Denzel Made the Right Call

I remember reading once that the undeniably dreamy Denzel Washington considered a career in journalism before becoming an actor. And while I wish, for the sake of some eye candy in a perennially mutant-strewn profession, that he had stuck with it, I think it's safe to say he made the right choice.
I bring this up because more often than not journalism reminds me of acting, in how ridiculous it is. Hollywood is one of the most vain, nepotistic and cruel industries in the world, and journalism isn't far behind.
For example, people often mock aspiring actors, telling them that they're wasting their time chasing after bit parts trying to make it big. But people should really be directing this advice toward journalists. Because while in Hollywood you can break through and start making millions of dollars, that's never going to happen in journalism, yet people still suffer through incredibly sought-after and low-paying jobs in the industry.
Sure there are a few journalists making millions, but the vast majority (even for men, these days) is based on looks (Maria Bartolomeo, Matt Lauer) or who you know, and often once these journalists take the anchor chair, they delegate all the actual journalism to underlings. (You don't see Christiana Amanpour with her own show, since she's still out in the field, doing actual reporting. And while Anderson Cooper may be pointed to as a rare exception, it helps to remember that anyone who is fantastically independently wealthy can succeed in nearly any passion they indulge.) Even when someone does rise to the top on merit, they can get caught up in their new fame and abandon the ethics that got them there (I'm talking to you, Dan Rather).
But of course those are the stars, while the rest of us are down in the trenches, fighting with one another for low-paying, soul-crushing overnight shifts, many of us without even the hope of rising to the six- or seven-figure top.
Clearly show business is the better option. And you don't need to pay for four years of college to chase your dreams in Hollywood. You just need to be able to face rejection, low pay, fierce competition and cynicism as well as a journalist, with the hope of a better payout.