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Inspiration August 19, 2016
As the Opinion Editor for Southern California News Group, Brian Calle oversees all opinion-based content for 11 newspaper sites, as well as their corresponding daily print editions. This impressive roster includes publications like The Los Angeles Daily News, Orange County Register and San Gabriel Valley Tribune. With a combined audience just below that of The Los Angeles Times and almost 10 million website visitors each month, Brian must figure out how to represent all sides of a story, delivering a balance of perspectives to an incredibly diverse reader base.
Despite beginning his media career during a tumultuous time in the publishing industry, Calle rose from columnist to editor in just a few years. Proud to be at the “top” (not old) end of the millennial generation, Brian focused his efforts early on in digital publishing and building his personal audience online.
In addition to his formal role as Opinion Editor for 11 newspapers (as if that wasn’t enough), Brian’s commentary has appeared in numerous publications including Forbes, Bloomberg News and Fox News. Frequently featured as an expert in broadcast news, Calle has also served as co-host for Fox 11’s special election broadcast, “You Decide SoCal 2014.”
For those who have always dreamed of starting a media career, Brian Calle is certainly an excellent source of inspiration. We sat down with the Opinion Editor to discuss his own career path and advice for building a journalism career in the digital age.
ENTITY: What led you to a career in media? Can you articulate your path for our readers?
Brian Calle: I think it goes all the way back to high school. I grew up in Chino where the schools were not so good. I spent less than one year at Chino High School and it became quickly evident to my mom that it was a dead end path for me. So my mom finagled me to be home-schooled and then eventually forged a friend’s utility bill so I could attend Claremont High School. Claremont had a college counselor who helped me get into a community college. I was the first from my family that I know of to attend college and certainly the first to get my master’s degree.
From community college, I transferred to USC where I studied communications. You will learn as you build your career that who you know matters and attending USC helped me build a robust network of smart and influential people. It’s important to honor your relationships with friends and colleagues. In fact, I landed my first job through one of my best friends in high school. He was Sally Ride’s nephew; his mom called one day to see if I could help with a science festival at UCLA. Of course I said yes.
I arrived early at UCLA that morning to meet with staff from Sally Ride Science. I was asking them questions about the event, like how many people did they expect to show up. I was surprised to hear a low estimate. The event had been featured in the Los Angeles Times and Sally Ride, noted female astronaut, was going to be the event’s keynote speaker. I told them, “You’re going to have thousands of attendees.” And then thousands of girls showed up. Then I rolled up my sleeves and helped run things!
Shortly after, Sally asked if I would come work for them full-time, but I was still in school. Then they taught me the most wonderful term in the world: “consultant.” So I agreed to fly out to Michigan and Florida and all over to help out science festivals each weekend. That’s how I got a full time job with Sally Ride when I graduated.
I became Director of Sales and Marketing for Sally Ride Science. I remember she came in one day and said, “I want you to write a press release for me.” So I literally Googled “how to write a press release.” Same for numerous other tasks. I learned on my feet.
Entity: What led you to make the transition from public relations to journalism?
Brian Calle: I had started managing media relations for the Claremont Institute. One day the OC Register called me and offered me a job. I was still in love with the word “consultant,” but they were looking to hire someone full time. My first reaction was, “I don’t want to work at a newspaper. That’s insane.” I had already seen the writing on the wall for the industry. So I turned it down. They called me back six months later (after the person they hired had flopped). This time, they offered me employment but on better terms.
Even though I didn’t want to work for the newspaper at first, I realized I could use it as a platform to build a larger and more impactful audience. I decided right away that I was going to write for a digital audience. They could use my work to fill the print pages, but I was going to focus on the web. I knew I could get more people engaged and interested that way.
Entity: What did you do to start building your brand as a journalist?
Brian Calle: Self-promotion. People talk about it like it’s a dirty phrase, but it’s actually the best way to get your work noticed. I put everything humanly possible on social media. Think of your personal brand as an entrepreneurial enterprise. Today, you can’t just be a writer – you have to be a writer, producer, personality, etc. When you’re starting out, look at building your audience as an interactive experience instead of a one-way communication conduit. If someone gives you feedback or comments on your article, always try to respond. It builds rapport and strengthens their interest.
Every time someone emailed me about one of my articles, I would save their email to my email blast list and send them a notification when I published something new. Soon I became the second most popular journalist on the whole site. That led to me becoming editor later.
Entity: How did you work your way up to that editor position?
Brian Calle: Here’s how it went down: I had been gaining popularity as a columnist. A headhunter approached me about becoming an editor at another publication. The role wasn’t quite a fit for me though, so I recommended my current boss instead. Once she took it, a few months later I was offered her job.
Entity: What do you find most challenging about the editing business? Most rewarding?
Brian Calle: The most rewarding aspect is making a real difference in communities that we serve. I know when we write something it has an impact. I enjoy spending time figuring out ways to make our work even more valuable and influential. Not everyone has that opportunity in the work they do every day.
As for the most challenging aspect, we serve four different counties, with 11 unique publications in one of the most populous and diverse areas in the country. We have to make sure we’re balancing our perspective and staying open minded. When there’s so much going on in our region, we have to be judicious in determining which issues we’re covering on a daily basis. We only have so much bandwidth. It definitely inspires deep contemplation and organization.
Entity: What advice do you have for someone looking to break into the publishing world?
Brian Calle: Internships and work experience will differentiate you from other applicants. Don’t waste your summers partying in Costa Rica or anywhere else.
Demonstrate you’re a better writer than everyone else. Understand what the older people hiring you don’t. Develop your skills in social media or understand how to use a CMS like WordPress. I think skills matter more than degrees. When I first started out, I created a skills-based resume to downplay light work experience. I would recommend that method unless your work experience is exceptional. Once you have great experience, you can switch to a traditional resume format.
I’ve hired a lot of interns and honestly, they’re usually pretty shitty, sorry. I had one who was amazing though, because she said yes to every assignment, like I did when I was an intern. Because of that, she met people and experienced things that none of the other interns did. So what did I do? We had twelve other interns but when a job opportunity came up, I made sure she was the one to get it. She worked for us two or three years before she decided to go to USC business school. Again, I made calls to help her. She would have gotten in on her own, but I wanted to make sure it would happen. (Full disclosure: The woman referenced in this article, Josephine Djuhana, now works part time for Entity Magazine, whom Brian recommended to our CEO.)
The best advice I can give you is check your ego, and say yes to everything. Be extremely open-minded when it comes to your work experience. Even if it’s not your dream job, take the opportunities that come and make the best of them. You can gain new skills from any job; this will help you get to the next level.
Entity: What’s the biggest mistake people make when starting out in the media business?
Brian Calle: People tend to overvalue their own opinions. They assume what they think somehow matters more to other people. I find what people actually respond to is thoughtful, factual analysis using data and trends. Take the reader on a journey through the information to get them to where you want them to be by the end of the article.
I also believe it’s important for our work to educate. Do what’s right, not just what will get you the most eyeballs on your writing. It’s true you might increase your readership if you take a vitriolic approach like some modern politicians and pundits. You can start to develop a rabid fan base and potentially make a whole lot more money as an extremist. But I don’t think that helps society. I believe perspective segregation, where Democrats and Republicans consume their own separate media, creates a real problem for America. There’s no exchange or clash of ideas.
Entity: With the rise of digital media, how have traditional publishers adapted? What do you think is the next step for the industry? What still needs to change?
Brian Calle: I don’t think any media entity in the country has figured out how to monetize digital content for the same margins as print content. When someone figures that out, it’s going to be incredibly powerful. It’s difficult; otherwise someone would have already done it. I believe it’s a good opportunity for someone to come in disruptively. I spend a lot of time thinking about that.
