The terms journalism and reporting are often used interchangeably. Maybe the two functions can't be separated in practice, but the rise of new media demands a distinction. As newspapers, magazines, trade publications and newsletters creep on to the Web, this swells the demand for reporters, who can keystroke simple sentences and strings of numbers. New media positions do not increase the job market for journalists. Reporting wants just the facts, ma'am.
Journalism entails investigation, explanation and a point of view.
Journalists are story-tellers, fascinated with the human experience, alert to the drama of conflict and struggle, infinitely curious about the motives and meanings behind events. Reporters use nouns and verbs as blunt utilitarian instruments. Most of what appears in Star or the National Enquirer is journalism, albeit of a very ripe kind. Most of Investor's Business Daily is reporting. Journalism inherently requires that stories be told in-depth.