Military Media: How to Become a Broadcast Journalist for the Armed Forces

It doesn't matter if you're 18 or 28. If you've ever dreamed of being a broadcast journalist, traveling to distant lands and reporting on world events, you may want to consider the Armed Forces. Be it the Air Force, Army, Navy or Marine Corp, all these branches of the military over challenging job opportunities in the field of broadcast and print journalism as members of the Armed Forces radio & Television Service. Is this the right choice for you? Why not take a look at what a military career as a broadcast journalist has to offer and more important, see if you have what it takes to enter the field.

That's right. I thought I'd start off by asking if you have it takes. Because being a military journalist is not just a matter of signing on the dotted line and pledging allegiance to your country. It's a little more complicated than that, but in the long run it may be worth it.

The most important thing is to visit a recruiter. It's not for me to say which branch of the service you'll want to consider. They each have their pluses and minuses, and anyone of tells you any different is not being honest. The important issue here is that you need to tell the recruiter you want to submit a voice audition tape to the Defense Information School (DINFOS) in Ft. Meade, Maryland. This will entail some leg work on the part of the recruiter. DINFOS will send the recruiter a script which needs to be read in a controlled environment like a local radio station. The script - usually a couple of 30 second spot announcements or something similar, needs to recorded on tape and sent to the school for evaluation. If they think you have the "right stuff" you'll be assured a spot in an upcoming class. At that point you need to enlist for 6 years of military service.

I can't stress this voice audition tape enough. It won't be the first time that a recruiter has told a potential recruit to sign up first and then worry about the job second. There are plenty of would-be journalists out there who are now jet mechanics for that very reason. Take the test and pass and then you're on your way.