Having first appeared in 1940's Whiz Comics #2, Billy Batson has been around for decades. Over the years, he's gone through varying levels of refinement and modification to become DC's Shazam. However, in the process, Billy has lost a lot of elements of his original character, including his reporting skills.
Billy Batson should resume his former role as a reporter and help bring truth to the public again.
WHEN WAS BILLY BATSON A BOY REPORTER?
The original Golden Age version of Shazam -- then known as Captain Marvel -- included having Billy Batson take on a job as a reporter and host for a show on the popular WHIZ Radio Station. This job provided Billy with some meager earnings but also gave the young hero access to the kind of information that he could use as his crimefighting alter-ego. Quickly establishing himself as a voice for the people, Billy would report on crises before transforming into his superpowered alternate self to help save the day. But this aspect of the character has been gradually dropped after Billy joined the DC Universe.
The Pre-Crisis version of Captain Marvel was largely adapted from the previous version in the Golden Age, but his new origins didn't focus as much on his time as the reporter. Although WHIZ Radio was still present in the Post-Crisis DC Universe -- which incorporated Billy further into the universe -- Billy's time as a reporter diminished, and the focus of his stories became more about pure superheroics.
By the time of the New 52, that aspect of the character had diminished even more. In fact, the most prevalent appearance of Billy Batson being a reporter doesn't even come from the core DC Universe, instead appearing with the Earth-5 version of the character from The Multiversity: Thunder-World. This Billy continues to work reporting the news for WHIZ.
WHY BILLY BATSON SHOULD BE A REPORTER AGAIN
In previous decades, the idea of a boy reporter may have seemed less and less believable, which might be why that aspect of the character was dropped. It's hard to imagine Billy Batson dealing with CNN. But in the modern era, Billy would be the perfect character to make into a dedicated truth-seeker like he once was. This drive could even be a part of why the wizard Shazam decided to imbue Billy with his powers in the first place, speaking to the spark of goodness present in the boy.
Now belonging to a large and multi-racial adopted family in the modern era, it's likely Billy would develop an extreme empathy for the oppressed, no matter where they came from or who they are. And as recent events have reminded the world, bringing the truth about the conditions of the oppressed can be difficult. Coupled with the current state of technology and politics, it would make perfect sense for a young man like Billy to get wrapped up in reporting the truth wherever he sees it. Billy could easily once again have a newsfeed, only this time it's directly feeding into the public thanks to things like YouTube and Twitter.
Making Billy a reporter could give him a defining drive -- which the current incarnation of the character has largely lacked outside of his connection with his family -- and personal stake in being a hero if he wants to use his powers to bring the truth to the world. Coupled with his more rebellious attitude than in the past, it could be a means for Billy to speak out against an oppressive authority. It would give Billy something he couldn't do as Shazam, especially in an era where cameras are everywhere, making it difficult for the hero to transform easily. This would also lead to plenty of easy drama during stories.
Billy as a reporter would also give him another similarity to Superman, giving the two characters an easy excuse to interact more often and bounce off each other. There's so much storytelling potential, especially in recent years where the rights of journalists have been challenged both in the United States and abroad, to see a young man like Billy Batson take his powers and specifically try to use them to speak to truth.