have to listen.

I'm also concerned about the demands being placed on journalists. I was one of this country's first "convergence" reporters, having to file stories on a daily basis for a newspaper, television station, and a Web site.

While it was interesting to be on the cutting-edge, at the end of the day I was producing a lot less news. I spent a big portion of my day reworking the story I had for different mediums.

As we move ahead in an ever-changing media environment, I hope that those in control of our country's media outlets realize that at the end of the day they need journalist on the ground to create great journalism.