NSK
Today’s edition of #IndustryLoop is nothing but an appreciation post. A piece that will highlight and appreciate one of the most under-appreciated branches of journalism, which is entertainment journalism. I don’t think the ordinary man really understands the demands that come with being an entertainment journalist. Entertainment journalists on a daily basis have to
balance the demands of their editors with those of producing substantive pieces. Editors want stories. Editors want stories now! Editors want stories exploring interesting angles to a subject matter…Now! Not tomorrow, not later today...Now! Can you imagine working under the constant pressure of meeting deadlines every week?!
Possibly every day, especially in an entertainment industry where entertainers do not ‘gaabe’ seem to understand that they are public figures, and want to dictate what a journalist should write. We operate in an entertainment industry where entertainers catch heavy feelings when journalists
decide to follow through with their own version of what will be an interesting piece for a reader. It’s an industry where entertainers want to make it seem that they know more about entertainment journalism than trained and highly-qualified entertainment journalists themselves. It’s an industry where entertainers religiously follow everything about international entertainers. The irony is, Namibian entertainers would consume international entertainment gossip and news, but would want to catch feelings when Namibian journalists decide to add a different spin to a very boring event or subject matter involving Namibian entertainers. Because honestly, gone are the days that your product was entertainment. Nobody cares about your product. The market has changed to such an extent that
consumers want to know everything else about an entertainer but their product. There is so much competing for a reader’s attention. So, for a print journalist in 2022, stakes are high. The laissez-faire approach that we had to entertainment journalism a few years ago is really a thing of the past. The print industry, in general, is probably one industry in the media space that is literally at war with the rapid habit changes of the market.
The print industry understands that a different and innovative approach is necessary for the survival of the paper, which fiddles down to entertainment journalism. Writing about someone’s new song is so 2009! That would have excited your ordinary reader back then. However, sh*t has changed. People consume stuff exponentially differently now compared to 2009. If the story, for instance, was highlighting the fact that the artist survived cancer, could not speak for two years, healed and is now able to sing, that is the story! There’s got to be more. The whole “new song, produced by who who” is boring! I don’t understand why artists or entertainers in general do not get this. Balancing that constant need to meet a deadline with making sure that a story which is eventually presented to the editor is sound, is the spark that ignited the need to appreciate the art of entertainment journalism today. So, the next time you call an entertainment journalist for your event or any newsworthy element, keep an open mind. Allow them to do their job, because they know and understand how the market has changed. You won’t understand because entertainers in Namibia rarely embark on R&D missions. However, trust your entertainment journalist to do their job. Until the next Loop, we say #GMTM
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