As culture and media have converged they both become increasingly participatory. Media audiences who engage in the appropriation of popular media texts have often been viewed as ‘mindless consumers’, ‘cultural dupes’ and ‘social misfits’ (Jenkins, 1992, p. 23). Jenkins refutes this idea asserting that those who appropriate cultural material for their own purposes are actually ‘active producers and manipulators of meaning’ (Jenkins, 1992, p. 23). Not a truer word could be spoken when it comes to the topic of citizen journalism.
Presumably most journalists are citizens too but what is it that makes citizen journalists so different from professional journalists? Obviously there's the all-important pay-cheque that the professional journalist receives but there is something more to the way that a citizen journalist approaches reporting. These days news blogs are written on all sorts of subject matter and can be tailored to a specific audience with a specific interest. For example, at Slashdot, the motto on the home page reads: "News for Nerds. Stuff that Matters."
One of the main benefits of citizen journalism is that involvement in news blogging decreases passivity and increases interest in democratic issues and political behaviour (Bruns, 2006). Once again, this break from the traditional model of information flow, changes the nature and source of information that makes it into the mainstream media. It provides people who may not otherwise have a voice, such as the "Nerds" who use Slashdot, with an avenue to produce material and a source of material and news that is more specific to their personal interests or viewpoint. Previously the hierarchy of news staff in mainstream organisations decided ultimately what readers and users of the news would eventually read in the media.
Citizen journalism relies in many ways on mainstream journalism as individual citizens contributing to online opinion or news stories don't often have the resources that mainstream organisations have. Citizen journalists are more like a 'watch-dog', keeping an eye on the stories of the day and ensuring that alternative viewpoints are put forward in the public sphere. A link to a video regarding US Republican Presidential Candidate Ron Paul was recently sent to me. This video titled Jerry Day: Media & Ron Paul suggests that mainstream media still has a significant effect on the behaviours of online communities and media. Although it's difficult to truly 'measure' the effect, even using the methods in the video, it's easy to see how this may be the case.
The very existence of such a video, whether it is accurate or not, is what is so different about citizen journalism. It is the independence of the citizen journalist that allows them to put forward a viewpoint different to the mainstream media. They may publish freely without limitation by editor, newspaper, or company hierarchy to alter or pass over their article. Bring on the era of the citizen journalist. An era where the story will be determined by citizens who choose to publish and any misinformation can be responded to by engaged citizens.
References:
Bruns, A. (2006). The Practice of News Blogging. In Bruns, A. and Jacobs, J. (Eds). Uses of Blogs, pp11-22. New York: Peter Lang Publishing.
Jenkins, H. (1992). Textual Poachers: Television Fans & Participatory Culture. New York: Routledge.
1 comment:
Hi Isha,
I think that you provided a comprehensive overview of citizen journalism in this post.
I particularly like the comment about how citizen journalism is still dependant on traditional media organizations. I think this is an extremely valid point, and one that people often don't consider.
For all the talk that occurs about how media organizations don't deliver the news we want, or don't provide extensive coverage, or don't provide a variety of opinions, I think it is easy to forget that they are still an integral part of our news gathering networks.
As consumers of news media, we are able to pick and choose our sources according to our personal standards of judgement. But the reality of working in the news industry does not allow such luxury of choice. Professional journalists must work to deadline, and face budgetary and resource restriction to produce their content. They can hardly be criticized for failing to cover every single aspect of a topic - this is an unrealistic expectation.
We perform much the same role as journalists while contributing to our blogs or researching for assignments - we select which information we are going to use on the basis of whether we can access it and whether it is relevant to our needs.
Rather than attacking traditional media organizations for failing where citizen journalism has succeeded, perhaps we should appreciate the freedom of choice that is available?
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