For years now people have complained about the objectivity of the media, claiming it is one-side and only reports the bad news. And as a former member of the media I have seen reporters with chips on their shoulders dig long and deep for information that harmed the reputation of others. I’ve also seen many hide their opinions into their pieces with the tone they use. While few and far between, they do exist.
So when I started hearing about “citizen journalism,” I was skeptical, but ultimately thought, “Ok, let the people be heard and if they can provide news in a fashion that is more appealing than professional journalists, so be it.”
But when I saw a brief in Monday’s Los Angeles Times entitle “Ask a Reporter” inquiring if it was true that gas prices were cheaper on Tuesdays than any other day of the week, I nearly choked on my drink.
There’s no doubt that the Internet is a vast wealth of information. And with more and more bloggers internationally providing their input, there is more information out there on any random subject than can be digested by any individual. The problem is, how much of this information is fact, interpretation, information taken out of context or plain old fiction?
That is for the reader to research and find out themselves.
As innovative as an idea of having regular people on the streets provide information and their own take on the news at a global level, there also is the risk that this information is skewed, missing facts or based on rumor.
While journalists are supposed to abide by a code of ethics and integrity, there is no such code or accountability for citizen journalists. So for now it is the readers’ responsibility to verify any information obtained on blogs, social networks and other “new media.”
In a business sense, this can be disturbing. Can information be taken so out of context that it ruins the reputation of a company? How can customer testimonials, good or bad, be substantiated and if it can’t, how do we control the dissemination of this information? For many public relations professionals such as myself, this will be an area we will have to keep a close watch on and incorporate into any client’s crisis communications plan.
There are alot of questions that citizen journalism leaves unanswered. And it is my opinion that there will be many new legal cases arising that might answer these questions in the long run. All we can do is wait and watch. ,
However, there is something fascinating about getting information first hand, such as live, up-to-the-date feedback on the Olympics from the Chinese themselves or other such news as told by those who are experiencing it.
So be warned. Yet sit back and enjoy citizen journalism for what it is — history being made.
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Nice post. I have to agree with your thoughts about citizen journalism lacking a code of ethics. Certainly that is one of the key items that distinguishes us from traditional journalists.
Here in Singapore I have observed another trend. Several reporters from our local paper, the Straits Times, seem to confuse blogging with reporting. They are publishing articles in the morning newspaper that include quotes from previous articles (old news)…and quotes from blogs only. There is no interview, no visible sign that facts have a second source, no authority or expert, and absolutely no indication that in any way the journalists are living up to this code of ethics. Poor published news can look an awful lot like fairly good blogging.
So I wonder, as citizen journalists try to break news which has been the traditional turf of professional journalists, are some professional journalists yielding to temptation and starting to act like bloggers? Here in Singapore there would be some evidence that is exactly what is happening.
I like the world better when the two do not fade together and instead we can consume two distinct perspectives.
Michael, you make an interesting point regarding the way “professional” journalism has transformed due to blogging.
This is something I have become frustrated by. I’ve noticed in the last couple of years that what would otherwise have been viewed as op-ed pieces are starting to be passed off as news. And, once a blogger picks it up and it starts to spread around the internet as such, it becomes almost impossible for people to accept it as the opinion it started out as.