Working in Hawaii

[whoneedsnews]

Anyone working or living in the Aloha state? Anyone familiar with the stations and product?
I know the cost of living is very high...but is it possible to live well therr on a "normal" salary?

Also. what areas should be considered for housing?

Thanks in advance.

[Omega Man]

Hmmmm... "High cost of living"
"Normal" TV salary

You do the math.

[whoneedsnews]

HAHA...good point!

[Fargin Icehole]

I've always heard it goes with the phrase "trapped in paradise".

Fun to try, but I wouldn't want to make a career there. However, I have friends who live outside Honolulu and they have no complaints (but they don't work in news or tourism either).

You can watch a station or two on the web. The reporters even have Hawaiian wardrobes. Now that would be nice.

[MichaelPS]

Unless things have changed very recently, you'll find Hawaii an extremely tough nut to crack.

The product, I have to say, is very average. When you look at what makes air, your first impression is "hey, I could do better than that." Then you try and get one of the very few job openings there, and you hit the wall.

I have found that most of the stations would much rather hire a local resident with a degree from U of H and no experience than what we could call a veteran. And the fact that the kid will work for almost nothing has very little to do with it (although it helps, because if your grew up there, you can live with a relative). Hawaii is one of those markets where being from the area really does matter. A lot. The marketing is very tied into the ability to sell news as "by locals, for locals." And I have to admit, there are vagaries to the market that make it very difficult for people moving in to understand. Yes, that's true of many places, but in Hawaii, by and large, they would rather face an experience learning curve than a knowledge learning curve. About the only other market I've seen that even comes close is San Francisco, where I've you hear all the time about much less experienced producers who know the little neighborhoods and the history get hired over producers with ten years experience, and often the same thing with reporters (not that reporters get hired in SF without a lot of experience, but having grown up there gives you a big edge). But I digress. Hawaii, very tough to get ito if you're not from there.

[ May 24, 2007, 08:52 AM: Message edited by: MichaelPS ]

[Spike]

I turned down a job in Hawaii several years ago. Here were my reasons, but your mileage may vary:

First, it not only costs a lot of money to live there, but it costs a lot of money to get there. I was basically advised to sell off as much as I could on the mainland and plan on buying what I needed on the island to avoid putting it on a ship. I checked into sending my car over, and just that was going to cost about $4K.

Then there were plane tickets, etc. I would have been trapped there, unable to afford tickets home on the salary they were offering. It would also have been a hassle to get interviews back on the mainland if I wanted to move up in markets later on.

As for the salary, they are a 70s market and pay like a 70s market. The problem is that housing costs as much as in New York and necessities cost more. The manager at the station I was considering told me that there were plenty of freelance opportunities, and that I would probably want to do as much freelance work as possible to make any money. I mentioned to him that I had looked at Hawaii on a cost of living calculator, and he said, "Oh, you can't trust those things. You need to add another 50% to whatever it told you." I think he was exaggerating, but you get the point.

Then there's that whole "outsider" thing. "You'll be okay once you learn the language," I was told. But he was upfront with me that people treated outsiders differently from natives.

I should mention that I interviewed for and was offered the position without ever setting foot in Hawaii. Some of the stations there won't fly people in for interviews, but do all their interviews by phone. They are cheap, tickets and lodging are expensive and they don't want to risk people coming out to interview just to get a free "vacation" in Hawaii, then turn down their offer.

I had just read The Rum Diary when I applied and was itching for a tropical adventure. I almost accepted. Then practicality intervened, and I ended up in Tulsa instead.

[Signature on File]

I'd love to work there but I'm alergic to coconuts and volcanos. :eek:

[The Mockingbird]

Originally posted by Spike:
I turned down a job in Hawaii several years ago. Here were my reasons, but your mileage may vary:

First, it not only costs a lot of money to live there, but it costs a lot of money to get there. I was basically advised to sell off as much as I could on the mainland and plan on buying what I needed on the island to avoid putting it on a ship. I checked into sending my car over, and just that was going to cost about $4K.

Then there were plane tickets, etc. I would have been trapped there, unable to afford tickets home on the salary they were offering. It would also have been a hassle to get interviews back on the mainland if I wanted to move up in markets later on.

As for the salary, they are a 70s market and pay like a 70s market. The problem is that housing costs as much as in New York and necessities cost more. The manager at the station I was considering told me that there were plenty of freelance opportunities, and that I would probably want to do as much freelance work as possible to make any money. I mentioned to him that I had looked at Hawaii on a cost of living calculator, and he said, "Oh, you can't trust those things. You need to add another 50% to whatever it told you." I think he was exaggerating, but you get the point.

Then there's that whole "outsider" thing. "You'll be okay once you learn the language," I was told. But he was upfront with me that people treated outsiders differently from natives.

I should mention that I interviewed for and was offered the position without ever setting foot in Hawaii. Some of the stations there won't fly people in for interviews, but do all their interviews by phone. They are cheap, tickets and lodging are expensive and they don't want to risk people coming out to interview just to get a free "vacation" in Hawaii, then turn down their offer.

I had just read The Rum Diary when I applied and was itching for a tropical adventure. I almost accepted. Then practicality intervened, and I ended up in Tulsa instead.Oklahoma is the Hawai'i of Tornado Alley, I hear.

[Spike]

Originally posted by Mockingbird Peeps:
Oklahoma is the Hawai'i of Tornado Alley, I hear.Oh, it's lovely. The smell of the refineries from West Tulsa is so thick you can surf it.

[ISTHISTHINGON?]

Hell, I'd never be able to pronounce all the names there the correct way....I'd be hated and drowned shortly after my first week.

[Produce man]

I'm fond of Komoniwanalaya.

[Cumulo-nimbus]

"We pay you with sunshine..."

Which, of course, doesn't pay the bills. Especially with a cost of living as high as Hawaii's.

[ISTHISTHINGON?]

Originally posted by Produce man:
I'm fond of Komoniwanalaya.graemlins/icon_pray.gif I stand corrected. There is one name I would be able to pronounce, or at least, demostrate, in Hawaii. ;)

[amp]

Try Kamakawiwo'ola or Likelike (not pronounced how it looks).

With the Hawaiian language, once you figure out how the vowel are supposed to sound, it is easy.

[Roy Hobbs]

I heard the cops are media-friendly out there.

http://home.comcast.net/~waxtadpole/jackatg.jpg

[markminn]

I actually ran into Jack Lord the first time I visited Hawaii. Very gracious.

[imported_Mr. Vengeance]

OK...here's the real market showdown: Honolulu vs. West Palm Beach? That is, if you were lucky enough to be forced to choose between the two...

[WalMartNation]

As if the cost to move there and live there aren't enough... you have to consider that the next station you get a job at (presumably in continental U.S.) won't want to pay for your moving costs. I saw a ND who was not able to agree with 2 different applicants for a job because they wanted a lot of $$$ for moving expenses back to the mainland.

[imported_Mr. Vengeance]

Well, that's why you choose to make Hawaii your last stop on the TV news train, and retire to do PR for the world surfing tour or a major hotel chain.

[Fargin Icehole]

Originally posted by Mr. Vengeance:
...retire to do PR for the world surfing tour...http://www.dvdork.com/uploads/fasttimes1.jpg
Why don't you get a job Spicoli?

[vuphinder]

Free cable!

[kybubba]

I worked there in the 90's. They flew me out for the interview and flew me home first class. And I fell for it and took the gig. Huge mistake. Made about 50k and just drowned financially trying to make rent. Milk was 6-dollars a gallon and that was ten years ago. Gas was 3 bucks a gallon a decade ago..I hate to think of what it's like now! My rent at that time was 1600 a month for 2 bedroom. Brutal.
I was young and stupid at the time.
It was very hard and I was lucky to find a station on the mainland to pay my move back. The move out that the station I worked at paid for (all my stuff and my car) was about 10-grand....

Besides the finances, there is an unspoken undercurrent of hostility against mainlanders and particularly, white, educated mainlanders. I was able to easily master native hawaiian pronunciations and words and sailed through live shots without losing my cred by mispronouncing something---but overall, I never felt at home or comfortable in the islands.

My recommendation would be that it truly is a great place tovisit but you definitely don't want to live there. In proof of point, all of my close friends I made on Oahu are now living and working on the mainland--everyone wakes up at some point and realizes the reality of the local economy, how ridiculous it is and how being on the mainland is truly the best place to be for career advancement. Too bad the local folks and economic development professionals in Honolulu are too proud and stupid to realize it as well and make it an affordable, productive and desireable place to live. There's been a major "brain drain" there that the Star-Bulletin reported on in past years---and they deserve to lose us. Why stay in such a hostile place? graemlins/icon_kidra.gif

[scsdogg]

graemlins/face_banghead.gif

I grew up in the midwest and moved to Hawaii a few years ago.

It is expensive, but isn't as bad as some of the previously posted horror stories.

Right now, gas in Honolulu is on par with many places on the mainland. $3.25/gallon or so.

You can get milk for $4/gallon (if you're paying more you're just not trying)...so I guess it got cheaper in the past few years.

And, 1600/month for a 2-bedroom is still the going rate. But it's not THAT difficult to find cheaper. If you're single, I'd recommend having roommates. They'll be able to help you find your way around, give "local" advice and help you meet people.

Salaries may have actually gone down in recent years. I'm not making anywhere close to $50K but I don't struggle to make rent.

Police ARE quite friendly to reporters, however, most the reporters I know of that have "good police contacts" are quite attractive females.

Hawaii IS the smallest "destination market" I know of. That means for many, its the final place they go. Hawaii also sends people to LA, San Diego, networks and other places.

Its true the stations hire a LOT of local people, but most of the recent on-air hires have been non-local and had been reporting somewhere else. They are however mostly of asian ethnicity.

The "language" isn't that difficult to learn, but like "ebonics" you're gonna sound like a tool if you didn't grow up speaking it. It's not a crime to sound like a mainlander...just don't act like you're not one.

Also, being a mainlander is not like it used to be...there are a LOT more living here than before. A lot of them ARE snowbirds, but it's not like you'd be alone. Also if you're young enough you might try frequenting the "college hangouts" there are qutie a few mainlanders at UH.

Living here is NOT for everyone...but it can be home for mainlanders.

[Roy Hobbs]

...like Wo-Fat

http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/dailypix/2006/Jan/22/FPI601220358V2_b.jpg