Citizen journalists don’t just get to where professional journalists can’t go, they get to places professional journalists won’t go. (Digital Trends)
Image source: Adventures With Han
One of the greatest effects of technology and social media on the media industry is that it has ‘levelled the playing field’ in the sense that now you don’t need a university degree, page limitations or intensive research to report on an issue to the masses – all you really need is your phone or your connection to the internet.
Have a look at my YouTube video:
Citizen journalism has opened doors to how events, issues and stories are told to the world. First hand perspectives without thorough editing or planning are becoming favourable to the methods of ‘parachute journalists‘ who arrive when the topic is newsworthy. Because of this, news sources ( incl. The Guardian) around the world are relying on input by citizens – whose information will be faster and first hand to the situation. Take Snapchat live for example – a way to see events happening all over the world from perspectives of various different people – armed only with their internet connection and a mobile phone. Snapchat is almost breaking the idea of breaking news – making anyone from anywhere in the world feel like they are there as the story unfolds.
This ability to report anywhere any time means that at any point, anyone today can become the most important journalist in the world.
bellingcat – a site that is run by citizen journalists all over the world. This feature tracks Russian military movement whilst in action in Ukraine, by collecting sightings from social media.
Check out this analysis of the importance of citizen journalists in Syria, and watch these videos for more:
References:
Bellingcat. 2016. Bellingcat Vehicle Tracking Project. [ONLINE] Available at: http://bellingcat-vehicles.silk.co/. [Accessed 5 May 2016].
No Fibs. 2016. No Fibs. [ONLINE] Available at: http://nofibs.com.au/. [Accessed 5 May 2016].
Guardian Witness. 2016. What is GuardianWitness. [ONLINE] Available at:https://witness.theguardian.com/about. [Accessed 5 May 2016].
Kurt Wagner. 2015. Snapchat Gets Deeper Into Live Events, Wants More User-Generated Content. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.recode.net/2015/11/23/11620900/snapchat-gets-deeper-into-live-events-wants-more-user-generated. [Accessed 5 May 2016].
THNKR. (2012). Citizen Journalism On The Rise. [Online Video]. 10 September 2012. Available from:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MKLPkODHo64. [Accessed: 5 May 2016].
Seeker Daily. (2015). How The 21st Century Changed Journalism. [Online Video]. 5 September 2015. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmFlKKOKenw. [Accessed: 5 May 2016].
Welcome 
Hi,
Advancements in technology has defiantly leveled the playing field when it comes to reporting on anything happening in the wider community. Almost everyone has the ability to film or capture anything happening and sell it to news outlets.
Your blog is very clear and easy to read.
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I completely agree I think that due to the heavily digitalized age we live in, all you need is a phone and Internet connection to be able to report some of the major news and events in the world. It doesn’t matter if you don’t have a uni degree, the increasing advancements in technology and the rise of social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook, have allowed anyone and everyone to become a journalist.
Although your post was clear and succinct, I think it could have done with a few examples to provide a more in depth analysis and further research. For example, a man filmed himself being arrested and had a Taser drawn on him for not walking fast enough, on the network ‘Reddit’. This highlights the raw footage that ANY human can take to inform or portray a message to wider society. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nYk8Iw0Sdkc
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