Journalism in Comics (Or, The Lack Thereof)

If I had my druthers, I’d write about comics and fan culture full-time.

Not just because it’s something that I enjoy and something that takes up most of my brain space (professional wrestling takes up the rest), but because as this little party of ours gets bigger and bigger, I would love for it to get the attention and scrutiny it deserves. I wish it could get good, old fashioned, real journalism, the kind that sports gets, and I wish it could attract real, dyed-in-the wool journalists.

I’m not the only person who wants better quality comics journalism, by the way.

A few weeks ago I watched a row on Twitter unfold on this very topic, with some actual fairly known representatives of the fan press lamenting the lack of quality, investigative journalism when it comes to comics.  Despite lots of people going back and forth for the better part of an afternoon, no one seemed able to put their finger on what could be done to provide better, sophisticated comics journalism, though. They got close a few times, but they were never able to vocalize the answer.

I think that’s because everyone knew the answer, but no one wanted to be the one to give it, because the answer is more than a little nihilistic.

Good, quality comics journalism is all but impossible because it can’t be done in any real, sustainable way. At least not by people who have the ability and the know-how to do it.

Real journalism, the kind everyone says they want, takes a lot of time and it takes a lot of work. Time to research, time to line up and conduct interviews, time to go through the notes from those interviews and that research, and time to form all that into a narrative. Then the editing process begins…

Real journalism also takes actual training, something that a lot of people don’t take into account.

Worst comic book criticism ever…

Journalists don’t just manifest fully formed with all the tools and expertise to do good reporting. It takes years of training and years of practice. It takes making mistakes. It takes working with people who’re more experienced than you and it takes working with editors to learn the actual business of being a journalist.

Real journalists, the people who can do the kind of real journalism people are always asking for, are professionals, and, like all professionals who’ve spent years honing their craft and plying their trade, expect to get paid. Not because they’re greedy but because they’ve got families to support and rent to pay.

On top of that, the comic book industry is small and it’s notoriously insular and infamously incestuous. This is an industry that has a storied history of blacklisting creators and shutting out anyone who tries to provide actual journalism beyond rumors, hearsay and the occasional bad review.

The reality of why we don’t get better journalism is because there’s no reward for journalists. At least, not long term there isn’t.

I know a lot of professional writers who write about comics when they can.

Hell, I’m a professional writer who writes about comics when he can. Believe me when I say we would love to spend months working on that mythical piece that would blow this whole industry wide open. Believe me when I say we would love to treat this medium we’re are so very, very passionate about with the same care and attention that other subjects get.

And believe me when I say it kills us that we can’t.