Rhiannon Bowman

I am a freelance journalist by choice and have been for the past two and a half years.

As a freelancer, I am able to pick and choose which stories I investigate. I am also free to work for various publications and am glad to avoid inter-office politics, editorial censorship, and a regular work schedule.

It is imperative that I work for myself for several reasons: I have an elderly mother-in-law who requires special attention on her terms, not at the whims of my schedule; in January, I was injured in a car accident and must visit doctors and specialists during their business hours. Also, there is no restriction on my work because of advertising conflicts or budgetary issues — if one publication isn't interested, or can't afford, a story, I sell it to another one.

Freelance investigative journalism is critical for a democracy. For proof, look no further than the current issue of Rolling Stone magazine where Gen. Stanley McCrystal was profiled by a freelance journalist.

Freelancers are able to tackle in-depth news stories that many newsrooms are no longer able to handle thanks to staffing shortages, never-ending deadlines, and budgetary woes.

If Congress adds the burden of additional administrative work to my business, I will not only lose time hunting facts, I will also be diverted from the very work that both makes me happy and pays my bills. I also fear I will lose some clients who will, instead, hire in-house writers. If that were to happen, I would, in turn, have to fire contract workers who now help me with administrative work, house cleaning, and pet sitting.

If, for some reason, I was no longer able to be self-employed at all ... well, I simply can't imagine that option.

Rhiannon Bowman's company is The Word Trade.

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