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The differences between journalists and detectives can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a journalist has an average salary of $60,828, which is higher than the $57,984 average annual salary of a detective.
The top three skills for a journalist include news stories, multimedia and story development. The most important skills for a detective are physical evidence, patrol, and law enforcement agencies.
| Journalist | Detective | |
| Yearly salary | $60,828 | $57,984 |
| Hourly rate | $29.24 | $27.88 |
| Growth rate | -10% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 11,488 | 56,521 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 74% | Bachelor's Degree, 54% |
| Average age | 40 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 2 | - |
A journalist is responsible for creating written correspondence, covering various subjects as the management requires. This task involves a lot of research investigations, conducting interviews, and gathering reliable sources to verify the authenticity of data before releasing the articles on news portals and other social platforms. Journalists should have excellent communication skills, both written and oral, conveying information to the target audience with high accuracy and efficiency. They analyze opinions and testimonies, create eye-catching headlines, and ensure adherence to deadlines.
A detective is responsible for conducting in-depth investigations for criminal activities, potential threats, and other law-violating incidents, coordinating closely with law-enforcement agencies and crime intelligence analysts. Detectives often work on the field, gathering data and related evidence to support claims and connect the timeline of events. They keep an organized record of their findings for further validation before reporting it to the authority. A detective must have excellent investigative and critical-thinking skills, especially on solving puzzles and security solutions.
Journalists and detectives have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Journalist | Detective | |
| Average salary | $60,828 | $57,984 |
| Salary range | Between $38,000 And $95,000 | Between $35,000 And $95,000 |
| Highest paying City | New York, NY | - |
| Highest paying state | New York | - |
| Best paying company | Bloomberg | - |
| Best paying industry | Finance | - |
There are a few differences between a journalist and a detective in terms of educational background:
| Journalist | Detective | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 74% | Bachelor's Degree, 54% |
| Most common major | Journalism | Criminal Justice |
| Most common college | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | University of Arizona |
Here are the differences between journalists' and detectives' demographics:
| Journalist | Detective | |
| Average age | 40 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 46.6% Female, 53.4% | Male, 82.7% Female, 17.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.4% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.6% Asian, 9.6% White, 66.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 11.8% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 16.7% Asian, 2.8% White, 63.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 9% |