3. Citizen Journalism
One of the best examples of WE MEDIA
Journalism has been transformed with the creation of the internet
Previously it was something that would need to be studied in depth for a
number of years
Now ‘ordinary’ people can become journalists, these people were
previously the audience
4. Mainstream Media
This is what we are all familiar with: TV channels and tabloid/broadsheet
newspapers. All of these enterprises are backed by corporate funding.
5. Effects of Citizen Journalism
Jeff Jarvis “We are in the era of news served raw….Life is on the record.”
What do you think is meant by this?
6. User Generated Footage
One of the first crucial examples of user-generated footage was amateur
footage of a black man, Rodney King, being beaten by 4 white policeman
in a racially-motivated attack in 1991.
Rodney King
7. Contemporary Examples
September 11th 2001
While news media captured the footage of the second Twin Towers
footage being hit, footage of the first being hit was mostly from tourists
filming the events
December 26th 2004
Tsunami strikes Indian Ocean. Over 200,000 people were killed.
Much of the footage came from tourists on holiday- so much footage was
shot that Channel 4 made a documentary of it: “Tsunami: Caught on
Camera”
8. Theorist Ideas
Dan Gillmor:
“There was a cliché that journalists write the first draft of history. Now I
think these people are writing the first draft of history at some level, and
that’s an important shift.”
9. Positive Changes from Citizen
Journalism
It is not just a case of user-generated footage being used that is important,
but also that the internet provides opportunities for an alternative news
approach.
Rather than being subjected to the typical news reporting approaches
from the mainstream media, we are now able to see an alternative
approach/argument we would not have been able to see before the
introduction of the internet.
10. Problems with these changes
Rich Media, Poor Democracy
What problems are highlighted within this clip?
11. Case Study 1: Indy Media UK
Read through the IndyMedia Mission Statement. In what ways is it
different from traditional journalism in terms of its methods?
What are the (a) advantages (b) disadvantages of this approach?
12. Case Study 2: Democracy Now!
Watch the first 5 minutes of Democracy Now!
http://www.democracynow.org/
In what ways is it different to Indy Media UK?
Host Amy Goodman came from a background of community radio
Began broadcasting on February 19th, 1996
Became an independent non-profit organisation in 2002, and is
shown/heard on 800 radio and television stations as well as on the internet
13. Professional Journalism
Obviously there are still more consumers of corporate news than citizen
journalism but citizen journalists still have a profound effect on journalism.
Firstly, the news often borrowed stories from citizen journalists and secondly,
professional journalists found that they had to participate in creating
conversations similar to those of citizen journalists and to have a higher degree
of respect for their audience.
Professional journalists found that they had to participate in creating a
conversation:
“It boils down to something simple: readers (or viewers or listeners) collectively
know more than media professionals do. This is true by definition: they are many,
and we are often just one. We need to recognize and, in the best sense of the
word, use their knowledge. If we don’t, our former audience will bolt when they
realize they don’t have to settle for half-baked coverage; they can come into the
kitchen themselves.”- Gillmor p. 111
14. Case Study
Visit the IndyMedia page:
https://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2015/10/522490.html
Visit the Guardian page:
http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/oct/04/anti-austerity-protestors-
march-manchester-demonstration-conservative-party-conference
Compare the style of the two articles about the March.
15. Relevant Theory
Dan Gillmor (2004)
Summary: Coined the term ‘We Media’ through his book We The Media.
Unsurprisingly, he offers a very optimistic account of citizen journalism,
both in terms of its current but also its potential effect. His main argument
is that ordinary people, as a collective, have more knowledge than any one
journalist can. With the internet providing a means for ordinary people to
participate, it to some extent, and will continue, to transform the news to a
conversation rather than something we are being dictated to by
professional, corporate journalists.
Gillmor’s entire book is available (legally) online:
http://oreilly.com/catalog/wemedia/book/index.csp
16. Relevant Theory
Axel Bruns (2008)
Summary: Bruns is slightly more cautious in terms of citizen journalism. He
sees citizen journalism as still being somewhat tactical and issue driven. He
argues that the challenge for citizen journalists is to provide a less
simplistic oppositional reading to the news and to instead focus on
becoming a more established ‘second-tier’ of news to create a more
permanent dialogue.
One of his articles articulating this is:
Axel Bruns. "Gatewatching, Gatecrashing: Futures for Tactical News Media."
In Megan Boler, ed., Digital Media and Democracy: Tactics in Hard Times.
Cambridge, Mass.: MIT P, 2008
Which is available as a PDF file under the heading ‘Produsage Applications’
at: http://produsage.org/articles
17. Relevant Theory
Andrew Keen (2006)
Summary: Has a pessimistic view towards Web 2.0 generally, including the
concept of citizen journalism. He argues that through the democratisation
of media leads to a flattening of talent. Furthermore, he has been quoted
as saying that citizen journalists offer opinions rather than facts- and that
professional journalists have been trained to give a more accurate form of
reporting. Citizens’ roles is to engage with news provided by professionals.
You can read Andrew Keen’s original article about many of these issues
here:
http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/006/714f
jczq.asp?page=1
18. Theory and Case Study
Discuss what you think the thoughts of Gillmor, Bruns and Andrew Keen
would be about the Articles.
Which of the three theorists do you most agree with?
19. Reading
Read the interview with Andrew Keen and highlight his main views into
Web 2.0 and ‘We Media’
Summarise the data in the BBC article and compare its affects on ‘We
Media’
20. Key Questions
Using the examples have covered in Citizen Journalism, can you answer the
following questions?
What are ‘We Media’?
Where / how has ‘We Media’ emerged?
In what ways are the contemporary media more democratic than before?
In what ways are the contemporary media less democratic than before?
21. Exam Questions
As a citizen, to what extent do you feel that the media provide you with a
democratic service?
Explain how some features of contemporary media are more democratic
than others.
