It has been known that the mass media is the Fourth Power after the Parliament, Government and the Legal system. But the Media wasn’t always honest, and in many cases it was bias. That does not mean it didn`t play its role. But the media role didn`t always fill the public expectations. Sometimes the media can be a victim of a political regime like in North Korea, or an economic regime like many news organizations in the west. And sometimes the Media is simply not there!
The simple definition of Citizen journalism according to Mediasmart.org is : "When members of the public engage in journalism. Examples include providing pictures or film of events to news organizations or reporting events in blogs" Link. Nowadays, through technology the public can make their own Fourth Power. Any person can take photos and short videos of any event then post it online. The mass Media organization can either ride the new wave or stay behind. That`s what made major Media network to set up platforms for the public news materials.
In Iran, The public was mad about the election fraud last year and went out in a mass protest. Then, the government made a media blackout on the event, but the people used Citizen Journalism widely to report the government brutal massive violent against them. Take a look at the report below about Iran`s Citizen Journalism:
When Tsunami hit south Asia in 2004. The media simply wasn`t there and most videos were filmed by amateurs, normal people who were there at the time. Then news networks picked up the material and used it because it`s the only footages available.
On the other hand, Citizen Journalism is still amateur’s journalism in many ways. Or as Ron Steinman executive editor of The Digital Journalist describe it : “untutored amateurs, the almost journalists of our modern age” Link. The argument against Citizen Journalism is that normal people reporting of events cannot replace professional journalism. Nevertheless, it can be argued that Citizen Journalism is not suppose to replace professional journalism, on the contrary, it can fill the gaps and strengthen the weaknesses of Professional Journalism. The evidences of this argument are first: Major News Networks always use Citizen journalism`s materials “Videos & photos” to support their news when they don`t have a reporter on site. Second: Citizen Journalism makes it hard for a bias News source or a dictator regime to hide the truth from the public.
In the end, Citizen journalism is a type of new media news. It`s practical, active and its impact on traditional media can`t be denied.
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