Next week marks my last as a TygerBurger journalist.

As of next month, I will start my uncertain future as a retrenched-twice-in-two years journalist who’s closer to 50 than she is to 40. Early retirement is tempting but impossible since I still have young children at school.

Work, I must.

New beginning

When I started at TygerBurger little over a year ago, I came with much trepidation. I had cut my teeth at the paper’s direct opposition and had met some of their seasoned journalists in the field.

The brand, rooted in an area I was unfamiliar with, had a work culture that was wildly different. My distant impression of the paper had been tainted by whispered gossip from past employees that had crossed the floor.

I was anxious on my first day but immediately discovered that the past employees must have either lied, or the office culture had changed much since then. I quickly bonded with many of my colleagues and was surprised to find myself enjoying working as a journalist again — even though the job had changed during the years I’d spent in middle management and comms.

Changing landscape

Community journalists no longer just write, take photos and build relationships. They now also need to use AI, work with mics, videos, analytics and social media. My step back into reporting saw me no longer working only behind the camera but I had to get comfortable in front of it too. Venturing back into the field after working behind a desk for so long, stretched muscles I’d never known I had — and I thoroughly enjoyed myself.

More than that, I enjoyed reconnecting with old contacts and making new ones. It was pleasant to once again have a chinwag with interesting characters. A lot had changed but I felt like I was thriving, until my old nemesis — restructuring — reared its head again.

All other media brands have undergone the same unpleasant pruning, with at least two doing so at the same time as TygerBurger. The industry is now saturated with seasoned, skilled and unemployed journalists trying to find their balance in a constantly shifting terrain.

My future is uncertain but I have no regrets.

Feeling grateful

I’m thankful that I got to meet new and old friends, even though my time working with them was painfully short. This experience taught me that this old dog can still learn new tricks and I’m happy to find that the communities still value these treasured titles and look for them, scold for not getting them and treat them with respect — even though many are collapsing like wet origami.

I was honoured to be trusted with the stories of so many people — pigeon fanciers, police officers, recovering addicts, aspiring young people, passionate community workers, and all the other unique kinds of people one only meets while working in ground-level journalism.

During my year and a bit at TygerBurger, I have written stories about all things strange, scary, curious and quirky. I eulogized children who had been killed by stray bullets, championed princesses on pageantry runways, lobbied for sportspeople raising funds for global competitions, advocated for causes and informed residents about news of every variety.

And I enjoyed every minute of it.

I’m grateful that God gave me this short time with my TygerBurger family and trust that He has a plan for what comes next.

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