OLD Media Moves

Fortune's Sloan bullish on careers in business journalism

October 23, 2009

Careers in business journalism will be greater for current college students than those who have been in the field for decades, said Fortune senior editor at large Allan Sloan — one of the country’s top businedss journalists — in a speech Thursday night.

“You really ought to seriously think of business writing because it’s fun and useful and you can get a job in it,” said Sloan to a group of 42 university students from 11 universities across the country.

Sloan was speaking at a conference called “Getting Started in Business News” being held at the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism. The event was organized by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Journalism and Mass Communication.

Sloan said that becoming a business journalist was the “third best thing that ever happened to me,” behind his marriage to his wife Nancy and the birth of his children.

He noted that the job opportunities in the field are much better than 1969, when he was assigned to the business desk of the Charlotte Observer after working on the sports desk. “It turned out to be endless fun. This was really interesting stuff. On a routine basis, I’m dealing with the most powerful people in Charlotte, and they have to worry about it.”

Read more here.

Subscribe to TBN

Receive updates about new stories in the industry daily or weekly.

Subscribe to TBN

Receive updates about new stories in the industry.