Citizen Journalism vs R. Murdoch?

The Internet (and definitely the advent of new media) has in a way impacted on the profession of journalism and journalists alike (Deuze, 2009). This has occurred in two ways; the acceptance of citizen journalism as a legitimate phenomenon and the shift that has occurred where users are going from being a “media consumer to becoming a content (co)-producer” (Deuze, 2009).

New media application such as podcasting, blogging, ‘tweeting’ and vodcasting has allowed the average citizen to produce content worthy of publication, this mainly occurs on the Internet. The ‘people formerly knows as the audience” are now more interested in producing and co-producing content more than mindlessly consuming content (Deuze, 2009). So how does one become a citizen journalist?

These images or recordings are often posted on to Twitter accounts, Blogs, Flikr’s most of the time with the users commenting on the event and sharing the stories with friends. This average user of new media has turned themselves into citizen journalist. Ryan suggests that often, these raw pictures or recordings are treated as sources and are used with permission by journalists for their own stories (2010). Allowing for what Deuze calls a “democratization of media access”.

If a journalist can source these materials and images all from a computer desk, through the act of citizen journalism, one could argue that a journalist doesn’t necessarily require the resources of a big media conglomerate to write a news piece. Allowing for journalists to toy with the idea of freelancing, as opposed to being constricted to a contract perhaps? 

References

Deuze, 2009. The people formerly known as the Employers. Journalism, Vol. 10, issue 3, pp. 315-318. Retrieved April 21, 2009, from https://qutvirtual.qut.edu.au/portal/pls/portal/cmd_request_p.show_item?p_item_id=158408

Ryan, R.  (2010). KCB201 New Media 1: Information and Knowledge [Lecture Notes]. Retrieved April 17, 2010,  from http://blackboard.qut.edu.au/webapps/blackboard/content/contentWrapper.jsp?attachment=true&navItem=content&content_id=_3130417_1&displayName=Week+8+Lecture+Powerpoint&course_id=_60765_1&href=/%40%40/91567FB32700C26017E31C84406022BB/courses/1/KCB201_10se1/content/_3130417_1/Wk8WorkinginWithNewMedia.ppt