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As a journalist, you have the ability to tell news stories in a persuasive, compelling way. Use your skills and our cover letter examples and tips to create an impressive professional journalism cover letter and convince employers that you’re a top job candidate.
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On this page, you’ll find outstanding cover letter journalism examples and tips to write a cover letter that lands you a coveted job interview. Get started with this journalism cover letter template! You can easily edit it in our Cover Letter Builder in just a few minutes.
One of the best ways to write a cover letter is to use cover letter examples to understand what yours should look like. Here’s a cover letter sample that can help you catch the eye of a recruiter:
Build my cover letterWith an exciting career in journalism on the line, take your time and craft a thoughtful, powerful and professional sounding journalism cover letter by following the following five key tips. If you’re new at writing cover letters, we suggest you use a ResumeHelp expertly-prepared cover letter template as base. Simply customize it to fit the job description of the journalist role that you’re applying for.
A good journalist knows the importance of a quick, catchy “elevator pitch” to make a point, land a good story or get noticed. Beginning your journalism cover letter in just the same way is recommended. To appeal to hiring managers who are inundated with cover letters, resumes and applications for each open job role, lead off with an impactful statement that has the reader saying, “Wow, this candidate is impressive.” Once you catch the hiring manager’s attention, you can rest assured that the entire cover letter will be read. For example: “As the daughter of an editor-in-chief for the Walden Farms Chronicle, you might say journalism is in my blood. I spent 10 straight summers going to work with my father, fueling my passion for writing news.”
In the journalism field, it’s important to write for a publication that shares your core values, beliefs and goals. Perform a bit of research to learn more about the publisher you’re applying to and share what inspires you about them in your cover letter. Point out specific past work experience and accomplishments to show how you can benefit the company and be a good fit. For example, if you’re a photojournalist, you could write a statement such as “My photojournalism skills go far above just taking impactful, newsworthy photos. I’ve been on photo shoots in all types of environments, including on building roofs, mountains, underwater and in nine countries around the world, including riding a six foot camel in Egypt.”
If your specialty in journalism is churning out featured stories for the local newspaper, you want to display key metrics regarding the number of articles and the time span. For example: “In my current role at The Washington Post, I have been writing, editing and uploading two featured articles each day.” That shows your ability to be productive, and conveys your creativity, diligence, writing, editing and computer skills. Do your best to highlight your out-of-the-box achievements and recognition in the form of awards that you’ve received. This will get you to stand out for more than just being a good writer that can be said the same for most other job candidates. Allow your measurable accomplishments to convince the reader that you’re a standout candidate that deserves a job interview.
The journalist job description will include the necessary skills required for a journalist job candidate. Those skills are there for a reason: busy hiring managers set up applicant tracking systems (ATS) to find those skills (in the form of keywords) in the application materials submitted. Be sure to tailor your cover letter to include those skills, which will most likely include soft skills like communication, persuasion, ethics, curiosity and objectivity, and learned hard skills like research, interviewing, news reporting, investigative reporting, editing and social media. Look at our cover letter journalism examples to see how to incorporate your skill set.
Reminding a journalist to proofread your cover letter may seem unnecessary, but you’d be surprised at how many job candidates rush through writing a cover letter to submit the job application as fast as possible (and commit some bloopers in the process). Prospective publishers will be expecting an error-free cover letter that exhibits attention to detail, so make sure to review your letter thoroughly before you submit it. Our cover letter resume builder tool has spell check built in to ensure that there are no oversights.
Whether you’re writing a journalism cover letter to apply for a news reporter, feature writer, correspondent, columnist, sports writer, photojournalist, investigative reporter, graphic artist, junior editor or managing editor, you can benefit from the following five steps to write a powerful cover letter.
At the top of your journalism cover letter, display your name and contact information in the header, including your name, phone number or email address to contact you for a job interview. Be sure your information is current. As a journalist, you’ll also include links to your journalism portfolio, professional website, social media profile or networking profile, such as LinkedIn. If you’ve done a lot of journalism work, your portfolio of samples will document publications and experience that you can refer to in your journalism cover letter or resume. Below your contact information, left align the hiring manager’s contact information.
Address the hiring manager directly by name rather than a generic salutation like, “Dear Hiring Manager” or the never recommended, “To whom it may concern.” ResumeHelp career experts suggest you look at the job advertisement for the hiring manager’s name and it’s not listed, look on the company website for who is heading up the journalism team that you’re looking to join.
The first paragraph of your cover letter is where you’ll introduce yourself with a hook and list your best journalism achievements. This will make the hiring manager want to read more from your cover letter and how you’ll fit the job role. Perhaps you create a catchy sentence or two mentioning your favorite moment of your career – maybe you were reporting outside of the Tony Awards in New York City and you met your biggest mentor in the field of journalism who was also reporting on the award show and gave you some career-changing advice. The cover letter opening paragraph gives you a chance to show your creativity by saying something about yourself through a quick story that makes you a memorable job candidate.
So now that you’ve captured attention to your excellent background in journalism, your second paragraph needs to provide more relevant show stopping information about how you’re the best fit for the job opening. This job application may be for a job title that’s constantly on the front lines, looking for the newest scoop, so show how you’re willing and able to do whatever it takes to get a great news story. Try to come up with a past job experience where you were called upon to go out of your comfort zone to perhaps interview sources or visit an unsafe location. Be sure to tie in your years of experience and add any achievements that make you an ideal candidate for the job position. Don’t forget to refer to the professional work samples in your portfolio that will back up what you say in your cover letter and resume.
In the closing last paragraph of your journalism cover letter, you need to show your astute journalist persuasion skills and confidence by boldly asking for a job interview. By using a phrase like, “I look forward to the opportunity to provide you further information…”, you are basically pushing for the hiring manager to contact you. Be sure to thank the reader and close your letter with a formal sign-off like “Sincerely” or “Best Regards.”
If you’re new at writing a cover letter, use the journalism cover letter examples on this page to get started writing your own.
Build my cover letterA journalist will be expected to demonstrate both hard skills (technical) and soft skills (personality traits) to effectively get the job done. While writing skills are obviously the most important skill, there are many other skills that a publisher will require a journalism job candidate to have in order to produce and deliver impactful mass media news stories.
In the exciting field of journalism, you know the importance of research and that includes learning as much as you can about writing journalism cover letters and resumes. Use these links to gain knowledge and find the right tools, templates and examples to create the most impressive journalism cover letter and journalism resume:
Cover Letter Builder: Build your journalism cover letter with our online resume tool that easily leads you through the writing steps in minutes!
Cover Letter Templates: Pick a cover letter template to use as base for your journalism cover letter and simply add your information. It’s that simple!
Cover Letter Examples: Our cover letter examples are expertly written for different industries and job roles including journalism!
How to Format a Cover Letter: Learn which cover letter fonts, colors, sections and spacing will make your cover letter look the most professional in the eyes of a prospective employer, recruiter or hiring manager.
Journalism Resume Examples – Use these resume examples whether you’re just starting out as a junior level journalist or looking for your next exciting role in the field of journalism.
Writer Resume Examples – Sometimes you just need a bit of inspiration to create a powerful resume and these writer resume examples are a great starting point.
Editor Resume Examples – Land your next editor job with your best editor resume with help from these editor resume examples that give you the ideal base letter to whip up a quick first draft.
Listing Writing Skills on a Creative Resume – Prominently highlighting your writing skills is the key to getting the hiring manager to consider you a top candidate.
Build my cover letterHave questions? We’re here to help.
In addition to the key elements that every journalism-related cover letter should have (header, greeting, introduction, body paragraphs and closing), in your news reporter cover letter, demonstrate your writing skills, as well as strong communication, persuasive abilities, creativity and your enthusiasm for the opportunity to work for the specific publisher or broadcasting network. Mention your most relevant news reporting accomplishments in current events, why you chose this career path and how the prospective employer will benefit from hiring you for the news reporter role.
Your broadcast journalism cover letter is more than just an application document that accompanies your broadcast journalism resume. Be sure to show your communication and writing skills to make a lasting first impression on the potential employer. Besides listing your publications, awards and other journalistic accomplishments, show your passion, motivation and enthusiasm for the company and position you’re applying for. Turn your relevant experience into a creative story that highlights your most impressive skills and published pieces. For example, relate a story about a notable achievement, such as being assigned to cover a tense local election on Election Day, and how your broadcast that you had to write and broadcast in mere hours earned you a media award. Broadcast journalists may all be good writers, but any recognitions you can highlight makes you a memorable job candidate.
A professional cover letter for journalism should include these three main elements:
Need more inspiration? Looking at a journalism cover letter sample is a great way to start writing a good cover letter.
Yes, submitting a cover letter along with your journalism resume and job application makes a difference towards the success of your job search. Your cover letter is your first opportunity to show off your writing skills and directly demonstrate your ability to be a good journalist. What you write in your cover letter also gives the hiring manager or prospective employer a glimpse into your personality and work ethic to show you can fit in with the company culture and team members. While your resume lists your experience in the form of bullets, your cover letter can expand on your experience to highlight accomplishments and fill in any gaps.
If you’re uncertain about your ability to write a great cover letter, then use the ResumeHelp Cover Letter Builder. It makes the process much simpler all around.
On average, you should be writing between a half page and three-quarters of a page in length. This gives you enough space to talk about why you’re interested in the job without making it seem like you’re talking for too long. Additionally, it ensures that the cover letter isn’t too short, either, with a surplus of white space on one page making you seem unqualified. Look at the cover letter journalism examples on this page for how to word your own letter to be the ideal length.
Even if you don’t have a lot of experience or you are a recent graduate, you can still utilize this cover letter example. Just include the most relevant experience that you do have. This may be academic experience, volunteer or internship activities, or internship experience. No matter what it is, as long as it involves skills that can apply to journalism, use it in your cover letter and resume to apply for any relevant positions.
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