Fledgling Reporter. Salary: $21,300 or less 

Hamster, Kentucky's low-to-average rainfall has never gotten so much coverage. As the small town's only TV reporter, finding legitimate news to cover is hard, and it falls on you to find things to film and talk about. For now, that means standing outside with an umbrella, reporting for the ninth day in a row that things "have gotten fairly wet."

Small City Newscaster. Salary: $32,000 

You've managed to pitch a few successful features, finally giving you something to talk about on camera other than weather and travel. Your audience is modest, but loyal, and you've even been asked for your autograph twice. That's two more times than any other newscaster in your district.

TV Reporter. Salary: $37,740 

You cover everything from murder scenes to state fairs with a preference for neither. You're prompt, recognizable to the people of your city, and great at what you do. You feel great about your career thirteen of every fourteen days. The one where you don't is the second Friday of every month—payday.

Big City Newscaster. Salary: $51,000 

After seven long years in Hamster, Kentucky, you've finally been offered a job in Chicago, where your average nightly audience has grown a hundred times over. People rely on you, and you feel pretty darn good about that. That is, you'd feel pretty darn good if only you didn't absolutely loathe Chicago. You're hoping that your next gig takes you somewhere sunny.

Your Own Name. Salary: $9,200,000 

You've become whatever your name is, which, these days, is less of a name and more of a lucrative news brand. People tune in whenever you're on the scene reporting, and your insightful commentary is second to none. Your show is named after you, as is your book. You cannot be fired because you cannot be replaced.