How to Become a Special Correspondent

About Special Correspondent

A Special Correspondent is one who reports and interprets all detailed information on various matters, such as government-related, politics-related, entertainment-related, or other such factors. They mostly report matters that are of great importance to the central government or the headquarters.

Making a career as a special correspondent brings ample responsibilities. It is not as simple as reporting entertainment news. A special correspondent is expected to work carefully and sensitively. Each matter is important and so they must handle all the information cautiously. 

Eligibility to become Special Correspondent

Here are the necessary eligibility criteria for building a career as a special correspondent:

Types of Job Roles Special Correspondent

Special Correspondents can choose from field jobs to desk jobs. Either way, the job of a special correspondent is interesting and carries great responsibilities. Some of the available options to choose from are:

Capitol Correspondent: They directly work for the central government. They work in front lines to cover all the sensitive and major matters for the government or the headquarters only.

Legal Correspondent: People who cover all the legal matters from the field are known as legal correspondents. They work only to collect information that carries legal relevance. 

Red Carpet Correspondent: They cover all the leisure and entertainment news. They travel across to collect all the information from award shows or premiers. 

Foreign Correspondent: Reports who report directly from foreign locations are known as foreign correspondents. They cover news from war locations, foreign countries, and foreign bureaus.

Senior Editor: Senior editor is a desk job, where the applicant will have to be competent and meet the needs of an editor. They will be responsible to make decisions as to what and what should not be published.

Pay Scale/Salary of Special Correspondent

The salary of a special correspondent differs and depends on various factors. It depends on the job locations, job description, risk management, and responsibilities. Roughly, on average, any special correspondents’ average monthly salary would scale from 50,000-55,000 per month domestically. For international or foreign correspondents, it may scale up to 90,000-1 lakh per month. However, the pay scale for either of the locations may start from 9 lakhs per annum to 12 lakhs per annum. Hence, it is a high-paying job in India. 

Books & Study Material to Become Special Correspondent

Although work experience plays a vital role in the selection process, one must also have a wide knowledge of how the work is to be done. And here are some of the best books of all times to prep oneself to build a career in this field

• Writing and Reporting News for the 21st Century by Yumi Wilson, Gina Baleria, Grace M. Provenzano
• Interviewing by John Russial, Peter Laufer
• Tales of the Field by John Van Maanen
• Global Journalism by Vera Slavtcheva-Petkova, Michael Bromley
• Writing Tool by Roy Peter Clark 
   

Pros of becoming a Special Correspondent

• It is a high-earning job
• Helps in connecting with famous people across the world
• Opens a range of opportunities for the reporter to gain more exposure.
• As a foreign correspondent, traveling to different countries is also a plus point.
   

Cons of becoming a Special Correspondent

• It is a risky job.
• It carries great responsibilities, where there is no room for any mistakes or confusion.
• If covering any war zones, one has to very careful as there can be a risk.