Professional development
The current period is characterised by considerable instability in US journalism, in contrast with the relative stability of an earlier era. The primary manifestation of this instability is the lack of job security that many journalists feel, and the shift toward many journalists becoming "permalancers"—permanent freelancers—and many working for piece rates (something that was common in the 19th century). Even those who are able to maintain steady employment often find that the demands of the job, and the kinds of skills needed, shift frequently, as news managements experiments with new strategies—emphasizing video, for example, or production for particular social media formats—only to drop those experiments after a brief time.