How Much Money Do NJ Journalists Make? Media Center Releases New Survey

MONTCLAIR, NJ — How much money does a typical journalist in New Jersey earn? That’s one of the questions that researchers at the Center for Cooperative Media at Montclair State University recently tried to answer in a new survey.

The center shared the results of its “Paying the Watchdogs” study last month. View the full report and learn about its methodology here.

Researchers surveyed 28 journalists for the study. They acknowledged the limitations of the sample size, noting that it is too small for “statistically significant analysis of generalization to the entire population of journalists in New Jersey.” In addition, it’s possible that employees with especially strong feelings about their pay were more motivated to participate – potentially skewing the results.

“The experiences of a journalist at a small, nonprofit digital startup may differ significantly from a journalist at a large, unionized legacy publication,” researchers noted.

With those limitations in mind, here’s what the center found:

“The median salary was around $69,000. That might sound decent until you realize New Jersey’s cost of living is 12% to 20% higher than the national average. Housing alone costs 30% to 44% more than the rest of the country … To put this in perspective: MIT’s Living Wage Calculator shows a single adult in New Jersey needs $54,503 just to cover basic necessities — no savings, no entertainment, no debt payments. While our median salary clears that bar, it falls dramatically short of the state’s $90,000 median household income. Journalists are earning far less than the communities they serve. But here’s what really stood out: 64% of journalists said their workplace has zero pay transparency. They have no idea what their colleagues make or what salary range their job should command.”

“The central conclusion of this report is that inadequate and inequitable compensation is not merely a human resources issue but a critical threat to the sustainability, diversity and quality of local journalism in the state,” the center reported.

“The economic pressures on journalists risk accelerating an exodus of talent, particularly among women and journalists of color, thereby diminishing the capacity of newsrooms to serve their communities effectively,” researchers added.

• See Related: Study Probes Diversity In NJ Newsrooms: Race, Gender, Pay, Turnover
• See Related: What News Readers Want: NJ Study Examines Underserved Communities
• See Related: Map Shows Local News Sources Across New Jersey

Send local news tips and correction requests to eric.kiefer@patch.com. Learn more about advertising on Patch here. Find out how to post announcements or events to your local Patch site.