The job of a journalist is a very risky one, specially if you are working as a war reporter, investigation journalist or similar areas. I worked as a journalist for more than 10 years and I experienced some mild risky situations that at that time I thought it was incredible (Adrenaline, yep). More involved a journalist gets with the work, the more they are willing to risk what is necessary in order to find the truth and report it. Men in high positions are naturally inclined to censure when a journalist gets too close to the truth, sometimes they pay with their own lives but one thing for sure: their dignity for the work remained intact until the time of death.
A journalist's job can be risky but the majority of the profession is fairly safe. War correspondents are an exception, as is any profession that involves itself in war.
I became a journalist initially because of my passion for sport. I wanted to be a broadcaster. As a child, if I wasn't playing sport I was definitely watching it!
I spent several years in sports reporting, in particular as a football reporter and then as a sports editor. At one stage I coached, played, refereed and reported on the round ball game - yes I was obsessed! But I also got to meet some of my heroes like Klinsmann, Leonardo, Le tissier, just about every Australian international and a lot of star players. However sports reporting became a bit mundane for me and I needed new challenges so I changed to news.
I have been covering news ever since and have worked in country WA and at several papers in Sydney.
Journalism is quite an interesting job because you learn new things and report on quite a diverse range of issues every day. It also gives you an insight into how the world really functions and human nature. To be honest it's very hard not to become cynical if you are a journalist because you really see the failure and frailty of humanity far too often. On the flip side you get to meet some amazing and awe inspiring human beings.
I regularly report on on crime, corruption, politics, terrorism, environment and general news. My dream is to become a foreign correspondent in some of the world's hot spots, but this is a dream that my partner my not be so keen on.
It's a shame that 47 journalists died for challenging authority, that is a fundamental core of journalism. You are there to tell people what is really happening in the world and part of that role is challenging authority.