Who is a journalist?

What unites all great journalists is not a certificate but a commitment to the truth, a relentless curiosity, critical thinking, strong communication skills, and the ability to build trust with sources and readers alike

It didn’t begin today, this age-old debate about who a journalist is, or who a journalist ought to be. And it won’t end today either.

When I began my journey in journalism some two and a half decades ago, the prevailing assumption was clear: a journalist ought to hold a degree or diploma in journalism or mass communication. Such qualifications were believed to provide the essential toolkit such as news writing, media ethics, media law, interviewing techniques, and the foundations of investigative reporting. I studied these very subjects, first as a student of journalism and later of mass communication. But, over the years, one question has lingered, quietly pressing against the walls of that assumption: Can’t these skills also be learnt on the job, in the crucible of real-world reporting, or through rigorous in-house training?

Like the tide, this debate rises and recedes with each generation of thinkers, truth-seekers and even morons. When the argument is raised, it often leans on the scaffolding of other professions: the physician cannot prescribe without a degree in medicine; the lawyer cannot plead a case without having first walked the disciplined halls of a law school.

Indeed, these comparisons seem persuasive on the surface. The law and medicine are disciplines anchored in codified knowledge, often with life-and-death consequences. In such domains, formal training is non-negotiable, a matter of public trust and safety.

But even these professions were not always so rigorously defined. In early America, physicians were as likely to be barbers or apothecaries as they were to be university graduates. It wasn’t until ambitious young men sailed to Europe, to study under the great anatomical minds of Vienna or Paris, that the American understanding of what it meant to be a “doctor” began to evolve.

Likewise, the legal profession in its infancy was shaped more by apprenticeship and practice than parchment. And let us not forget that in 19th-century America, Coca-Cola was once marketed as a medicinal tonic, a reminder that even the definitions of science and legitimacy are subject to time’s revision.

Journalism, however, is a different beast, wild, untamed, and resistant to enclosure. Nowhere in the world has the effort to constrain the profession strictly within the bounds of formal academic training fully succeeded. No country has managed to decree, with any lasting enforcement, that only those bearing a degree in journalism or mass communication may bear the title “journalist.” And why? Because journalism, at its heart, is not a profession carved neatly into syllabi and lecture halls. It is a calling, one that demands courage, integrity and storytelling as its most important hallmarks.

Journalism was born in curiosity, sharpened by experience, and baptised in war zones and whistleblower meetings, in courtroom steps and dusty village councils, in the hunger to know and the courage to tell. The tools of journalism are a keen eye, a listening ear, a questioning mind, and an unwavering moral compass, and these are not the sole preserve of the formally trained. They are nurtured in newsrooms and notebooks, in lived experience and long nights of writing and rewriting.

In a world awash with misinformation and opinion masquerading as fact, the role of the journalist becomes ever more vital and ever more contested. But the answer to who a journalist is cannot rest solely on a diploma. It must rest on the deeper question: Does this person tell the truth? Does this person amplify the unheard? Does this person ask the hard questions, not just to provoke, but to illuminate?

Some of the greatest journalists the world has known entered the craft from other doorways. They came not with credentials but with conviction. They proved that journalism, unlike medicine or law, is not only about what you know, but how you seek, how you speak, and whom you serve.

Outstanding journalists with no formal training in journalism are plenty. My senior colleagues like Shola Oshunkeye, who won the CNN African Journalist of the Year many years ago, Declan Okpalaeke, who also won the same award, and Sam Omatseye, have no degree in journalism or Mass Communications; yet they have shown courage and integrity in the pursuit of truth, which are the heart and the soul of journalism. They are fantastic writers whose prose makes truth read so well that believing them becomes easy.

Anderson Cooper, one of CNN’s most recognisable anchors, did not study journalism. He graduated from Yale University with a degree in political science. His entry into journalism was unconventional. He began as a freelance war reporter, selling footage to Channel One. His commitment to reporting and powerful storytelling earned him acclaim, proving that passion and persistence can outweigh credentials.

We also have Hunter S. Thompson, the father of “Gonzo journalism,” Thompson never studied journalism. He wrote with a distinctive, immersive style that blurred the lines between reporter and participant. His work for Rolling Stone and his book Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas has redefined narrative journalism and inspired generations of writers.

What about the amazing Christiane Amanpour? She is CNN’s Chief International Anchor. She studied journalism-related courses but did not pursue a specialised journalism degree. Her career has been built on fearless reporting from conflict zones, including the Gulf War and the Bosnian War, earning her international respect.

I must also tell you about Malcolm Gladwell of The New Yorker who is also a bestselling author. Like Omatseye, Gladwell studied history. His career in journalism was built on curiosity and critical thinking rather than formal journalism education. His success demonstrates that insight, clarity, and storytelling can be just as vital as formal training.

And we have Sanjay Gupta, an American neurosurgeon, medical reporter, and writer. He is the chief medical correspondent for CNN.

Let me also mention Ida B. Wells, a pioneer of investigative journalism and a civil rights icon. Wells had no degree in journalism. In her time, few such opportunities existed for African-American women. Her fearless reporting on lynching in the American South set the gold standard for investigative reporting and advocacy journalism.

Pioneers of the profession in Nigeria such as Obafemi Awolowo, Lateef Jakande, Babatunde Jose, Alade Odunewu, Ernest Sesei Ikoli, Peter Enahoro and others had no formal journalism credentials.

My final take: What unites all great journalists is not a certificate but a commitment to the truth, a relentless curiosity, critical thinking, strong communication skills, and the ability to build trust with sources and readers alike. Ethical conduct, fairness, accuracy, and accountability are the true hallmarks of journalism.

The truth also is that diverse educational and professional backgrounds are assets to journalism. In The Guardian in its early days, this was used to advantage as professionals from different backgrounds were made to man desks such as science, banking, property and so on. Truth is: A science journalist with a degree in Biology or a political correspondent with a Law background often brings deeper insights into their beats than a generalist might. Journalism thrives on interdisciplinary knowledge and lived experience.

Lastly, the practice of journalism is at the intersection of fact and humanity. And that is not a place built by degrees alone.