Journalism identity is "sticky". Despite their work experiences and having left the industry anywhere up to 24 years ago...

So, what is it about journalism that encourages this high level of self-identification? "Viewing journalism as a public service" was the top factor motivating 'Leavers' in every age range to become journalists...

... followed by the work of journalism. The 4th most popular factor among former JOCs was the "opportunity to shape coverage of race/ethnic group".

And although most 'Leavers' (57 respondents) viewed journalism as a "Calling" or "Mission" at the start of their careers, by the end, most came to view it as a Job or worse.

Many more respondents found the 5 provided options insufficient to describe their view of journalism towards the end of their careers. Among those who wrote in responses, the most dire reflections came from 'Leavers' who'd primarily worked in Broadcast followed by Digital only.

"Still identity, but like when your identity is also a disease you have: something weighing me down every day."

Leaver - Female; East Asian, Multi-racial, including White/Caucasian; age 27-35

"Dead-end perpetuated by privileged gatekeepers who got their lucky break when journalism was still a viable career"

Leaver - Female; East Asian, Multi-racial, including White/Caucasian, Southeast Asian, age 36-44

"Death march"

Leaver - Male, Middle Eastern or North African, age 54-62

"Not what I was doing"

Leaver - Female, East Asian, age 27-35

Recall that most respondents (65%) left journalism because they decided to—not because they couldn’t find sufficient or any work; company downsizing, restructuring or buyout; nor retirement. To better understand their reasons, the survey asked respondents to rank 9 provided Newsroom + Industry influences on their decision to leave, as well as 6 Life Circumstances. Scroll down to hear from 'Leavers' in their own words.

"It was clear management didn’t care about “journalism.” Just ratings, clicks, sensationalism... Hours were bad, pay was bad, management was horrible. Expectations were unrealistic and ridiculous. I still maintain that the only people still in the business just want to be on television. I resent my experience in news so much. Sometimes I wish I’d studied something else."

Leaver - Female, East Asian, age 27-35

“I felt like my talents were ignored or sidelined in favor of clearly less talented or qualified non-black journalists, routinely. ...I rarely got the support or mentorship needed to thrive… and it left me deeply disheartened that in the upper echelons of journalism, diversity can often equate to tokenism, and that, regardless of your pedigree (two degrees from top-tier schools, including an Ivy League j-school), that blackness can be as much an asset to [managers] in the newsroom as a liability…”

Leaver - Male; African-American/Black, Hispanic or Latino/x, age 27-35

“…I often felt like I was being preyed on. I trusted white, female bosses to be my allies, but in the end, it felt like they tore my heart out and stomped on it. I wasn't allowed to own my ideas — they were theres[sic] and they took them without the value of years of my work that went into formulating them. I'm still a bit heartbroken, but ready to come back to journalism…"

Leaver - Female, Middle-eastern or North African, age 27-35

"It was draining... constantly not being heard when I would stick up for people of color, dealing with white managers who were disconnected from the city, also dealing people in power who weren't qualified... It wasn't fun, I felt like I wasn't making a difference..."

Leaver - Female, African-American/Black, age 18-26

"I was paid a lot less than white men and sick of it."

Leaver - Female, African-American/Black, age 45-53

"My view of journalism as a calling has never changed. I teach future journalists. But as a woman of color my ability to advance in the profession was limited."

Leaver - Female; Hispanic or Latino/x, age 45-53

“[I was a] contract worker who was illegally denied overtime, and used as a fulltime employee, complete with responsibility of managing/hiring/firing employees, all with no status or safety. I was unceremoniously cut at the end of one of my many, many "3-month contracts" — but not before my managers attempted to cut my pay by 40%. …Jumping ship to a different company would have meant significantly less pay (and often the same abuses), a trade-off I just wasn't willing to make.”

Leaver - Female, Hispanic or Latina/x, age 36-44

"I saw how the donuts were made in the business of digital media — a very disillusioning experience. Also experienced a lot of exploitation and outright illegal treatment from an employment-law standpoint (as have many many of my colleagues)."

Leaver - Female, Hispanic or Latino/x, age 36-44

“…I realized I was at a severe disadvantage in my last two years of university when I couldn’t afford to go on elaborate international reporting trips or take a summer/semester off to another city to do an unpaid internship. I also acknowledged the lack of mentorship from professors because of these and other contributing circumstances. Once I graduated in 2013, I couldn’t find any full-time work and freelanced for as long as possible. …I realized that although a younger me viewed this career as a calling, by the end, it was just an unsustainable job that I needed to get out of if I wanted to ever advance in my career and life.”

Leaver - Female; Hispanic or Latino/x, Other American Indigenous (non-U.S.); age 27-35

"The financial element was difficult as I did not receive financial support from family. I began to notice those who excel are white from privileged backgrounds which allowed them to only focus on journalism because they were financially secure."

Leaver - Female, Hispanic or Latino/x, age 18-26

"I honestly believed all the things people said about it being a special line of work you're called to. I was told many things and being young and desperate to fit in somewhere, I didn't acknowledge the red flags that this was not a good way to make a living, despite how badly the industry claimed to need people like me (black women with bright ideas).”

Leaver - Female, African-American/Black, age 27-35

“By the time I left it felt like the industry was a ticking time bomb. Who would uphold the fifth estate and who could afford to take the vow of poverty that is being a journalist? (As a single mom, I couldn’t face the uncertainty in [sic] top of the pay ceiling.)”

Leaver - Female; Native American/Alaskan Native, East Asian; Multi-racial, including White/Caucasian; age 36-44

"The industry was becoming harsher, expecting more with less time and money, becoming more about clicks than conduct and was ultimately a stressful burden crippling my mental health."

Leaver - Male; African-American/Black, Multi-racial including White/Caucasian; age 27-35

'Leavers' have an incredible wealth and breadth of experience. When asked what it would take to retain JOC in newsrooms or in the industry, they ranked their 1st-3rd choices from 9 provided options:

"On time payment, better payment, stipend for travel costs, recognition for all of the times I stepped in when no one else wanted to cover a story."

Leaver - Female, African-American/Black, age 36-44

More money and support from my newsroom. I really enjoyed my last market, and ultimately I wanted to stay...".

Leaver - Female, African-American/Black, age 27-35

"Newsrooms rising up to meet the challenge of the future by paying black women what they’re worth and believing them when they say so."

Leaver - Female, African-American/Black, age 18-26

"We needed to accept the newspaper business' new reality in today's society. Stop overworking your employees. If you work 12-15 hours a day and then go home to work more, or work on every holiday or on your weekend, that is NOT OK. And it's not OK to make a journalist feel like lesser of a person when they consider their well-being over work. Too much needed to change, but none of it I knew would change."

Leaver - Male, Hispanic or Latino/x, age 27-35

"I left due to sexual assault by photographers and was forced to sign an NDA. I would have liked to stay if I was allowed to tell employers why I left. But I was black balled by news directors."

Leaver - Female; Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander; Multi-racial, including White/Caucasian; age 27-35

"Better job security (I'd survived multiple rounds of layoffs and buyouts by that point); a sense that the company would be owned by non-evil people who actually cared about journalism; a work life that's compatible with being a parent to a young child."

Leaver - Female, East Asian, age 36-44

"Being managed well."

Leaver - Female, Hispanic or Latino/x, age 36-44

"A big raise/promotion and a willingness for the paper’s leaders to confront misogynistic and racist patterns."

Leaver - Female, Middle Eastern or North African, age 36-44

"I wanted to transition to investigative work but found the unspoken rule to be news directors like primarily white talent in this role, usually men although there are some women. NDs find white men give the illusion of more authority in investigative work - rather than actually looking at the quality of their journalism."

Leaver - Female, Prefer not to say race/ethnic identity, age 36-44

"If my bosses had been serious about investing in me and my professional development, whether through promotions or just cultivating my abilities, I likely would have stayed. I would have felt like my input was valued. I think what really ripped my heart apart was the fact that I felt like I did just about everything right (paid my dues, networked, bolstered my resume, etc.) and it still wasn't enough, in part because the game was rigged."

Leaver - Male, Hispanic or Latino/x, age 36-44

"If I thought management was open to listening and if journalist [sic] of color had some support system on the job."

Leaver - Female, African-American/Black, 63 years or older.

"Better work-life balance, less toxic work environment ... I was burned out and had to leave for my own mental health/well-being."

Leaver - Female, African-American/Black, age 27-35

"... a work life that's compatible with being a parent to a young child."

Leaver - Female, East Asian, age 36-44

"My health was in decline towards the end of my newsroom experience because of stress and anxiety. Any help from management or leadership with changing my situation would have helped me to not leave."

Leaver - Female, African-American/Black, age 18-26

"Therapy."

Leaver - Female; Hispanic or Latino/x, BIWOC; age 27-35

"It’s tough being a black woman in television news. If you’re a serious journalist you’re perceived as “angry.” I was once told I didn’t smile enough. If you advocated for a different angle in storytelling you were often dismissed. Corrected a millennial, you were intimidating. That coupled with how social media changed how we covered news left me burnt out and depressed. Had I not felt that way day in and day out in good of [sic] the daily stress that comes from working in TV news I may have stayed."

Leaver - Female, African-American/Black, age 45-53

It is striking that more than one-third of 'Leavers' say they had managerial duties at the time they left journalism. Most (25) left journalism between 2016-2020, and most (27) say they left journalism at or after their mid-career point (see below). Leaver managers are ages 27-44 and more non-Black than the overall sample. Of 19 total male respondents, 9 say they had managerial duties at the time they left journalism.

Leaver managers had slightly different reasons for leaving journalism when compared to the rest of the sample. Among managers, Newsroom Mismanagement ties with Workplace Stress as their top influences, and Little advancement and Newsroom Diversity make their cut.