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Workshop Registration
The Reynolds Center has announced its 2009-10 free workshop schedule.
Select a workshop and register from the drop-down menu below.
Online Seminars
The Reynolds Center registration for Fall 2009 free online seminars.
Hooked on Kindle
By Chris Roush
Tracking the Business Behind the Tomato
By Jonathan Higuera
Five Questions with Bill Choyke
By Jonathan Higuera
Finding the Economy's Silver Lining
By Dick Weiss
Double Whammy: Oil and Housing
By Jennifer Hopfinger
Become an Expert in Personal Finance Coverage
By Kathy Kristof
I had been writing personal finance for six months when Sylvia Porter, the industry's Grande Dame - the woman who started the beat single-handed and then consulted with Presidents about Americans' finances - died.(Suddenly, of emphysema, at age 77.)
The organization that sold her column - the Los Angeles Times Syndicate - didn't have a ready replacement. I was told they conducted a nationwide search to find me, across the street at the Los Angeles Times, with my vast experience and tremendous reputation for writing personal finance. Ahem.
I'm not stupid. I said yes.
I was immediately terrified.
I was accustomed to "hard news" beats, covering banks and thrifts through the savings and loan crisis; insurance companies through the failure of Executive Life and California's landmark Proposition 103; securities firms through the junk bond crisis, the Milken indictment, and Black Monday. What was there to say about personal finance? What was that, anyway - a beat about credit cards?
That was 1991. I am still sometimes terrified.
The terror has shifted. Now what bothers me is that I can't sift through the vast array of things that I want to learn about and write about fast enough.
Certainly, there are credit cards. There are payday lenders, subprime loans; "option" ARMS; insurance and investment swindles; 110 new and complicated tax credits and deductions; VOIP; Internet-based scams and bargains; and a zillion companies trying to get their sticky fingers on your retirement dollars and your kid's college savings.
In other words, the problem with personal finance is that it's everything. Anything that hits your pocketbook, from grocery shopping to working and investing, fits. So the big challenge is to either zero in on a handful of topics that you can learn well enough to become a true expert - or find a way to be a jack-of-all-trades, and still be an expert.
Expertise is pivotal because vague personal finance is worth nothing at all. The story is almost always in the details. And, no matter how much you think you knew yesterday, the world is changing all the time. It takes diligence, great sources and hard work to stay on top of the vast array of topics that define personal finance to make your stories accurate and relevant.
Three things make a great personal finance story: A issue that affects a fairly large number of people; nuances that help you understand why this is an issue now -- or more of a significant issue now than it was a year or 100 years ago; and real live people who are currently affected by the issue and are willing to tell you how.
To get that story, you are going to have to read fascinating literature, like prospectuses, offering circulars and annuity contracts. You will need to get to know regulators and industry experts and talk to them regularly. You may need to read Congressional testimony, as well as tax and Government Accountability Office reports. You'll need to learn about proposed rule changes by the likes of the Internal Revenue Service, the Securities and Exchange Commission and your state insurance regulators.
And, you will definitely need to talk to people, lots of people - your readers - to find out the things that are happening to them.
If that's not enough to keep you busy, you'll have to constantly beat back the lure of the mundane. Because most of the financial world would like you to write a different story. They'd like you to write about the survey that they conducted last week that discovered that "Americans are financially unprepared for retirement." (Not surprisingly, that survey and the 100 others that mimic the results are all sponsored by mutual fund companies and brokerage firms that earn a percentage of every dollar that they convince people to save.) Or, they'd like you to write about the brilliant product/service/company that their client runs or represents. Ideally, they'd like you to write a happy, how-to piece that will result in getting their client more business.
Sometimes these will be stories. But, not often. They're mostly a distraction and waste of time. Most of your time needs to be spent digging into unfamiliar topics and talking to strangers.
So, how do you develop sources and write accurate stories about a beat that could be anything? I have just a few tips:
- Return every phone call and email you get from a consumer, no matter how annoying -- or annoyed -- the consumer. Be nice, even and interested. You'd be amazed at the things you can learn. Save those phone numbers and email addresses. You never know when a consumer with a tax complaint or a problem with their insurance company or an investing question is going to come in handy. And if you returned their call, they're likely to return yours.
- Know that there is a trade group for everything. Really. Even retread tires. The trade groups can provide general information, industry history and sources. To be sure, their sources are likely to spout the party line. But some of those people will be knowledgeable, smart and candid. These sources are gold. Keep those numbers.
- There are also plenty of consumer groups -- Consumers Union; Consumer Action; Consumer Federation of America; the National Consumer's League; The Pension Rights Center; the U.S. Public Interest Research Group; the Center for Responsible Lending. Get to know them and find out what their key issues are. If you need sources and aren't sure who to call, there's a good chance that these people will know.
- Get to know the key legislators -- both state and federal -- on your beats. You may not have time to talk to their legislative staffs often, but you can get on their mailing lists to keep up with significant proposals that might change the landscape.
- Be a normal person. Talk to people. Make friends. Volunteer at your kids' schools. The more you're out of the office, the more real people you meet. Ordinary conversations can result in extraordinary journalism. Remember, these are your readers, your anecdotes and your connection to what matters to the people outside of your office.
- Keep dialing. When you hit a topic that you don't understand, keep calling experts until you know it backwards, forward and upside down. Thoroughly understanding the topic will allow you to explain it in an understandable way.
- Don't be afraid to ask for help or offer it. Finance is complicated. We all know that. If you're stuck, there are actually other journalists who would share their sources and their expertise with you. Consider joining a group to connect to other writers on your beat. The news business is competitive, to be sure. But, the best people in this business are confident enough to be generous with their time and talent. Tap them and be willing, when you are ready, to be tapped by others.
Being a journalist is a calling as much as a profession. If we do our jobs well, we provide the clear, unbiased information that's necessary for the citizens of a democracy to make informed decisions.
That's true, no matter your beat. Doing your job the best that you can matters.
Email this article
Copyright © 2008 Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism
The Reynolds Center has announced its 2009-10 free workshop schedule.
Select a workshop and register from the drop-down menu below.
The Reynolds Center registration for Fall 2009 free online seminars.
By Chris Roush
Tracking the Business Behind the Tomato
By Jonathan Higuera
Five Questions with Bill Choyke
By Jonathan Higuera
Finding the Economy's Silver Lining
By Dick Weiss
Double Whammy: Oil and Housing
By Jennifer Hopfinger
Become an Expert in Personal Finance Coverage
By Kathy Kristof
I had been writing personal finance for six months when Sylvia Porter, the industry's Grande Dame - the woman who started the beat single-handed and then consulted with Presidents about Americans' finances - died.(Suddenly, of emphysema, at age 77.)
The organization that sold her column - the Los Angeles Times Syndicate - didn't have a ready replacement. I was told they conducted a nationwide search to find me, across the street at the Los Angeles Times, with my vast experience and tremendous reputation for writing personal finance. Ahem.
I'm not stupid. I said yes.
I was immediately terrified.
I was accustomed to "hard news" beats, covering banks and thrifts through the savings and loan crisis; insurance companies through the failure of Executive Life and California's landmark Proposition 103; securities firms through the junk bond crisis, the Milken indictment, and Black Monday. What was there to say about personal finance? What was that, anyway - a beat about credit cards?
That was 1991. I am still sometimes terrified.
The terror has shifted. Now what bothers me is that I can't sift through the vast array of things that I want to learn about and write about fast enough.
Certainly, there are credit cards. There are payday lenders, subprime loans; "option" ARMS; insurance and investment swindles; 110 new and complicated tax credits and deductions; VOIP; Internet-based scams and bargains; and a zillion companies trying to get their sticky fingers on your retirement dollars and your kid's college savings.
In other words, the problem with personal finance is that it's everything. Anything that hits your pocketbook, from grocery shopping to working and investing, fits. So the big challenge is to either zero in on a handful of topics that you can learn well enough to become a true expert - or find a way to be a jack-of-all-trades, and still be an expert.
Expertise is pivotal because vague personal finance is worth nothing at all. The story is almost always in the details. And, no matter how much you think you knew yesterday, the world is changing all the time. It takes diligence, great sources and hard work to stay on top of the vast array of topics that define personal finance to make your stories accurate and relevant.
Three things make a great personal finance story: A issue that affects a fairly large number of people; nuances that help you understand why this is an issue now -- or more of a significant issue now than it was a year or 100 years ago; and real live people who are currently affected by the issue and are willing to tell you how.
To get that story, you are going to have to read fascinating literature, like prospectuses, offering circulars and annuity contracts. You will need to get to know regulators and industry experts and talk to them regularly. You may need to read Congressional testimony, as well as tax and Government Accountability Office reports. You'll need to learn about proposed rule changes by the likes of the Internal Revenue Service, the Securities and Exchange Commission and your state insurance regulators.
And, you will definitely need to talk to people, lots of people - your readers - to find out the things that are happening to them.
If that's not enough to keep you busy, you'll have to constantly beat back the lure of the mundane. Because most of the financial world would like you to write a different story. They'd like you to write about the survey that they conducted last week that discovered that "Americans are financially unprepared for retirement." (Not surprisingly, that survey and the 100 others that mimic the results are all sponsored by mutual fund companies and brokerage firms that earn a percentage of every dollar that they convince people to save.) Or, they'd like you to write about the brilliant product/service/company that their client runs or represents. Ideally, they'd like you to write a happy, how-to piece that will result in getting their client more business.
Sometimes these will be stories. But, not often. They're mostly a distraction and waste of time. Most of your time needs to be spent digging into unfamiliar topics and talking to strangers.
So, how do you develop sources and write accurate stories about a beat that could be anything? I have just a few tips:
- Return every phone call and email you get from a consumer, no matter how annoying -- or annoyed -- the consumer. Be nice, even and interested. You'd be amazed at the things you can learn. Save those phone numbers and email addresses. You never know when a consumer with a tax complaint or a problem with their insurance company or an investing question is going to come in handy. And if you returned their call, they're likely to return yours.
- Know that there is a trade group for everything. Really. Even retread tires. The trade groups can provide general information, industry history and sources. To be sure, their sources are likely to spout the party line. But some of those people will be knowledgeable, smart and candid. These sources are gold. Keep those numbers.
- There are also plenty of consumer groups -- Consumers Union; Consumer Action; Consumer Federation of America; the National Consumer's League; The Pension Rights Center; the U.S. Public Interest Research Group; the Center for Responsible Lending. Get to know them and find out what their key issues are. If you need sources and aren't sure who to call, there's a good chance that these people will know.
- Get to know the key legislators -- both state and federal -- on your beats. You may not have time to talk to their legislative staffs often, but you can get on their mailing lists to keep up with significant proposals that might change the landscape.
- Be a normal person. Talk to people. Make friends. Volunteer at your kids' schools. The more you're out of the office, the more real people you meet. Ordinary conversations can result in extraordinary journalism. Remember, these are your readers, your anecdotes and your connection to what matters to the people outside of your office.
- Keep dialing. When you hit a topic that you don't understand, keep calling experts until you know it backwards, forward and upside down. Thoroughly understanding the topic will allow you to explain it in an understandable way.
- Don't be afraid to ask for help or offer it. Finance is complicated. We all know that. If you're stuck, there are actually other journalists who would share their sources and their expertise with you. Consider joining a group to connect to other writers on your beat. The news business is competitive, to be sure. But, the best people in this business are confident enough to be generous with their time and talent. Tap them and be willing, when you are ready, to be tapped by others.
Being a journalist is a calling as much as a profession. If we do our jobs well, we provide the clear, unbiased information that's necessary for the citizens of a democracy to make informed decisions.
That's true, no matter your beat. Doing your job the best that you can matters.
Copyright © 2008 Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism