Why Journalists Should Learn Shorthand

Say "shorthand" and it probably conjures up images of old-fashioned secretaries from a bygone era transcribing squiggles from a notepad onto a typewriter. However, shorthand is a very useful and relevant skill for a journalist or anyone else who takes lots of notes. Here are a couple good reasons why an aspiring journalist should pick up shorthand:

1. It's quick. As any journalist who's taken notes during an interview knows, people in general speak a lot faster than they can write. It's frustrating to have to scribble furiously during an interview, only to find out later that you missed a couple key words or phrases. When you're consumed with writing, it's also more difficult as a journalist to listen to what the interview subject is saying. And if you aren't listening closely to what they're saying, it hurts your ability to come up with good follow-up questions. Plus, learning shorthand will save you quite a couple hand cramps along the way.

2. It's cryptic. There are times when a journalist doesn't want a source seeing everything they're writing, and that's where shorthand comes in. At the most practical level, a source will be naturally curious as to what a reporter is writing, and the peeking can be distracting to both journalist and source during the conversation. Also, if you're taking notes on appearance (for example, "bald and slight beer gut"), you very much might want to keep some of those descriptors to yourself.

3. It's cool. Shorthand seems to be a dying art, so the personal satisfaction of writing mysteriously might be reason enough for some people to try it. It can be a good conversation starter and will make you feel like one of the elite few of journalists.

So, how to pick up shorthand? The web has made it easier than ever. There are plenty of free shorthand tutorials available online. Teeline shorthand is possibly the most practical shorthand for journalists, as it was created for that purpose and is easier to learn than many others. This is because Teeline shorthand is based on the English alphabet, whereas other popular shorthands are more phonetic and thus less intuitive than Teeline. Other popular shorthands include Gregg and Pitman. Most shorthands also include symbols for commonly used phrases, prefixes, and suffixes.

Teeline shorthand is commonly taught to journalists in the United Kingdom. It has been adopted by the National Council for the Training of Journalists (a UK group), and can result in speeds above 140 words per minute. Gregg and Pitman shorthands take longer to learn, but ultimately result in faster notetaking.