The question is asked, "What is journalism for?"
Journalism is for Democracy
The article, Ecology & Democracy: Citizen Journalism in the Digital Age by Dr. Christine Tracy furthermore explores the evolving changes in the world of journalism. Journalism is far too often confused with the realm of "news" and the conglomerate of the large corporations. "There is a widespread demand for less pro forma political representation, whether by the press or elected officials, and for more participation." This statement pertains to the political agenda, yet I strongly feel it is a larger voice for society's demands of journalism.
The article further states: "The central purpose of journalism is to provide citizens with accurate and reliable information they need to function in a free society. This encompasses myriad roles-helping define community, creating common language and common knowledge, identifying a community's goals, heroes and villains, and pushing people beyond complacency.....offering a voice to the voiceless."
As a citizen journalist, there is the ability to report "news" not through the newspaper, not through the broadcast stations, not even through the radio, but rather through the keystroke click of posting on blogs, web forums and social media outlets. The ability to "voice" opinions, thoughts and the TRUE facts gives the meaning back to a democratic nation. No longer are we bound to wait for another person to tell us the news, to filter what we should know and to voice our opinions for us. As a citizen journalist, we hold the key to our own freedom to report.
Another key point in the article is stated: "Unlike traditional reporting, which is highly competitive and focused on scooping the competition, open-source reporting embraces a collaborative model: a community of readers with access to multiple resources working together to report news in a highly transparent and flexible environment. In a typical open-source practice, reporters inform readers of a topic under investigation and then ask readers to contribute leads, sources, tips and ideas-to actually join in the real reporting."
Inviting the community to partake in researching, investigating and contributing to the story utilizes the advantages of "objectivity". Sure there will those who will incorporate their opinions, thoughts and slant, but there are so many more doors to open with including citizens. As much as we would like to believe that we are SuperMan (Woman), we cannot do it all on our own....we MUST utilize, incorporate, encourage the resources that others have to offer.
Showing posts with label 11 Layers of Citizen Journalism. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 11 Layers of Citizen Journalism. Show all posts
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Layers of Citizen Journalism
Steve Outings posted an intriguing article,11 Layers of Citizen Journalism, onto PoynterOnline. The article divulges into the concept of Citizen Journalism and the many facets of what exactly it entails.
Outings explores the concepts of public comment, add-on reporter, open-source reporting, citizen bloghouse, stand-alone-citizen-journalism site edited & unedited, and a print version. As readers become more familiar with using the Internet, the anility to partake on citizen journalism is endless. There are no more restrictions, as in the case of writing to the editor and the letter is not printed....now we are able to visit hybrid newspapers, such as Ann Arbor News, and comment on whatever our heart desires, negative or poditive: WE HAVE THE RIGHT!
There is an issue that arises:How do you strike a balance between editoral control and citizen expression?
Editors of a hybrid newspaper are faced with the challenge of making the final decision as to leave commentary notes as is or edit for misspellings, grammatical errors and so forth. The argument lies within not editing to retain the author's point as is; to express the meaning within their individual personality. Yet the opposing side states to edit the material to retain credibility of the site and not create a "mish-mosh" of information as stated by Outings in his article.
I feel that a hybrid newspaper should have the ability to edit in a minute fashion; not the point intended, but minor issues such as spelling/grammatical errors. On the other hand, blogs, chat forums and so forth....leave as is....it is the freedom of expression and you are left to be judged, so you better know how to spell!
Outings explores the concepts of public comment, add-on reporter, open-source reporting, citizen bloghouse, stand-alone-citizen-journalism site edited & unedited, and a print version. As readers become more familiar with using the Internet, the anility to partake on citizen journalism is endless. There are no more restrictions, as in the case of writing to the editor and the letter is not printed....now we are able to visit hybrid newspapers, such as Ann Arbor News, and comment on whatever our heart desires, negative or poditive: WE HAVE THE RIGHT!
There is an issue that arises:How do you strike a balance between editoral control and citizen expression?
Editors of a hybrid newspaper are faced with the challenge of making the final decision as to leave commentary notes as is or edit for misspellings, grammatical errors and so forth. The argument lies within not editing to retain the author's point as is; to express the meaning within their individual personality. Yet the opposing side states to edit the material to retain credibility of the site and not create a "mish-mosh" of information as stated by Outings in his article.
I feel that a hybrid newspaper should have the ability to edit in a minute fashion; not the point intended, but minor issues such as spelling/grammatical errors. On the other hand, blogs, chat forums and so forth....leave as is....it is the freedom of expression and you are left to be judged, so you better know how to spell!
Monday, October 12, 2009
Impact of "New Media" on the News
Dr. Logan's Understanding New Media, explores the growth of the news media outlets, ranging from the traditional newspaper to the popularized Internet and how the two have become a collaborative force to presenting "news" quickly, efficiently and accurately.
What is news? What is information? Is there a distinction?
The online news environment blurs the distinction between news and information; while the traditional newspaper provided the reader with the latest reports of daily events occurring locally, nationally or worldwide, the Internet holds no limitations. Therefore, the online news environment has the ability to incorporate the past into a new genre of generating news, yet is it all newsworthy or merely information?
Rich Gordon, Director of Digital Technology in Education at Northwestern University, states that in order for citizen journalism to be successful, there must be a citizen editor.
What is a citizen editor? According to the article, Understanding New Media, a citizen editor would solicit other people to provide information and encourage interactivity among users.
I agree with Rich Gordon in retrospect to utilizing a citizen editor. Despite the fact that we do have the freedom to post articles, pictures and entries onto the Web for all to see, how does a reader sift through the information and decipher what is credible and not? A citizen editor, trained in the field in Journalism, will be able to take the initiative to promote the site, while educating and encouraging community members to participate by submitting tidbits of information and/or images. The citizen editor will organize the information submitted and enhance the site to promote the concept of citizen journalism.
While reading the article, I was intrigued to better understand the world of citizen journalism. I found the article: The 11 Layers of Citizen Journalism by Steve Outing. The article deciphers in-depth the meaning of citizen journalism by exploring blogs, Wikipedia and social networking sites such as Facebook/MySpace.
In the conclusion of the article, Dr. Logan states, "If newspapers can no longer be the first to report breaking because of television, radio and the Internet, then perhaps they should get back to their roots....newspapers were a source of depth, analysis and opinion." This is a great statement and supports my opinion that newspapers are not dying, but rather transforming. Society wants "news" now, therefore utilizing the Web, yet society also enjoys an intellectual piece that involves analysis, so why not pick up the paper?
What is news? What is information? Is there a distinction?
The online news environment blurs the distinction between news and information; while the traditional newspaper provided the reader with the latest reports of daily events occurring locally, nationally or worldwide, the Internet holds no limitations. Therefore, the online news environment has the ability to incorporate the past into a new genre of generating news, yet is it all newsworthy or merely information?
Rich Gordon, Director of Digital Technology in Education at Northwestern University, states that in order for citizen journalism to be successful, there must be a citizen editor.
What is a citizen editor? According to the article, Understanding New Media, a citizen editor would solicit other people to provide information and encourage interactivity among users.
I agree with Rich Gordon in retrospect to utilizing a citizen editor. Despite the fact that we do have the freedom to post articles, pictures and entries onto the Web for all to see, how does a reader sift through the information and decipher what is credible and not? A citizen editor, trained in the field in Journalism, will be able to take the initiative to promote the site, while educating and encouraging community members to participate by submitting tidbits of information and/or images. The citizen editor will organize the information submitted and enhance the site to promote the concept of citizen journalism.
While reading the article, I was intrigued to better understand the world of citizen journalism. I found the article: The 11 Layers of Citizen Journalism by Steve Outing. The article deciphers in-depth the meaning of citizen journalism by exploring blogs, Wikipedia and social networking sites such as Facebook/MySpace.
In the conclusion of the article, Dr. Logan states, "If newspapers can no longer be the first to report breaking because of television, radio and the Internet, then perhaps they should get back to their roots....newspapers were a source of depth, analysis and opinion." This is a great statement and supports my opinion that newspapers are not dying, but rather transforming. Society wants "news" now, therefore utilizing the Web, yet society also enjoys an intellectual piece that involves analysis, so why not pick up the paper?
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