Citizen Journalism & Traditional Mainstream Media Reporting

Citizen Journalism & Traditional Mainstream Media Reporting
Name:
Institution:
Date:
Citizen Journalism
Introduction
According to English Oxford Dictionaries, citizen journalism is “the collection, dissemination, and analysis of news and information by the general public, especially using the Internet.” The birth of citizen journalism has spearheaded a revolution in the journalism industry. In the last decade, mainstream media has been supplemented as the only source of news, alternative sources such as blogs, web portals, social media and the Internet has offered a viable alternative to news for the public. It has left an indelible mark in the way media houses gather and report the news. Most press companies are playing catch-up with the news coverage as the public seems to have a parallel avenue of accessing news. Today, the public is aware of many intricate details of various news before the media can set up a camera and air it in their studios. The credibility and objectivity are however questionable from some sources though the integrity held by some publishers is unparalleled. The newspaper is no longer the gate keepers of the news, and slowly the other forms of traditional media are graduating to encompass the digital age. Thus, in this essay, a critical evaluation of the impact, challenges, pros and cons of citizen journalism are elucidated in detail highlighting how they relate to the traditional methods of mainstream media reporting.
How Citizen Journalism is Challenging Traditional Mainstream Journalism
Citizen journalism is increasingly being fast and reaches a wider audience. Most traditional mainstream journalism was restricted to some certain groups of people with specific needs. Most local media houses focused on local content and local news which the target audience needed. According to CITATION Gal10 \l 1033 (Gallagher, 2010), journalism needs discipline, analysis, explanation, and context, and therefore it is a profession. Citizen journalists have become a formidable source of news and information for the public. It has transcended boundaries regarding audience and diversity reporting on various subjects and events depending on the preference of the author. The information is meant for global consumption and diverse audience. For example, a blog published in the Middle East can be read immediately in the West. The Internet has facilitated sharing of the information on a global scale easily and fast. The information superhighway has stretched the audience capacity and allowed each one of them to consume the information published on the Internet at the same time. Today, the audience is global, and the tools and techniques of traditional journalism have been redesigned to accommodate the global audience demands and needs.
Objectivity has also been a critical element of traditional journalism CITATION Gal10 \l 1033 (Gallagher, 2010). Today, transparency has overridden objectivity as the most valuable characteristic of journalism. Traditional media houses defined objectivity and pursued it albeit seldom being subjective. The focus and objective determined by the journalist are what would reach the audience. This has gradually shifted to include all the details of the news to the public. Filtration of the content to ensure objectivity is countered by the need of transparency offered by citizen journalism which leaves journalists no alternative of the content they have to cover. Traditional media was designed to deliver news the people can trust; however, the new age journalism transparency is the element that delivers trust. Listeners, readers, and viewers today need to know how the news was produced and the source of information to deliver trust and show accuracy and fairness. That process has become indispensable to the news delivery in the new age of citizen journalism and has revolutionized the industry.
In the modern age journalism, feedback has become part of the news coverage. Live feedback has been incorporated in the delivery of the news where the audience can share their thoughts, opinions, and feelings. The input from the audience is loud and unignorable. Journalists are forced to live up to it and encompass the feedback from their viewers, listeners and readers to remain relevant in the business. Journalism in the past relied on little or slow feedback that tasked the media houses with the responsibility to uphold their professional standards and avoid the pitfall of ignoring the audience. Today, the audience has become part of delivering the news, and their voices must be heard and incorporated in the delivery of the news. Engaging diverse audiences, ensuring objectivity and transparency is the new demands for journalism in the digital era CITATION Can16 \l 1033 (Cannataci, et al., 2016). Journalism has had to adapt and come up with ways of featuring the audience in their content to remain relevant. Journalism has become collaborative and depends heavily on the feedback relayed to journalism.
The factors that have facilitated the development of citizen journalism
The Internet has been the key driver of citizen journalism CITATION DrE11 \l 1033 (Carlevale, 2011). Its penetration to remote places around the globe has been utilized to collect and disseminate news. Almost anyone with a phone that can access information can publish news to the world. The Internet has continually become cheap and an integral part of the society. Its use is access to information, and therefore citizen journalists tap into the numbers of these consumers to deliver their information. The industry has now been flooded with publishers and consumers of the information courtesy of the Internet. Journalism has benefitted from the Internet both as a source of news and an avenue to publish the information to a diverse audience across the globe. However, the Internet is supported by other technologically advanced equipment that has made it cheaper and easier to access for more people across the world.
Technological advancement has also been instrumental in facilitating the growth and spread of citizen journalism. Ewer gadgets with high processing power are flocking the market at very affordable prices. Citizen journalism is heavily dependent on technology and the tools to help collect and disseminate the information. Digital camera, smartphones, laptops and other modern devices have played a key role in revolutionizing the journalism industry ...