.

Can we talk for a moment about morale?
Nothing will kill motivation quicker than being under appreciated & under paid.

My Trade is in Journalism Broadcast & Public Communication.
This [seems to be] publicly acclaim - yet is a professional pariah...
why does media pay so little?

Whether as a graphic designer, freelance writer, or public speaker -
repeatedly I see my profession low balled. On job listings, interviews, Craig's List postings that read:

"We seek an experienced Graphic Designer, proficient in CS4, Dream Weaver & HTML. Must have degree & 5 years of related experience. $10 an hr"

ten
dollars
an hour?

fuck you.

And the sad thing about it is - someone will take this job.
This inevitably sets a precedence for mediocre work & menial pay.
Companies get away with paying designers at such a nauseating rate because there is ALWAYS someone out there who is willing to accept it.

Some poor [literally poor] writer is accepting less than $25 for a 400 word cover because in a world of bloggers and rss feeds content is not at high demand, nor is it of value.
Video streams are available by feed - and why [in a world] would anyone read when they can point & click?

Sickening & Sad -
and in truth I have just as much culpability as those who have lowered the pay scale
because I too accept less than I am worth.

I search tirelessly for side jobs while some slob holds a cardboard sign that reads:
"Honestly I just want a beer"
Cheering, jeering, and amused - most will cough up a cent or two, and in less than an hour pan handlers will make more for a pathetic sign written by hand than writers will receive for an AP style 500 word essay about building clinics in Sudan.

and I am
no different than those who have lowered this pay scale by proxy, as I fall in line with my own hypothesis of "supply & demand" -

standing for less than scale at $15 an hour to manage marketing & mass produce mediocre billboards - paid 3 CENTS a word for blurbs about my musical opinion

because I have another mouth to feed
because I am trying to realize a dream
because I need to write
because I breathe life when I create something beautiful...

but beauty is in the eye of the beholder
and the beholder signs the pay checks

so until people can respect this profession of expression & creation, we are bound to this cycle

starve for art
or survival


... and I have to eat.