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The differences between publicists and journalists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a publicist, becoming a journalist takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a journalist has an average salary of $60,828, which is higher than the $50,679 average annual salary of a publicist.
The top three skills for a publicist include press releases, press materials and public relations campaigns. The most important skills for a journalist are news stories, multimedia, and story development.
| Publicist | Journalist | |
| Yearly salary | $50,679 | $60,828 |
| Hourly rate | $24.36 | $29.24 |
| Growth rate | 8% | -10% |
| Number of jobs | 7,343 | 11,488 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 83% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Average age | 42 | 40 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 2 |
Public Relations Supervisors are responsible for implementing the media and public relations strategy of an organization. Their duties include developing public relations campaigns, organize public relations events, assist in emergency response planning, updating documentation, monitoring media, improve management of press office, and manage media databases. They are responsible for assisting with journalistic content writing, refine internal processes, and track public relations activity performance. They help prepare reports as well as undertake competitor and market research.
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.
Publicists and journalists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Publicist | Journalist | |
| Average salary | $50,679 | $60,828 |
| Salary range | Between $30,000 And $83,000 | Between $38,000 And $95,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | Washington | New York |
| Best paying company | J. The Jewish News of Northern California | Bloomberg |
| Best paying industry | Media | Finance |
There are a few differences between a publicist and a journalist in terms of educational background:
| Publicist | Journalist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 83% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Most common major | Communication | Journalism |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
Here are the differences between publicists' and journalists' demographics:
| Publicist | Journalist | |
| Average age | 42 | 40 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 27.4% Female, 72.6% | Male, 46.6% Female, 53.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.1% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.0% Asian, 5.3% White, 66.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | 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% |
| LGBT Percentage | 12% | 10% |