Here’s a bombastic statement: There is absolutely no valid reason not to be online at this time.
If you’re employed by a traditional media company (or indeed, many others), you might not be able to do everything online that you want because of policies and restrictions. While I think a lot of these worries are overblown and the restrictions too broad or unreasonable, unless you’ve got enough money for a court battle, just play it safe. N.b.: if there’s some question about the legality of an action, I am not a lawyer.
But if nothing else, I think you have to have a basic resume and contact information site, even if you have no interest in ever producing new media work yourself. Even if your tagline out to be “ink on paper and nothing else”, you need to have somewhere on the Internet that people can find you.
A portfolio site would be even better and, done right, a blog can be a very powerful tool; ditto podcast, video, animations, etc. The content that lies outside your expertise doesn’t need to be the best ever seen, but it should show competence and an understanding of both news values and storytelling techniques in the medium.
Elsewhere, I talk about three methods for getting a website up and running without needing to know how to disassemble, service and reassemble a flux capacitor time travel engine. There are services that will allow you to be available without being overly exposed.
The first thing any potential employer will probably do after becoming interested in hiring you is enter your name in Google. You should have a page on the first screen, preferably the first link returned, that is under your control. A common name will mean more trouble for you and the prospective employer, but you should be toward the top of any reasonable search.
It’s just not an option any more not to be visible.
