New Journalism
This week we are talking about citizen journalism, I wasn’t too
clear on what this exactly was so I googled it (of course) and good old
Wikipedia showed up. Two definitions from Wikipedia stood out to me, because they
made citizen journalism make more sense. The first was "playing an active
role in the process of collecting, reporting, analyzing, and disseminating news
and information” (Bowman and Willis, 2003) and second "When the people
formerly known as the audience employ the press tools they have in their possession
to inform one another” (Rosen, 2012). With the rise of social media it is clear
that more people can openly discuss issues, such as the news freely and how
they see these topics. People are no longer to just listen to what others
think, they can express how they feel through social media. Social media
provides the opportunity to challenge traditional and formal journalism, but
with this comes consequences. As Hermida (2012) discusses the verification of
information, the truth and validity of a given topic that journalists claim
they have the ability to do is lost when the average person can post whatever
they please. Schudson and Anderson (2009) explain that journalist are able to
see reality of a situation, which gives them special authority over the news
but with new technology, taking pictures and having blogs these people are receiving
more and more credit along with creditably in what they post. Twitter has made
it possible for TV networks and newspapers to send a message instantly out to
the social media world, it is live broadcasts of the news (Hermida, 2012).
Another opportunity that has occurred because of social media and citizen
journalism is when a crisis or news event does happen, there are more eye
witnesses and people who can gather reports as events unfold in real time
(Hermida, 2012).
Even though I have social media accounts such as Twitter and Facebook, I would
still say I am a consumer when it comes to citizen journalism. I read what
other people have to say on news issues, and perhaps search through twitter
when something big has happened, but I rarely comment on how I feel about a
topic, or give my two cents. Again, I don’t think social media sites are going
anywhere anytime soon, I believe they will keep evolving, therefore we should
learn ways to embrace and use these sites for good. News events of all kinds draw
millions of people worldwide, and the Internet gives everyone (who has access)
the ability to discuss among themselves, as well as to provide other information
about these events (Friedman, S. M. 2011).
Hermida, A. (2012). TWEETS AND TRUTH: Journalism as a discipline of collaborative
verification. Journalism Practice. 6:5-6, p659-668.
Friedman, S. M. (2011). Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, and Fukushima: An analysis of
traditional and new media coverage of nuclear accidents and radiation.
Bulletin Of The Atomic Scientists, 67(5), 55-65.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citizen_journalism
I like you am still mainly a user consumer regarding citizen journalism. The key seems to be participation which most of us seem to do passively. We will read and maybe comment and contribute a picture about a storm as you said, but few seem to actively take up the cause of social or political issues as Dahlgren discussed. The masses seem more interested in using their online platforms for entertainment purposes, which suits the media producers and providers and their need for content. I wonder if as we all become more comfortable with using this technologies if that will change. I know I would like to contribute more and find myself contemplating doing more blogging or adding comments to discussion about articles, but still feel a bit intimidated.
ReplyDeleteInteresting post! I also wasn’t sure what “citizen journalism” was until I looked it up. We seem to have similar views with regard to the opportunity new social media has provided the average citizen to become engaged in news reporting. My feeling is that as long as there is no misrepresentation on behalf of the “citizen journalist” then there is no harm in sharing opinions and recounting events. Also, since we have seen technology effect political elections I think we need to be aware of the forces at play – I can foresee election campaigns with strategies that included anonymous blogging to propagate an agenda and take advantage of citizens. Regardless of the possible negatives, you’re right when you say that it’s here to stay, so we might as well get comfortable with it.
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