The Price Of Freelancing Freedom

By: Randy Dotinga The thought has probably crossed the mind of every newspaper reporter who dreams of a bigger salary. Why not bring in some extra bucks by freelancing on the side?

After all, plenty of journalists have side gigs. Washington Post media critic Howard Kurtz shows up on CNN. Laura Lippman, an author who's won a pile of awards, began writing mysteries while working as a reporter at The Sun in Baltimore. And countless other newsroom types write for magazines, newspapers, and Web sites.

But before you start pitching story ideas to bigshot editors, consider that the person who signs your time cards might want a say in the matter. One wrong move on the freelance front could result in a sudden departure from full-time employment.

"If you're going to take a second job, don't take one that competes with your first job. You're just asking for trouble," advised Michael D. Young, an employment attorney with the Los Angeles law firm of Weston, Benshoof, Rochefort, Rubalcava & MacCuish.

In fact, many newspaper union contracts specifically forbid freelance work that presents a "conflict of interest." What that means, however, isn't always clear. "It's an issue that continues to be open to interpretation," said Linda Foley, president of the Newspaper Guild, which represents about 34,000 employees in the U.S. and Canada. "Sometimes employers skew that in the broadest sense and it becomes ridiculous, and sometimes they apply it very narrowly."

In 1998, for example, The Indianapolis Star tried to prevent reporters from working for publications that had Web sites because the newspaper itself had a presence on the Internet. An arbitrator ruled against the newspaper, according to the Guild.

Foley recommends that newsroom employees at unionized papers check their contracts before launching a freelance project. "If it's vague or unclear, they should ask their union leaders about their advice before they go to the company," she said.

And if a boss forbids you from accepting the assignment, Foley said you should take the hint. "If someone is ordered to do something, my advice is to obey first and grieve [file a complaint] later," she said. "It's a lot harder to discuss the issue if a person has been disciplined for insubordination."

The wide majority of newspapers aren't unionized, of course, and many don't put their policies on freelancing in writing. Considering that many editors are notorious for failing to read their own newspapers, let alone other publications, you might be tempted to adopt a "don't ask, don't tell" approach. But freelance writer Steve Friess, who wrote dozens of articles for Web sites and magazines while working at the Las Vegas Review-Journal and the South Florida Sun-Sentinel in Fort Lauderdale, said full disclosure is the best policy, at least at the beginning.

"If you don't ask and they find out, you can get in trouble and be viewed as disloyal by your boss," he said. "Eventually, you can move on without checking out every little piece except for if the stories somehow are about local matters or are going in huge national publications."

Non-union journalists may be able to turn to the law if their freelancing exploits go sour. While employees have a duty to be loyal to their employers, at least one state law -- in California -- forbids them from discriminating against employees based on their activities outside of work, said Young, the Los Angeles attorney. But the new statute hasn't been tested, he said.

"I would not personally run out there and get a job contrary to the interests of my current employer," Young said. "It's possible a judge could interpret it as meaning it's only regarding free speech."

Regardless of the law in your state, Young said freelancers must avoid moonlighting on company time. "Make sure that you completely distinguish between your work for your employer and your other job," he said. "They should be physically and temporally different and distinct."

In other words, don't use company e-mail to send that query letter to The New Yorker.

COMING NEXT WEEK: Your boss says a bit of freelancing is OK, but is it worth the extra work and strain? And will it boost your resume or make recruiters suspicious? Hear from reporters and photographers who have tried moonlighting.