Professions that provide us with our news – Newspaper Reporter and Broadcaster – ranked among the worst jobs in the nation, while software engineer tops the list of best jobs, according to the new 2012 CareerCast.com Jobs Rated Report.

Online advertising manager and computer systems analyst also ranked among the ten best jobs.

Lumberjacks, who work on the hottest and coldest days in a highly dangerous occupation with a low salary and a history of high unemployment, were rated as having the worst job in the nation.

“Many jobs in the media are characterized by high stress, short deadlines, long hours and a poor hiring outlook,” explains Tony Lee, publisher of CareerCast.com’s 2012 Jobs Rated Report.

Editor’s note: How things change. When I first applied for daily newspaper jobs in the 1970s, Woodward and Bernstein had just helped bring down President Nixon and every other college graduate wanted to be a reporter. The starting pay for reporting jobs on newspaper or in broadcasting were abysmally low and the hours long even then.

I left a teaching job to go back to work on a daily newspaper and took a $4,000 pay cut to do it. I finally left it to begin a long career as an editor or senior writer for a variety of publications, including three city magazines and two business journals.

I wrote for national magazines such as Science Digest, OMNI, Modern Maturity, Longevity and many others. But shifting to writing primarily for online publications in 1999 was the smartest career move I ever made. (Allan Maurer).

Rounding out the top five rated jobs are Actuary, Human Resources Manager, Dental Hygienist and Financial Planner.

Top rated jobs have few physical demands

“The top-rated jobs have few physical demands, minimal stress, a good working environment and a strong hiring outlook,” says Lee.

“Conversely, Lumberjacks and Dairy Farmers, two of the worst jobs in the nation, work in physically demanding, precarious, low-paying professions with a weak hiring outlook.”

Three of the worst-rated jobs are in the food industry – Waiter/Waitress, Dishwasher and Butcher.

“While it’s true that some people are happy washing dishes, waiting tables or slicing meat as a career, job seekers who want to compete for the nation’s best jobs need to gain a competitive edge by expanding their knowledge and skill set with a college education,” says Mr. Lee.

To see the full rankings of all 200 jobs and the report’s methodology, go to http://www.careercast.com/jobs-rated.